New South Wales Rural Fire Service firefighter Elisabeth Goh monitors a hazard reduction burn in Sydney, Australia, September 10, 2023. REUTERS FILE PHOTO
SYDNEY 鈥� Australia鈥檚 southeast on Sunday sweltered in a heat wave that raised the risk of bushfires and prompted authorities to issue fire bans for large swaths of New South Wales state.
The nation鈥檚 weather forecaster said temperatures would be up to 12 degrees Celsius (53.6 degrees Fahrenheit) above average in some areas, with Sydney, capital of Australia鈥檚 most populous state New South Wales, set to hit 36C (96.8F).
At Sydney鈥檚 Kingsford Smith Airport, the temperature was already 28C (82.4F) at 10 a.m. (2300 GMT), more than five degrees above the September mean maximum temperature, according to forecaster data.
Australia faces a high risk bushfire season as it experiences an El Nino weather event, recently announced, which is typically associated with extreme events like wildfires, cyclones and droughts.
State Emergency Services Minister Jihad Dib said the 鈥渟corching鈥� heat lifted the risk for bushfires in the week ahead.
鈥淣ot only is it hot, it鈥檚 dry and it鈥檚 windy and those conditions combined are the perfect storm,鈥� Dib said, announcing the start an official bushfire danger period.
Fire authorities on Sunday issued nine fire total bans for parts of the state in a bid to reduce the chance of bushfires.
Australia鈥檚 last two fire seasons have been quiet compared to the catastrophic 2019-2020 鈥淏lack Summer鈥� of bushfires that destroyed an area the size of Turkey and killed 33 people.