Tributes have been paid to the fourth victim of the NSW bushfires, Barry Parsons, who has been remembered as a "gentle guy".
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Mr Parsons' body was discovered in bushland on the southern end of the Kyuna Track at Willawarrin, near Kempsey, on Wednesday night.
The 58-year-old was named as the fourth person to die in the bushfires, as emergency services continued to battle almost 60 blazes tearing through the state on Thursday.
Australian Hemp Party president Michael Balderstone said Mr Parsons would occasionally drop in at the Nimbin hemp embassy.
"He was a lovely peaceful guy. He was just a lovely gentle guy," he told AAP.
Mr Parsons' death follows that of Julie Fletcher, 63, who died in the town of Johns River, and Wytaliba locals Vivian Chaplain, 69, and George Nole.
Premier Gladys Berejiklian during Question Time in parliament extended her condolences to the family and friends of Mr Parsons and the three other fire victims.
"I want to on behalf of all colleagues in this place extend our deepest condolences to all their loved ones and appreciate what a difficult time it is for them, as it is for the communities because when you come from a small community ... it sends quite huge shockwaves throughout townships," she said.
Large parts of the state will come under total fire bans on Friday with forecasts of renewed and widespread severe conditions.
Total fire bans will be in place for the far north coast, the north coast, New England, the northern slopes, Greater Hunter, Greater Sydney, Illawarra-Shoalhaven and the central slopes regions.
Almost 60 fires continue to burn around NSW, with about 30 uncontained.
Meanwhile, an emergency warning was issued for an out-of-control bushfire burning southeast of Casino on Thursday afternoon for the 4600-hectare Bora Ridge fire.
It is currently the only fire in the state burning at an emergency alert level, while six blazes are at "watch and act".
Emergency services minister David Elliott says 329 homes have been destroyed in the fires to date, with another 131 damaged.
There were more than 1500 firefighters deployed across the state on Thursday afternoon, with more than 70 aircraft and 500 vehicles in place to support them.
Rural Fire Service NSW Deputy Commissioner Rob Rogers said the passing of Tuesday's "catastrophic" fire warning day had not made battling blazes easier.
"We had a better day yesterday, only one fire got to emergency warning, but even in these pretty benign conditions we're seeing quite a lot of aggressive fire behaviour simply because it's so dry," Mr Rogers told the Seven Network.
"Conditions starting to warm up tomorrow, into the weekend and then heating up early next week, a return to more gusty conditions. We're in for the long haul."
About 55 schools will remain closed in fire-affected areas.
Meanwhile, a suspected arsonist has reportedly been arrested after an army Black Hawk helicopter chased him through Sydney's Royal National Park.
The 6th Aviation Regiment unit was returning to Holsworthy base on Wednesday after helping in the bushfire effort in the Blue Mountains when they saw a man acting suspiciously, The Daily Telegraph reported.
The crew alerted police and kept the man in sight, finding his hiding place.
Additionally, police responding to a trapped paraglider north of Wollongong on Wednesday arrested a man allegedly starting fire in nearby bushland.
Officers found the Balgownie fire while helping the paraglider and allegedly saw the 20-year-old man fanning its flames. He has been arrested and charged with causing fire and will appear at Wollongong Local Court on December 3.
Mr Rogers, meanwhile, defended a Sydney CBD fireworks display on Wednesday night while the statewide total fire ban was in force, saying it had been inspected and declared safe by authorities.
Australian Associated Press
