Last hot gasp of summer deadly
Wilson, Lauren. John Stapleton. Weekend Australian [Canberra, A.C.T] 07 Feb 2009: 5.
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Abstract
NSW is expected to be one of the hottest places on the planet tomorrow with the mercury in parts of the state forecast to hit 47C. Residents of Sydney's western suburbs can expect 44C.
Authorities say the extreme bushfire conditions could be worse than those that led to the Ash Wednesday bushfires of 1983, which killed 47 people in Victoria and 28 in South Australia. A total fire ban has been declared in NSW, Victoria and in nine of South Australia's 15 fire districts.
DSE incident controller Chris Hardman said: "Saturday's predicted weather conditions are the most vicious we've seen."
IT is predicted to be the final gasp of this summer's horror heatwave, and it will be a scorcher.
Ambulance crews in Victoria will today be on high alert, trains in NSW will slow down in case the heat causes tracks to buckle, and police in South Australia will be monitoring known firebugs.
Firefighters across the three states, and in the ACT, are bracing for a devastating weekend as record high temperatures, gusty winds and parched dry earth combine to produce an unprecedented fire danger.
The good news is the heat is not expected to last, with a cool change forecast to pass through Melbourne late today and hit Sydney by tomorrow night or Monday morning.
Don White, from Weatherwatch, said "the heatwave will have one last hurrah. We are getting a stronger cool change coming through by the end of the weekend."
The relief will not come soon enough for many in southeast Australia who have suffered through a summer of record temperatures driven by a high-pressure system over the Tasman.
NSW is expected to be one of the hottest places on the planet tomorrow with the mercury in parts of the state forecast to hit 47C. Residents of Sydney's western suburbs can expect 44C.
Authorities say the extreme bushfire conditions could be worse than those that led to the Ash Wednesday bushfires of 1983, which killed 47 people in Victoria and 28 in South Australia. A total fire ban has been declared in NSW, Victoria and in nine of South Australia's 15 fire districts.
The NSW Rural Fire Service is already battling more than 20 blazes across the state, including a serious uncontained bushfire in the Bega Valley which could be fanned by wind gusts of up to 70km/h over the weekend.
The Victorian Department of Sustainability and Environment yesterday warned a blaze burning in the Bunyip state park, east of Melbourne, was likely to jump containment lines over the weekend and threaten the communities of Labertouche and Tonimbuk.
DSE incident controller Chris Hardman said: "Saturday's predicted weather conditions are the most vicious we've seen."
As the temperature hit 43C in Adelaide yesterday, South Australian fire chief Euan Ferguson warned, "if a fire escapes containment lines, we simply would not be able to control the head fire until the weather conditions change significantly".
For updates and to check the latest forecasts, go to www.theaustralian.com.au
Credit: Lauren Wilson, John Stapleton
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