A Barwidgee Creek couple, identified by neighbours as John and Sue Wilson, died in the early hours of yesterday morning when their home was razed after fire ripped through the Mudgegonga and Barwidgee Creek

areas, headed towards Happy Valley and Rosewhite.

Police believe it was Mr Wilson’s body found at the back of the house after 9am yesterday, after it appears he had been fighting the fire with a hose stretched from a tank and water pump to the back fence.

His wife’s body was found in a room at the front of their brick home which had collapsed.

Mr Wilson, a builder, is a former captain for the Myrtleford Saints cricket club and was a renowned sportsman.

The couple, thought to be in their 50s, have adult children who were yesterday told of the deaths.

A fire, which began 4km south of Beechworth late Saturday afternoon, has raced across more than 22,500ha of North East bushland and forests in the past 36 hours and was last night threatening communities including Dederang, Bruarong, Glen Creek, Running Creek, Coral Bank, Stanley and Yackandandah.

Beechworth incident controller, Tony Long, said in the two hours before 8pm yesterday the region had experienced severe fire conditions that had seen the blaze jump the Kiewa Valley Highway and Kiewa River east in the vicinity of Larkins Lane.

After 10pm there were urgent fire warnings for those living between Dederang and Gundowring and fears the fire would spread towards the Esk­dale Spur and Little Snowy Creek.

Mr Long said elsewhere there were immediate concerns the fire’s eastern flank was moving into the Bruarong and Glen Creek areas and ember attacks were expected.

He said there were also fears the blaze might have spotted north of Dederang Road towards Mount Big Ben where firefighters would be aiming to protect significant communications equipment.

Yackandandah residents were facing a sleepless night as they were urged to remain vigilant with the fire predicted to be moving towards them from the south west.

As many as 15 properties are thought to have been destroyed in the Barwidgee Creek area, among more than 700 houses lost in the weekend blazes which have claimed almost 312,000ha across Victoria.

The North East fire began in Library Road, south of Beechworth on Saturday afternoon, with falling tree branches believed to have sparked a blaze when they hit a power line.

The fire was driven by strong winds and temperatures that peaked at 44.8 degrees in Albury after 4pm on Saturday.

Fuelled by strong north-westerly winds and the searing heat, the fire quickly spread into the early hours of yesterday morning, spotting up to 10km ahead of the main fire front.

Another Beechworth incident controller, Leith McKenzie, said firefighters who worked through Saturday night had helped to save hundreds of houses in the fire’s path, as it spread rapidly.

“It’s fair to say that it has been a hell of a day and night for all of us,” he said.

“We gave it our best shot.

“Together, with the community, we have done our very best to limit the spread and impact of this fire.”

But while conditions on the fire ground abated in the early hours of yesterday morning, a west-south-westerly change soon after noon yesterday pushed the fire back towards Stanley and Beechworth and towards other areas.

These included Running Creek, Kancoona, Kancoona South, Dederang, Coral Bank, Glen Creek and Bruarong.