The Hunter has emerged from one of the warmest winters on record and is heading into more of the same for spring and summer.
Temperatures throughout winter were consistently above normal along the eastern seaboard.
In the Hunter, temperatures for the last few weeks of winter regularly tipped into the low 20s.
For the first day of spring in Newcastle the mercury hit an unseasonably warm 24 degrees, well above the monthly average maximum temperature of 20.3 degrees.
It is expected to be 26 degrees on Wednesday, 27 on Thursday and 28 on Saturday.
Rainfall levels across the region were also below average during winter.
Lostock Dam recorded a monthly total of 13.4mm in June, or 20 per cent of its long-term average. Cessnock Airport recorded 19.1mm, or 56 per cent of the June average.
The dry spell intensified throughout July, with Maitland receiving 32.6mm rainfall, or 52 per cent of the monthly average.
Merriwa recorded 10.6mm, just 29 per cent of the July average.
A low-pressure system off the coast between August 1 and August 4 brought between 100mm and 150mm across the region, although the remainder of the month remained relatively dry.
Hunter Water's total water storage levels hit a low of 70.4 per cent in late June and were sitting at 71.9 per cent on Tuesday.
The reading is 15.5 per cent lower than the same time last year.
"Forecasts for early spring continue to point to below-average rainfall and unusually warm conditions with fuels expected to continue drying across NSW," the NSW Rural Fire Service said.
"The highest risk is expected to be in northern and south-eastern NSW, as these areas are already rapidly drying out. Forested areas in these regions are experiencing high fuel loads and are dense and well-connected, which is of particular concern."
The Bureau of Meteorology's long-range forecast for September to November also predicts both daytime and overnight temperatures are likely to be above average in most of the country.
Rainfall is expected to be below average across parts of Australia's south and east, and above average across much of the western half of the country.
The forecast coincides with a strengthening El Nino, expected to be one of the strongest on record, increasing the chances of hot, dry weather and raising concerns for farmers and bushfire agencies.
The bureau expects El Nino to strengthen and persist through spring and summer.
"Oceans around Australia and globally are also much warmer than usual, adding moisture and energy that can fuel rain systems," senior bureau meteorologist David Crock said.
