Emergency alert for bushfire downgraded as firefighters control the blaze

Crews were notified at around 4.30am when a large fire was spotted around the Tomahawk area.

While there were initial concerns that the fire could reach the township, Tasmania Parks and Wildlife Service incident controller Robert Buck said he was "absolutely" confident it wouldn't make it that far.

"We've got the fire moving towards the beach but nothing's under threat from it as of this point in time," he said.

"At the moment, the conditions are just right so it's actually moving the fire along at a reasonably slow speed."

With assistance from the police, the parks service evacuated 16 campers from the area.

Inspector Nick Clark from the Tasmania Police said no one was left behind.

"I've been advised there were a lot of campers up there in private secluded spots but we're very confident that everyone has been contacted and removed from the area," he said.

While it's not yet known what started the blaze, two leading theories are currently being looked into.

Tasmania Fire Service regional chief north Jeff Harper said the department had its fire investigator on the scene to determine the cause.

"The north-east part of Tasmania got hit by a significant number of lightning strikes two days ago," he said.

"Lightning strikes can sit in vegetation for a couple of days and the warm afternoons or the dry air can let it come out.

"That's one possibility but being 4.30 in the morning, it's not necessarily the most probable."

Mr Harper said the other theory was that a camper hadn't properly extinguished their fire.

A total of 16 trucks, six rotary aircraft and two planes were sent to the scene and effectively reduced the fire's severity.

"We've downgraded the two warnings to just 'watch and act', so that means that there's no threat to people," Mr Harper said.

"But we do ask that people stay informed and stay vigilant around what's happening."