Perth battles 40C heatwave as the east coast cools off
It’s Perth’s turn to cop sweltering temperatures as the mercury looks set to surpass 40C across WA over the weekend.
After South Australia and NSW bore the brunt of this week’s relentless heatwave, residents along the west coast are being warned to expect similar conditions in the coming days.
Easterly winds will only worsen conditions, bringing dry hot air from the Outback to Perth and other coastal towns.
As temperatures on Saturday night will drop no lower than 22C, Sunday is predicted to reach 40C in all regions of WA.
Those temperatures were too high for officials at Mount Barker who have cancelled Sunday’s race meet.
“My top three tips I’d give to avoid seeing us on these hot days is stay hydrated, use some common sense and stay in the shade when you can,” St Johns Ambulance paramedic Simon Klass said.
Its going to be a hot weekend in many parts of #WA, and this animation shows how the heat area grows and moves over the next few days. #Perth is expecting temps of 39° and 40°C for the weekend. 🌞https://t.co/YjBizpPGJQ pic.twitter.com/3t44RorhCm
— Bureau of Meteorology, Western Australia (@BOM_WA) January 18, 2019
“It’s one of those usual ones where it’s just very hot,” Bureau of Meteorology duty forecaster Ricus Lombard told The West Australian.
Following on from the dry heat, Monday’s forecast brings humid conditions for Perth residents.
Yet the extreme conditions will subside by Wednesday and a maximum of 25C and a chance of showers will bring relief for some.
Brief respite for east coast
Parts of NSW should begin to feel some relief over the weekend as a cool change moves up the coast after temperatures soared and the state sweltered through the peak of a record-breaking heatwave.
But any respite is expected to be temporary with temperatures due to rise again next week.
Friday saw the mercury soar past 46C in several parts of the state including Tibooburra Airport in the northwest and Condobolin Airport in the central west of NSW.
In Sydney, Penrith reached 42.1C while an earlier than expected sea breeze capped CBD temperatures at 29.5C.
It came after a small patch of rural NSW endured the hottest night ever recorded in Australia with a minimum overnight temperature of 35.9C halfway between Cobar and Wilcannia, at Noona.
Cobar also recorded its highest ever minimum temperature of 33.2C on Thursday night.
A cool change brought some relief to southern parts of #NSW last night, and is expected to move through the northeast today. Low intensity #heatwave conditions persist for most of the state into next week. #beattheheat
Check the forecast near you: https://t.co/caxkaYV883 pic.twitter.com/RYifqfCUdT— Bureau of Meteorology, New South Wales (@BOM_NSW) January 19, 2019
Bureau of Meteorology duty forecaster David Wilke said a cool change moving up the coast would offer some respite from the heat.
“The most marked difference will be along the coast but inland parts will see some relief,” he told AAP.
However he said it would be temporary with temperatures set to rise again.
“It looks like into late next week we’re sort of almost back where we were today,” he said on Friday night.
– With AAP
