Eastern regions Australiaincluding Sydney, today recorded the hottest day in more than two years with temperatures in excess of 40 degrees Celsius, raising the risk of wildfires.

Firefighters battle to put out 40 bushfires in New South Wales, home to a third of Australians, with ground and air combat.

The fire near Mudgee and more than 250 kilometers northwest of Sydney has caused alarm in the region. Firefighters urged residents to seek safe shelter in the area as it was too late to evacuate.

Many areas of New South Wales now have full fire restrictions in place and 35 public schools, most in the hinterland, have been closed due to high temperatures.

Forest fire fears

“If a fire starts in such difficult conditions … it will be more difficult for our firefighters to control it, and such a fire can spread very quickly, especially in pastures,” Operations Officer Angela Burford told ABC. for the New South Wales Rural Fire Service.

The Met Office said dry thunderstorms are likely in eastern New South Wales, leading to thunderstorm conditions that could spark new fires, and similar weather patterns are likely to continue on Wednesday.

Penrith, a suburb west of Sydney, recorded a temperature of 40.1 degrees Celsius on Monday afternoon. It is the hottest day since January 26, 2021, with some inland cities hitting 41 degrees Celsius.

Australia’s east coast has been hit by the La Niña weather event, which is usually accompanied by an increase in rainfall over the past two years, resulting in heavy rainfall and widespread flooding.

In 2022, Sydney recorded the highest annual rainfall since records began in 1858.

However, the Australian Bureau of Meteorology predicted last week that, according to climate models, the La Niña weather event is “likely nearing its end,” while neutral weather that cannot be classified as La Niña or opposite weather El Niño phenomenon is likely to prevail in autumn in the southern hemisphere of the earth.

^{Source: APE-MEB, Reuters}