The hero of the heat is Abdou Darboe.
As temperatures soared to 0.1 degrees short of the hottest March on record, he was on the banks of Lake Burley Griffin working out.
"It's really hard when it's too hot but if you have some goals you have to reach those goals, and you have to keep going," he said between skipping and press-ups.
"When you feel tired or thirsty, you have to think about something else, and this will make your mind stronger."
The heat was certainly on. It peaked at 3.45pm on Sunday when the Bureau of Meteorology recorded 37.4 degrees, hotter than any day in summer and just short of the record 37.5 at Canberra airport on March 13, 1998.
Mr Darboe arrived from Italy eight months ago. He says Australia is hotter than Italy: "Really, really hot because in Italy it's humid and here it's dry. And the sun is going to burn your skin and you should use cream to protect yourself."
But he's only experienced the miserable summer so far - and the hot autumn. And winter is yet to come!
The hottest actual day this past summer was on February 18 when 36.1 degrees was recorded at Canberra airport, according to the bureau.
But that was very much the exception.
"Both maximum and minimum temperatures were below average during summer," the bureau said.
Sunday's heat was enough to keep the usual crowds away from the central basin on Lake Burley Griffin. It's true there was a "fun" run for charity but the usual swarms of speed cyclists weren't there in the same numbers. People walking dogs kept searching for shade and water. The lake itself has large amounts of green algae.
The ACT emergency services upgraded the Fire Danger Rating from "moderate" to "high" (be ready to act).
Across the border in New South Wales, there was a total fire ban. The Googong foreshore was closed to the public.
A spokesperson from NSW RFS said, while there was another warm and windy day ahead for tomorrow, the fire risk was expected to ease for much of the state from about mid week.
Relief is near. Temperatures are set to drop from Monday, according to the weather bureau. The mercury is forecast to be in the low 20s, with rain from Tuesday.
A bit like summer, really. While temperatures were low over the summer, rain was heavy. Here's the bureau's summary:
- Except for January, the territory experienced a dry summer with rainfall totals mostly below average at all sites.
- January was the wettest month of the summer.
- The wettest day was on January 5 when 39.2 mm was recorded at the National Botanic Garden.
- Thunderstorms and damaging winds swept through Canberra on February 21.
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