'Not going away': Heatwave 'replay' forecast for start of summer

A heatwave inflicting hot weather across southern parts of Queensland and northern NSW is set to cause searing conditions until next Monday.

Residents in Sydney and parts of NSW sweated through their hottest November night on record on Saturday as daytime temperatures over the weekend reached north of 40 degrees.

Weatherzone meteorologist Ben Domensino said Saturday and Sunday in Sydney were both over 40 degrees and it was the first spring with a pair of days over 40.

Parts of Queensland, South Australia and Victoria also endured sweat-inducing conditions.

Queensland has been dealing with ongoing heat waves since mid-November and the steamy conditions are set to continue for the start of December.

Queensland regions facing more hot days

Weatherzone meteorologist Brett Dutschke told Yahoo News Australia areas including Gympie, north of Brisbane, St George, Charleville and Cunnamulla are set to endure more of the heatwave.

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Gympie is forecast to hit 35 on Monday followed by 33 and 37 on Tuesday and Wednesday respectively, while St George experiences four days topping 40 or higher, according to the Bureau of Meteorology.

“Western parts of Brisbane will still be significantly hot too during the day while nights will cool to the low 20s,” Mr Dutschke said.

“Ipswich will reach 40 on Wednesday and humidity will make temperatures feel three degrees hotter than usual.”

Ipswich could also reach 36 on Monday and Tuesday. Meanwhile Brisbane’s CBD and western suburbs will top 30 for the first three days of the week with Wednesday reaching a possible 34.

Mr Dutschke said a cool change should arrive on Thursday but it won’t offer much easing to the heat for areas west of the Great Dividing Range.

Longreach and Winton in the state’s west could still both reach 40 on Thursday.

For other areas the reprieve from the heat will only be brief.

“It should re-heat from Friday to Monday,” he said.

“A replay from the first round of heat.”

When asked if it meant there was potential for another heatwave, Mr Dutschke replied: “Yes.”

Ipswich will hit 32 on Thursday followed by Friday, Saturday and Sunday exceeding 36 while Gympie will top 29 on Thursday before reaching 34, 37 and 37 again across the next three days.

The bureau predicts a low-intensity heat wave to commence from Thursday through to Saturday while some parts of southwest Queensland experience severe heatwave conditions.

Fraser Island holidayers sent home due to fires

Queensland Fire and Emergency Service Commissioner Greg Leach told Nine’s The Today Show he was “worried about the whole state” as firefighters battled 40 fires on Sunday.

Tourism hotspot Fraser Island is among the areas hit by blazes with a fire burning on the northern part of the island.

“The Kingfisher Bay resort operators have taken the decision to send visitors home for their safety,” he told The Today Show.

“We expect the fire might make a run today and push down to the east of the resort.”

He added no properties have been damaged though.

The fires come as Queensland is set to reopen its borders to all of NSW on Tuesday after they were closed due to Covid-19.

NSW bushfires: Sydney home lost

NSW RFS crews battled more than 60 bush and grass fires across the state on Sunday including blazes in the Blue Mountains and Kenthurst. Fire saw the evacuation of homes in the Sydney suburb of Northmead with one home lost and another damaged.

NSW's Northern Slopes and North Western districts are under a total fire ban.

"Tomorrow we'll see some elevated fire danger right through the Riverina, right up through the Central West, and much of inland NSW will see elevated fire danger," RFS Deputy Commissioner Peter McKechnie told ABC TV on Monday.

"Despite what was burned last year there is a lot of fuel west of the divide, the grass growth and the crops, and even on the coast, the bushland areas that weren't burned still present a risk as we saw yesterday."

Meanwhile, Endeavour Energy said in a statement on Monday 5700 customers remained without power after Sunday's strong winds. More than 100,000 homes and businesses lost power in NSW on Sunday.

The worst of the remaining damage is in Illawarra and western Sydney.

"If there is no further damage, we are confident that all customers will have their power back this afternoon," the company said.

Cool change hits NSW

Sydney is expected to top just 24 degrees on Monday after a cool change hit NSW dropping temperatures by up to nine degrees in the space of 20 minutes on Sunday evening.

BoM tweeted on Sunday evening, Sydney Airport dropped from 35 to 26 in in 20 minutes while Bellambi in the Illawarra region saw a 10-degree fall in one hour.

Sydney could reach 29 on Tuesday but that’s the hottest it should get throughout the week.

More northern parts of NSW are likely to bear the brunt of a heatwave on the NSW-Queensland border.

Lismore and Tenterfield will have days reaching above 30 for days both sides of Thursday’s cool change with Wednesday hitting a top of 36.

NSW Emergency Services Minister David Elliott told Sunrise on Monday people need to be cautious in the sweltering conditions over the coming weeks.

“This isn't going to go away,” Mr Elliott told Sunrise.

“Make sure you prepare for the conditions.

“People who are vulnerable make sure they don't go out into the heat, but you really do have to take responsibility for your own safety.”

with AAP

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