Heat and Unrest Grip Southeast Australia

And on Wednesday, we already saw a very warm to hot day across south-east Australia. On Thursday, temperatures dropping slightly across Tasmania. But the heat will peak across South Australia, Victoria and inland parts of New South Wales. For Melbourne, 36 °C, even hotter through the suburbs, 39 °C for Adelaide, and across the Riverland and north-western parts of Victoria. Maximum temperatures climbing up into the low 40s. It will also be very hot across eastern parts of New South Wales. Western Sydney starts a run of 4 very hot days and warm nights.

As we head into Friday we do see temperatures moderating slightly across the far southern coast with some southerly breezes coming through, but the heat will stick around across inland parts again, reaching the high 30s to low 40s, and a very hot day in Penrith, 41 °C there. As we look towards the weekend, we do see heat continue to push up into northern parts of New South Wales and southern Queensland, but temperatures on the decline across South Australia, Victoria and Tasmania, as we do see another system approach from the west.

And then on Sunday, very much the same story, hot across northern New South Wales and southern Queensland, and a cold front and trough will push through the rest of the south-east. That'll bring much cooler air, as well as showers and thunderstorms, and so with a run of very hot days and warm nights, we are expecting to see heatwave conditions.

Having a look now at the heatwave forecast we can see heatwave conditions extending all the way from central Australia and out towards the east coast, but the focus very much across the far south-east corner. So if we zoom in through there, we see severe heatwave conditions in these orange areas. This is where we do have Heatwave Warnings current. We also do have extreme heatwave conditions forecast for parts of the New South Wales south coast.

As you head through the weekend, we see heatwave conditions building and extending up into north-eastern parts of New South Wales, also into southern parts of Queensland, and it is summer and heatwaves are normal at this time of year. But they can pose a challenge for more vulnerable people, and we do see heatwaves getting to that severe to extreme territory. Even healthy people can find it challenging, so do make sure you take the necessary precautions with a run of very hot days and warm nights.

And as temperatures rise, so too do fire dangers. Having a look now at the Fire Danger Ratings. Starting off with Thursday, we can see high fire danger for much of South Australia, Victoria and southern New South Wales. But it is worth pointing out that we do have extreme fire dangers for the Mount Lofty Ranges in South Australia. Although Friday will see some slightly cooler temperatures, still high fire dangers across South Australia, northern Victoria, and now pushing up into northern parts of New South Wales. And on Saturday again, a day of high fire danger for some parts, including the Darling Downs in Queensland.

In addition to heat, we are also expecting to see thunderstorms really building and becoming more widespread as we head into the weekend. On Thursday, we do see thunderstorms with a surface trough across central parts of Australia, particularly through eastern parts of South Australia, western Queensland and north-western parts of New South Wales. And then heading into Friday, we do see that surface trough extend a little further south, and that'll drag a lot of tropical moisture south with it.

So on Friday, the thunderstorm outlook map does show thunderstorms are possible all the way down towards Melbourne, but more likely through inland parts of Victoria, inland New South Wales, and again up into south-eastern parts and eastern parts of South Australia. At this stage, not expecting to see severe thunderstorm activity, but these could generate heavy rainfall as well as damaging winds. So keep an eye on the latest updates heading into the weekend.

And then on Saturday, we do see storms again right across the south-east, all the way into the east coast of New South Wales. So with a lot of heat coming through as well as elevated fire dangers, it is important you have the latest information for your area. Stay up to date with the information on our website and app, follow us on social media, and as always, please stay safe.