Aussies to swelter through brutal heatwave sweeping from WA to Victoria and NSW

Millions of Australians are expected to swelter through extreme heat this week as temperatures soar right across the country. Heatwave warnings are currently in place for NSW, Victoria, Western Australia, South Australia, Tasmania, and the Northern Territory, with parts of each state to hit at least 40C by the end of the week. Affected areas have been told to brace for sweltering days with temperatures in the high 30s to mid-40s, and only slightly cooler nights in the high 20s. The most scorching temperatures are sitting over central WA on Tuesday, prompting fire warnings. The heatwave is expected to build through SA, NSW and Victoria from Wednesday to Saturday, according to the Bureau of Meteorology’s Miriam Bradbury. “Over the last couple of days, we’ve seen the heat building over Western Australia, driven in part by a low pressure trough helping to drag in heat from central Australia, and the sunny days we’ve been seeing have let that heat build,” she said. Parts of Tasmania, the NT and Queensland will be impacted from Wednesday as well as the heat centre spreads out across the country. Ms Bradbury said the “key periods of concern” would be on Friday and Saturday along the NSW-Victoria border, where temperatures will easily reach 40C, before it moves toward the coast on Saturday. “We could see some locations pushing up towards 46, possibly even 47C or so,” she said “Those locations that I’m referring to are places mainly across northern parts of Victoria, that sort of southwestern part of New South Wales and areas of eastern South Australia as well. “For example, at this point in time, Mildura might see 46C on Friday.” Other areas of concern include Mallee, Ouyen and Birchip in Victoria and Balranald in NSW. While what constitutes an extreme heatwave may differ from place to place - with a heatwave in Tasmania looking very different to a heatwave in Western Sydney - Ms Bradbury warned residents in affected areas would see temperatures 8 to 16 degrees higher than average in the coming days. Across the capital cities, Melbourne will see temperatures peak on Friday at 38C while Sydney can expect its hottest day on Saturday where temperatures will reach 39C in the city and 43C in the west. Temperatures are expected to peak earlier in Adelaide, with the capital to hit 37C on Wednesday. The weather bureau is warning this kind of extreme heatwave can prove dangerous. “Heatwaves are not just summer heat, they are significantly high temperatures for days,” Ms Bradbury said. “They don’t just affect people who are vulnerable to the heat, like the elderly or those who are pregnant, but can affect those who are young, fit and healthy who would normally be fine in higher temperatures.” The heat is bringing fire danger to residents in WA, with warnings currently in place for Exmouth. “Very hot conditions combined with fresh and gusty south to south-westerly winds during the afternoon and early evening periods will lead to extreme fire danger in the Exmouth Gulf Coast fire weather district on Tuesday,” the Bureau warns. Meanwhile in Queensland, the threat is not from heat but from rain as dozens of flood warnings remain in place, despite rain easing across the state’s centre and north. Major flood warnings are in place for Western River and Flinders River while moderate warnings remain for Georgina River, Norman River, Herbert River and Gilbert River. “Major flooding is estimated to be occurring along the Flinders River at Richmond. Downstream, along the Flinders River, an initial flood peak is passing through Etta Plains,” the Bureau says. “Along the Cloncurry River, a flood peak has passed through Canobie. These flood peaks are travelling down the Flinders and Cloncurry Rivers towards the Flinders Cloncurry Junction.” While the trough that has caused the deluge of rain in Queensland has moved toward the coast, giving inland areas some much-needed relief, the Bureau warns that Queenslanders are not out of the woods yet. The tropical low sitting off the coast of Townsville is threatening to develop into a cyclone, with a moderate chance of doing so by the end of the week, according to Sky News meteorologist Tamsin Green. “Looks like it could make landfall either as a tropical low or a tropical cyclone into the weekend,” she said. “Now of course this is pushing in off the Coral Sea, so the focus of that rain is generally between Cooktown and Townsville, but the remnants of that system will then push further west. “So we will then see those areas that are at threat of seeing that major flooding continue to see further rain as that saturates those catchment areas over the days to follow.”