Bushfire Preview - Earliest 30C+ September Day In Melbourne's History

[hatrack]

AT 3.02pm yesterday the temperature in Melbourne reached 30.1 degrees. The date, September 19, 2006, will go down as the earliest day after winter that the mercury topped 30. The Bureau of Meteorology said there were only four 30-degree September days on record. Meteorologists said it was possible yesterday's high temperature was due to global warming.

With the heat came wind — and a foretaste of bushfire season. Across the state gusty, hot conditions resulted in the Country Fire Authority attending 206 fires. All but 18 were out by 5pm.

While Melbourne had its fourth hottest September day since records have been kept, the rest of the state experienced temperatures of between 25 and 32 degrees, well above September averages.

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Department of Sustainability and Environment incident controller Les Vearing said the unseasonably "extreme" conditions hampered firefighting. "The humidity is about 7 per cent, which means that the air is extremely dry," he said. "It's the sort of thing we get when it's about 40 degrees, and in the middle of summer." CFA deputy chief officer Graham Fountain said the number of fires burning yesterday raised alarm bells for summer. He urged people to prepare for the fire season by clearing leaves, twigs and grasses around their homes. "To have so many fires burning unseasonably early is indicative of how severe the fire season is likely to be," Mr Fountain said.

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http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/bushfire-warnings-begin-as-state-bakes-and-snow-melts/2006/09/19/1158431712070.html

[rodeodance]

1. Best to Melborne where I have friends. Frightening to see this.