FIRE crews fighting the Abbeyard-Yarrarabula South and Mount Buffalo fires will continue working on large scale back burning along established containment lines, taking advantage of milder weather this week.

Fire conditions spiked again in the lead-up to the weekend, with hot weather on Thursday and Friday preceding a squally south-westerly change and the threat of lightening strikes prompting a second evacuation of the area and an influx of extra emergency resources.

About 500 people are currently deployed to the fire from a range of agencies including Forest Fire Management Victoria, the CFA, SES, Hancock Victorian Plantations, Agriculture Victoria, the Army Reserves and now a strike team from the US Forest Service.