City’s nine-year heat record broken
Western Australia’s capital city is sweltering through an unusual heat spike, with temperatures in Perth managing to tip just past the hottest September day in nine years.
The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) recorded a top temperature of 34.3C at 3.56pm AWST in Perth, just 0.1C higher than the previous record set in September 2014.
The soaring mercury follows a mild 25C on Tuesday, with temperatures again cooling into the low-to-mid 20s from Thursday.
The September-high record came close to being beaten in 2019 when 33.1C was recorded on one day.
BOM forecaster Luke Huntington said Wednesday felt more like summer in Perth because a trough that developed rapidly off the coast brought hot north-easterly winds from inland northern parts of WA.
“The sudden fluctuation in temperature is a fairly common spring set-up for Perth,” Mr Huntington said.
“We typically see one or two warm consecutive days before the temperature drops back again.
“What is unusual is the intensity of the heat for this time of year, with 34C being early for this time of year.”
“(Thursday) is cooler because the trough will have moved inland bringing a cooler southerly wind flow throughout the day,” Mr Huntington said.
“Perth will be in a cooler onshore flow with a cold front to move through later Sunday and into Monday. This will drop the temp back to 20C on Monday.”
With temperatures nearing 30C by late morning, locals and tourists alike could be seen lounging in CBD parks or sticking to the shade as they went about their business.
