UPDATE: RESIDENTS in Victoria's southwest have been put on high alert as a large fire burns out of control.

The Kentbruck-Portland fire, which has been burning since last Friday, is expected to impact on Drik Drik between 4pm and 7pm.

The CFA is warning the fire could put lives and property at risk and people have been advised to put their bushfire survival plan in action.

A CFA spokeswoman said properties were under direct ember and fire attack in the area.

Firefighters are working to save farmhouses and sheds, with significant resources working on ground and in the air, she said.

Dartmoor Hotel publican Tex Lipscombe said people were getting out of town, but he would stay and defend the pub.

"The town is covered in smoke, but how far away it is now I don’t know," he said.

"People are getting out now. I’m going to ride it out."

More than 70 firefighting units have been tackling the Kentbruck fire, 30km northwest of Portland, near the South Australian border.

CFA State Control Centre spokeswoman Charlotte Azzopardi said 200 firefighters would fight the blaze today and work on containment lines, after working overnight.

The fire is in a low-lying swampy terrain, which has made ground access difficult.

“The fire is highly flammable in that area because it’s near a pine plantation,” Ms Azzopardi said.

Crews had hoped to burn to control lines yesterday with the help of seven fixed-wing planes, seven helicopters, 35 ground vehicles and a couple of bulldozers.

Read more on the Herald Sun.