Recent spells of rain and good work from firefighters means there a no major blazes in the Lower Hunter as the region heads into a weekend in which temperatures are tipped to hit the low 40s in some parts.
Lower Hunter Rural Fire Service district manager Superintendent Martin Siemsen said his crews were well-rested after the relief from the weather in the past few weeks, but he warned that the region remained unusually dry.
He said soil dryness measurements were "extremely high for this time of year", even on the coast.
"We're expecting elevated fire danger [this weekend], but what that looks like we are not sure at this time," Superintendent Siemsen told the Newcastle Herald.
"The rain looks great, but it hasn't soaked in enough to have an effect on that dryness.
"There's still a significant risk of new ignitions.
"Only another couple of weekends of dry weather and we could quite easily get an ignition that would be quite difficult to control."
The weekend's fire danger ratings will not be released until Friday, but temperatures are predicted to soar for the next three days.
The Greater Hunter's rating is high for Friday.
Singleton is in store for a top of 40 degrees on Friday, 42 on Saturday and 43 on Sunday before a drop to 30 on Monday.
Elsewhere in the region, Maitland is predicted to reach a maximum of 38 on Friday, 41 on Saturday and 42 on Sunday, while Newcastle is forecast to reach 35, 37 and 38 degrees.
Nelson Bay is facing a much cooler outlook, with a high of 27 degrees predicted for Friday, 29 for Saturday and 30 - with a late shower - on Sunday.
South of Newcastle, the 512,626-hectare Gospers Mountain fire continues to burn at advice level and was listed as being under control on Thursday.
Superintendent Siemsen said people should remain vigilant in preparing their homes against the threat of fire and urged the community to watch the Fires Near Me app for changes in conditions.
"We don't have any major fires in the landscape [as of Thursday afternoon], which is good news," he said.
"People still need to be wary that the bushfire season isn't over yet."
