NSW endures longest spell of air pollution on record as bushfires flare near Sydney

Six emergency warnings issued in NSW, while many parts of the state and Queensland remain blanketed in smoke

Six emergency warnings have been issued for fires in New South Wales on Thursday, including the 230,000-hectare Gospers Mountain blaze on Sydney's north-western outskirts, as firefighters battle through a "long and challenging day".

Queensland fire crews are also still battling a large bushfire on the Darling Downs with fears some properties have been lost, as Sydney and large parts of New South Wales continue to struggle with "the longest and the most widespread" period on record of poor air quality and hazardous levels of pollution.