An eyewitness described seeing a house opposite his property engulfed in flames as "hell on earth" as bushfires raged through Marrakai in Darwin's outer rural area.
Resident Mark Rhodes said he called emergency services about the fire as it began heading towards his property on Tuesday morning.
Mr Rhodes said it had crossed the road and began to envelop the house opposite his by the early afternoon.
"There's a shipping container house just across the road from mine, the gas cylinders inside were exploding as I was driving down the street," he said.
Mr Rhodes said he had to leave his house to avoid the heat from the flames.
"The heat got so hot I just had to jump in the car and go, it was just too hot," he said.
"It was horrible, it was hell on Earth, it was like being in a tornado but hot.
"The fire crew came just as I was leaving, and I pulled over and said, 'what do you want me to do about my house?' and he said, 'just go'."
Firefighters contain blaze near explosives factory
Firefighters were working hard to control the blaze before an expected change in the wind direction this evening, said Bushfires NT Operations Director Andrew Turner.
He said, in particular, they had worked to contain a fire near North Star Blasting, an explosives manufacturing company on Clarke Road in Marrakai.
Mr Turner said seven aircraft were out helping to make sure other fire fronts in the area were contained.
"The crews that are on ground at the moment are working towards containing the fire before a sea breeze comes through this afternoon," he said.
"It will dramatically change the fire front so we need to get our preparations in place for that.
"[Firefighters] are undertaking back-burning operations behind the Stephen's Road subdivision, we're also protecting assets on Stephen Road Subdivision [in Marrakai] and also the North Star property."
In a statement the Department of Education said students at Middle Point School were given the "all clear" by Bushfires NT to return home on buses to Marrakai.
