More than 50 fires were burning at one point on Friday in dry, windy and dangerous fire conditions.

Police declared an emergency at Lower Beechmont in the Gold Coast hinterland early on Saturday as a bushfire bore down, threatening homes.

Residents in its path were ordered to evacuate to Nerang.

An emergency was also declared in Cooroibah on the Sunshine Coast on Friday, as people there were evacuated.

Noosa Mayor Tony Wellington said the situation was "very volatile" early on Friday night.

The fast-moving fire was keeping emergency services on their toes as the winds were changing direction, he said.

"It's going to be a long night, it's going to be a distressing night," Mr Wellington said. "My sympathies go out to everyone."

Cooroibah resident Denyta Eaton fears for the horses she left behind when fleeing her home with her brother and parents.

The family took their dogs but they had no time to walk the horses out.

A neighbour cut the fence to prevent the horses, Cody and Effy, being trapped.

"There was so much smoke we could barely breathe," she said.

People in the path of a fast-moving bushfire at Tarome in the Scenic Rim area were also advised to evacuate.

Bar manager at the nearby Aratula Hotel, Leanne Brown, says there were actually two fires burning on either side of the town but the Tarome blaze was the bigger concern due to the wind direction.

"It's coming through fairly quickly," she told AAP on Friday.

Ms Brown said the local sports centre had been opened as an evacuation centre and police were stopping cars going into Tarome, five kilometres away.

"It's quite daunting at the moment," she said.

Residents in Thornton and Lefthand Branch, south of Laidley, were also told to evacuate late on Friday while people in Clumber, Noosa Banks, Jimna, Laidley Creek West and Mulgowie were advised to prepare to leave.

Residents at Buccan, south of Brisbane, were also urged to prepare to leave on Friday before fire crews got finally got the upper hand and contained the blaze.

A cool change should bring cooler temperatures to much of southern Queensland by Saturday morning, the Bureau of Meteorology's Jess Gardner said.

But fresh winds can make firefighting difficult, she added.

Hotter temperatures, which have fanned the flames around the south of the state, are expected to move further north on Saturday.

Australian Associated Press