Extreme heat, gusty winds fanning deadly wildfires in Australia
By
Courtney Travis, AccuWeather senior meteorologist &
Renee Duff, AccuWeather senior meteorologist
Published Dec 25, 2019 5:25 PM EDT
Excessive heat and gusty winds have contributed to an extreme fire danger across central and southern Australia, with one of the blazes in New South Wales turning deadly on Monday, local time.
A volunteer firefighter has died and two others suffered burns while battling a blaze 70 km (45 miles) east of Albury in New South Wales, according to the New South Wales Rural Fire Service (NSWRFS). The firefighters were traveling in a truck when it is believed it rolled over in high winds.
In the state of Victoria, 11 emergency fire warnings were in effect at the start of the week, according to Reuters.
A wildfire billowed high enough in the atmosphere to create a thunderstorm near Cobargo, a village 254 km (158 miles) southeast of Canberra.
The NSWRFS announced on Monday that the Sydney Harbour New Year's Eve fireworks display would proceed as scheduled despite the heightened fire danger.
Sydney's location on the water will limit the potential of fireworks sparking blazes. However, people elsewhere across southeast Australia hoping to ring in the new year with pyrotechnics should make sure they follow all fire bans issued by officials. Even the smallest spark can turn into a raging inferno in hot, dry and windy conditions.
Meanwhile, all New Year's Eve events in Canberra City have been canceled due to "unprecedented extreme and highly unpredictable weather conditions."
A firefighter controls a backburn near Mangrove Mountain, north of Sydney, Australia, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2019. Hot, dry conditions brought an early start to the fire season. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)
Heat is expected to ease in the Sydney area for the start of the new year, with the high temperature forecast to return to a seasonable 25 C (77 F).
Continued dry conditions with localized gusty winds will mean the fire danger will not let up for the first days of 2020.
While cooler air will lower temperatures near the coast, extreme heat is forecast to persist over the interior at the start of the new year.
Meanwhile, rounds of showers and thunderstorms will persist across northern Australia as the delayed monsoon kicks in.
"The monsoon usually arrives in November in northern Australia, but was delayed this year," said AccuWeather Lead International Meteorologist Jason Nicholls.
Rounds of showers and thunderstorms are expected to stream over the Top End and Kimberley coast during the first days of the new year.
Residents in the area should be prepared for flash flooding, should a downpour sit over their particular area for a longer period of time. The most likely locations to flood would be low-lying and poor-drainage areas.
Not only will conditions be favorable for showers and thunderstorms, but a tropical low could develop off the coast of northwest Australia this week.
"This is an area we will need to monitor, as it could become the first cyclone of the season in this area," said Nicholls.
As AccuWeather predicted back in October, the weather pattern over Australia for the last two months has been directly influenced by a positive Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD).
The positive Indian Ocean Dipole is characterized by warmer-than-average waters off the African east coast and cooler-than-average waters off the Indonesia coast.
"A pattern with a positive IOD usually favors drought conditions across northern and eastern Australia, and often leads to extreme heat in southern Australia," said Nicholls.
Both have been experienced across Australia late this year, with the delayed wet season in the North and the heat in New South Wales.
Download the free AccuWeather app to check the forecast in your area. Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.
Report a Typo
News / Severe Weather
Extreme heat, gusty winds fanning deadly wildfires in Australia
By Courtney Travis, AccuWeather senior meteorologist & Renee Duff, AccuWeather senior meteorologist
Published Dec 25, 2019 5:25 PM EDT
Excessive heat and gusty winds have contributed to an extreme fire danger across central and southern Australia, with one of the blazes in New South Wales turning deadly on Monday, local time.
A volunteer firefighter has died and two others suffered burns while battling a blaze 70 km (45 miles) east of Albury in New South Wales, according to the New South Wales Rural Fire Service (NSWRFS). The firefighters were traveling in a truck when it is believed it rolled over in high winds.
In the state of Victoria, 11 emergency fire warnings were in effect at the start of the week, according to Reuters.
A wildfire billowed high enough in the atmosphere to create a thunderstorm near Cobargo, a village 254 km (158 miles) southeast of Canberra.
The NSWRFS announced on Monday that the Sydney Harbour New Year's Eve fireworks display would proceed as scheduled despite the heightened fire danger.
Sydney's location on the water will limit the potential of fireworks sparking blazes. However, people elsewhere across southeast Australia hoping to ring in the new year with pyrotechnics should make sure they follow all fire bans issued by officials. Even the smallest spark can turn into a raging inferno in hot, dry and windy conditions.
Meanwhile, all New Year's Eve events in Canberra City have been canceled due to "unprecedented extreme and highly unpredictable weather conditions."
A firefighter controls a backburn near Mangrove Mountain, north of Sydney, Australia, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2019. Hot, dry conditions brought an early start to the fire season. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)
Heat is expected to ease in the Sydney area for the start of the new year, with the high temperature forecast to return to a seasonable 25 C (77 F).
Continued dry conditions with localized gusty winds will mean the fire danger will not let up for the first days of 2020.
While cooler air will lower temperatures near the coast, extreme heat is forecast to persist over the interior at the start of the new year.
Meanwhile, rounds of showers and thunderstorms will persist across northern Australia as the delayed monsoon kicks in.
"The monsoon usually arrives in November in northern Australia, but was delayed this year," said AccuWeather Lead International Meteorologist Jason Nicholls.
Rounds of showers and thunderstorms are expected to stream over the Top End and Kimberley coast during the first days of the new year.
Residents in the area should be prepared for flash flooding, should a downpour sit over their particular area for a longer period of time. The most likely locations to flood would be low-lying and poor-drainage areas.
Not only will conditions be favorable for showers and thunderstorms, but a tropical low could develop off the coast of northwest Australia this week.
"This is an area we will need to monitor, as it could become the first cyclone of the season in this area," said Nicholls.
Related:
As AccuWeather predicted back in October, the weather pattern over Australia for the last two months has been directly influenced by a positive Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD).
The positive Indian Ocean Dipole is characterized by warmer-than-average waters off the African east coast and cooler-than-average waters off the Indonesia coast.
"A pattern with a positive IOD usually favors drought conditions across northern and eastern Australia, and often leads to extreme heat in southern Australia," said Nicholls.
Both have been experienced across Australia late this year, with the delayed wet season in the North and the heat in New South Wales.
Download the free AccuWeather app to check the forecast in your area. Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.
Report a Typo