Devastated residents have returned to the scene of Victoria's Great Ocean Road bushfire, with "ash and twisted metal" all that remains for some.
Authorities warn the danger isn't over, with the blaze that has claimed 116 homes and holiday houses still out of control and temperatures set to hit the high-30s later in the week.
Kate Beamish lost her Wye River family home in the Christmas Day fire.
"It's amazing to see this house, full of stuff, now just ash and twisted metal," she told Ten News on Monday.
"We might not have a home and there's quite a few people that don't have their homes but we have a town and we'll always have that."
Sherryl Smith has been in Wye River for 20 years, full time for the past six, and lost her home and business.
"A life time of collecting artworks from all over the world, they're all gone, my business is gone. It's weird," Ms Smith told AAP.
She said locals are "gutted" at how random the destruction was.
"You see the capriciousness of how the wind just whipped around and took that house and not this one."
Former MasterChef contestant Jules Allen lost her childhood home.
"The house was built the year I was born, so we all grew up there and then my kids have all grown up there," she told Network Seven.
Deputy incident controller Mark Gunning said hundreds of firefighters were working around the clock to prepare for extreme heat on New Year's Eve.
"Aircraft are key to the attack given that the fire is burning in steep and mostly inaccessible terrain," Mr Gunning said.
The Bureau of Meteorology is predicting a top of 35C for New Year's Eve, with wind gusts up to 35km/h on the hilly Victorian coast.
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said the next few days would be dedicated to fixing roads, power and water.
"The fire season came early, with higher temperatures and higher winds and the fact we've had no decent rain in parts of the state is a warning for the rest of the summer," he said.
He was thankful there were no funerals to attend and praised firefighters and the local community for their response.
People who lost their primary residence are eligible for a $32,500 payment, while $1300 is available for each household for immediate needs like food, repairs and emergency accommodation.
Insurance Council of Australia spokesman Campbell Fuller said as of midday on Monday, an estimated $53 million in losses had been recorded.
However, "most of the property owners haven't been able to get to their properties and thus have not lodged claims", he told AAP.
Tourism has also suffered, with businesses on the Great Ocean Road set to lose $50 million in summer earnings.
Great Ocean Road Regional Tourism chairman Wayne Kayler-Thomson says the bushfire has significantly affected the most profitable time of year for the state's most visited region outside Melbourne.
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