The extreme heat gripping much of Australia’s southeast has begun to ease, but Western Australia is being warned to brace for further scorching conditions.
Temperatures across parts of South Australia, Victoria and New South Wales are expected to moderate this week after a record-breaking heatwave, while Perth remains under the influence of prolonged extreme heat.
Adelaide is on track for its driest summer since records began, with no rainfall recorded in January. The city has experienced its first rainless January since 2019 and only the eighth such month since records started in 1839.
According to Weatherzone, Adelaide’s driest summer on record was 1905–06, when just 4mm of rain fell. So far, only 2.8mm has been recorded this summer, all of it in December.
The Bureau of Meteorology has forecast another week of dry and warm conditions for South Australia, with daytime temperatures hovering around 30C after a brief reprieve.
Fire dangers remain high across parts of New South Wales and Victoria, with total fire bans declared for the Upper Central West Plains and Eastern Riverina regions in NSW and the north-east of Victoria.
In contrast, Perth residents are expected to endure temperatures of up to 39C as the heatwave slowly eases. Long-range forecasts suggest warmer-than-average days and nights across much of Australia in the coming months, increasing the risk of extreme heat events through late summer and early autumn.
