Severe fire danger for Australia as temperatures smash records

 

FILE PHOTO: A resident uses a garden hose to wet down the house as high winds push smoke and ash from the Currowan Fire towards Nowra, New South Wales, Australia January 4, 2020. REUTERS/Tracey Nearmy/File Photo

 

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Parts of Australia, including Sydney, sweltered through the hottest November night on record with temperatures likely to stay high on Sunday, prompting authorities to issue a total fire ban.

 

Sydney CBD surpassed 40 degrees Celsius (104 F) on Saturday while swathes of western New South Wales, South Australia and northern Victoria baked through even higher temperatures nearing 45 degrees.

 

Temperatures are expected to cross 40 degrees for a second straight day on Sunday while the Bureau of Meteorology has predicted a five or six-day heatwave for parts of northern New South Wales and southeast Queensland.

 

The predictions for soaring temperatures prompted the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) to say demand may exceed supply in New South Wales on Sunday afternoon.

 

Australia has been experiencing hotter and longer summers with last season dubbed "Black Summer" by Prime Minister Scott Morrison due to unusually prolonged and intense bushfires that burned nearly 12 million hectares (30 million acres), killed 33 people and an estimated 1 billion animals.

 

The Rural Fire Service issued a total fire ban for most of eastern and northeastern NSW for Sunday, saying there was a "very high to severe fire danger forecast" as hot, gusty winds exacerbate dry conditions.

 

(Reporting by Swati Pandey; Editing by Daniel Wallis)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-11-29

 

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Very true...they say it's heading for 41.C in my area..with hot gusty winds.Whilst we had good rain in the winter it is getting pretty dry now with only light falls so far.

It was 28c yesterday and 29c today at my house on the Sunshine Coast with a nice gentle sea breeze. But the longer i stay before return the more i will suffer when i get back but i sure wont miss the burning. 

Is it that time of the year again? It seems like just yesterday that wildfires were devastating large tracts of Australian bush and endangering many homes and people. Let's hope this year is better.

2 hours ago, oompie69 said:

Is it that time of the year again? It seems like just yesterday that wildfires were devastating large tracts of Australian bush and endangering many homes and people. Let's hope this year is better.

Well..our dams are full and our rivers are flowing-which is a marked improvement on last year.

However it's has been a dry spring and the bush is becoming tinder dry once again and there is plenty of new undergrowth to fuel any fire....and yes it seems like yesterday...

Water bombers landing at my town in December last year.

 

4 hours ago, lockyv7 said:

It was 28c yesterday and 29c today at my house on the Sunshine Coast with a nice gentle sea breeze. But the longer i stay before return the more i will suffer when i get back but i sure wont miss the burning. 

You have picked a nice place to live. Much better than the goldie.