Heat Alert in Australia: Extreme Temperatures Increase Bushfire Risk

Southeast Australia is currently experiencing an intense heatwave, which intensified on Sunday, significantly increasing the risk of bushfires. Authorities were forced to impose further fire bans in the state of Victoria. The current fire danger season is considered high-risk after firefighters last week had to battle a major blaze in the Grampians National Park in Victoria, which destroyed homes and agricultural land. According to forecasts from the national weather service, temperatures in parts of Victoria, Australia's second most populous state, could reach up to 45 degrees Celsius. In Melbourne, the state capital, temperatures of up to 38 degrees Celsius were predicted. In the northwestern city of Mildura, where temperatures are expected to reach 42 degrees Celsius, it was already 32.9 degrees Celsius by 10:30 a.m., exceeding the average January maximum. This heat led to total fire bans in three districts of Victoria, where the fire danger was classified as "extreme," the second highest danger level. Miriam Bradbury from the Bureau of Meteorology stated that temperatures in Victoria would peak on Sunday. This would significantly increase the fire risk in several districts. Heat warnings were also issued in the states of Western Australia, New South Wales, and Tasmania. Bradbury announced on Saturday that a wind change overnight into Sunday could bring cooler conditions to the southeast of the country. The last fire seasons in Australia were comparatively calm, especially compared to the devastating "Black Summer" season of 2019-2020, during which an area the size of Turkey was destroyed and 33 people as well as billions of animals died.