Light rain is falling on a fire that has burnt through about 600 hectares of bush, farmland and pine plantations in Gippsland.
The fire escaped from a Department of Sustainability of Environment (DSE) fuel reduction burn, started at Hallston near Mirboo North on Monday.
DSE crews started another burn nearby on Tuesday morning, despite forecasts for a 35 degree top temperature on Wednesday.
The fire escaped control lines and burnt farmland.
Residents are now asking why a controlled burn was started with hot weather forecast.
The DSE has been under pressure to complete as much controlled burning as possible this autumn, for fuel reduction, regeneration and asset protection.
Roads are blocked in the area this morning.
Light rain is falling and fire authorities are hoping to contain the fire in the cooler conditions today.
The fire spread in yesterday's hot windy conditions then changed direction onto pasture and plantations after the south westerly change last night.
The incident controller, Damien O'Connor, says fire crews from Hancock Plantations have joined the fire-fighting effort.
"It has come out of the forest into the private property, it has had an impact on some plantations and onto some private land, there's been no structural losses or anything like that but there has been a bit of fence loss," he said.
He says the rain started falling earlier this morning and is helping.
"Condition wise it should be fairly favourable to the suppression activities.
"We're expecting a bit of rain for a bit longer and some fairly benign conditions.
"There is some predicted increase in the wind later in the day but with the rain it shouldn't be too bad," Mr O'Connor said.
A large bush fire near Dereel, south of Ballarat has been contained.