Hot and windy conditions were expected to drive up the fire danger in New South Wales on Tuesday, as the autumnal heatwave continues in parts of the state and more than 30 fires burn.
Extreme fire danger is forecast in the central ranges and greater Hunter areas, where total fire bans are in place.
Ben Shepherd of the Rural Fire Service said temperatures in the mid to high 30 degrees, low humidity, and gusty winds which could reach upwards of 50 to 60km an hour were adding to the risk. There could also be new ignitions from lightning or careless behaviour, he warned.
As of Tuesday morning, 34 fires were burning across NSW, including 10 yet to be brought under control.
The RFS was particularly concerned about the fire north of Hill End and two fires in the Dubbo local government area, near Burrendong and Cranbrook.
Shepherd said the large bushfire in Tambaroora, north of Hill End, had affected about 50 properties, while the two fires in the Dubbo LGA were not close to any homes.
There are no reports of injuries or property loss so far.
While the emergency warning for the Tambaroora fire was downgraded from an emergency warning to a watch and act Monday, firefighters may need to heighten the alert status once again, Shepherd said.
“We will see conditions deteriorate and that is likely we’ll start to see some of these fires move as we start to see the worst of the weather settling in later on this morning and this afternoon,” he said.
Shepherd said the fire was now more than 2,000 hectares in size, meaning firefighters faced a “broad fire perimeter”.
“Once the wind gets a hold of it, there is a risk of blowing embers and that fire then spreading quickly and … on quite a wide front, given that how far it spread yesterday,” Shepherd said.
The peak of the heatwave was past and a south-westerly change in wind direction was expected on Wednesday afternoon, said Jonathan How, a senior forecaster at the bureau of meteorology.
The low-intensity heatwave will lap part of eastern Australia for a bit longer. Sydney remains on track for three days of 30C heat by tomorrow versus five for the whole of the summer that just passed. (Source: @bom_au) pic.twitter.com/kVW9KR6QDc
— @phannam@mastodon.green (@p_hannam) March 6, 2023
Monday’s temperatures spiked 10 to 12 degrees above average through Sydney and parts of eastern NSW, he said.
The highest temperature in the Sydney metro area was 40.6C at the airport, followed by a warm night that dropped to 22.3C at its coolest point.
How said Tuesday would be another hot day in Sydney, with 34C expected in the eastern suburbs and up to 36C in western Sydney.
Wednesday would be hot again before the cool change in the evening.
