Crews will aim to get the upper hand over the weekend as conditions ease, by putting in hard containment lines on the southern flank of the bushfire, which is the main area of focus.

They may backburn into the fire - which now stretches over more than 3200 hectares between Barraba and Uralla - if wind conditions allow.

Two unoccupied houses and one outbuilding have been lost, however there has been a "significant number of saves" including at least five properties, a number of smaller buildings and the historic Warrabah Station woolshed.

Rural Fire Service (RFS) Deputy Incident Controller Myles O'Reilly said while they might seem like small numbers, every house, shed and property protected was the culmination of hours of work and fierce determination from "fantastic volunteers".

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"It's not been without it's challenges," Mr O'Reilly said.

"The fire is quite dynamic because of the location and the terrain. There are unusual wind conditions, because it blows between crops of rock.

"Currently, the western and eastern flank is looking pretty good and contained. There are some hot spots in there, that we'll continue to mop up."

"The focus is on the south, that's where the activity is, so we are managing that with strike teams and aircraft."

While the ongoing drought has limited water sources, Mr O'Reilly said crews had been "very fortunate".

"We've used a combination of bulk water supplies and local sources," he said.

"So we've been good so far. We've also been prudent about how we use it. It's not about putting a lot of water on the fire, it's about putting it in the right place."

On Thursday night, the RFS held a community meeting at Kingstown Public School, with about 30 residents attending, to answer any questions they had.

"They're a resilient community," Mr O'Reilly said.

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