Several major fire alerts have been issued for Victoria while Queensland continues to battle widespread flooding.
Soaring temperatures have sparked emergency-level bushfires on the first day of Australia’s most intense heatwave in years.
Three emergency warnings have been issued in Victoria for Dropmore, Ruffy, Caveat, Tarcombe, Terip Terip, Longwood East, Avenel, Longwood, Ruffy, Tarcombe, Upton Hill, Bungil, Thologolong and Granya.
Two emergency bushfire warnings have also been issued near Perth.
Authorities warned it is too late to leave parts of High Wycombe and issued an evacuation order for Maida Vale.
South Australia, Victoria and parts of Tasmania are sweltering through oppressive temperatures as the mercury soars, the Bureau of Meteorology says.
The conditions may be the worst since the 2019-20 summer bushfires that killed more than 30 people and burned through millions of hectares.
Victorians steamed in the heat on Wednesday, with inland and northern parts reaching temperatures in the mid-40Cs and Melbourne also breaking 40C.
Three emergency bushfire warnings have been issued in Victoria
Victoria’s bushfires are being worsened by an ongoing heatwave
Emergency-level fires are burning out of control near Mount Lawson on the border between NSW and Victoria, with residents told to leave immediately before conditions become too dangerous.
More than 1000 hectares have been burnt and that is likely to grow over coming days, authorities warn.
Another out-of-control fire is burning at Longwood along the Hume Freeway in the state’s north, with people being told to shelter inside as it is too late to leave.
There have been no reported injuries or structures damaged, but Victorian Emergency Management Commissioner Tim Wiebusch said there was potential for losses.
Total fire bans are in place for the Wimmera, South West and Central regions, including Melbourne and Geelong.
Mr Wiebusch said severe and extreme heat was being felt across the state, but the worst was yet to come with more intense conditions forecast on Friday.
‘Victoria is one of the most fire-prone states in the world,’ he told reporters on Wednesday.
‘We see conditions like this on a typical fire season, and certainly, Friday is one of those days that we’ve not seen for some time.’
Total fire bans have been issued for Victoria’s Wimmera, South West and Central regions
There will be slight reprieve for southern parts of the state on Thursday, but extreme fire dangers will persist in northern areas, Country Fire Authority chief executive Jason Heffernan said.
‘These are the days where we see lots of assets lost,’ he said.
Searing temperatures are set to continue across SA on Thursday after parts of the state sweltered through low-to-mid 40s, with Adelaide’s maximum topping 42C and some inland and southeastern parts pushing 47C on Wednesday.
‘Extreme heatwaves are likely to affect all Australians to some degree, not just those who are vulnerable, such as the elderly or those who are unwell, but healthy and active people as well,’ meteorologist Helen Reid said.
It was also a warm day for Tasmania with low to severe heatwaves building in the state’s northeast.
The heat is expected to move into the ACT and NSW heading into the weekend, with the national capital to peak at 38C on Friday, while Sydney should reach 42C on the final heatwave day on Saturday.
The Royal Australian College of GPs is urging the public to prioritise hydration, rest indoors and check on people more susceptible to heat exhaustion and heat stroke.
Meanwhile, just one day after its first full 24 hours of sunshine in a fortnight, a flood-struck northwest Queensland is preparing for the next deluge.
An estimated 24,200 livestock were already missing or dead due to the floods
Flood-struck northwest Queensland has been warned to prepare for more rain
With a monsoon trough deepening over the region on Wednesday – and a possible cyclone forming in the Coral Sea – yet more heavy rainfall has been predicted for the days ahead.
Floodwaters have only just begun to recede in the northwest after up to a metre of rain fell over a week, isolating towns and devastating livestock.
But, as Carpentaria Shire Mayor Jack Bawden puts it bluntly: ‘There’s still a s***load of water on the ground.’
At this stage, flooding has not affected the Gulf Country towns of Normanton or Burketown.
Cr Bawden said that could change quickly if more rain was to fall over the weekend, with the Norman River rising due to spillover from the Flinders.
Normanton and Karumba, on the Gulf of Carpentaria coast at the mouth of the Norman, are the major distribution hubs for the region.
Cr Bawden said the towns were ‘madly into resupply mode’.
And when he says resupply, ‘that’s everything, that’s the whole box and dice’.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (left) visited Queensland’s northwest on Tuesday
With many roads still cut, loads are coming in via barges on the Norman, with more boats used to ferry goods onwards to Karumba.
Should more heavy falls disrupt those resupply operations, Cr Bawden said there was the potential for ‘all sorts of havoc’.
‘It’s critical that Karumba keeps operating,’ he said.
‘Mornington Island relies on it for their groceries and fuel and everything. It’s a major drama.’
An estimated 24,200 livestock were already missing or dead with about 1050 km of fencing damaged and 1,700 km of private roads affected, the Department of Primary Industries said.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese visited the northwest on Tuesday, saying he was ‘very worried’ about more rain looming for the region after announcing $38 million in funding for impacted communities.
The northwest was again ‘in the firing line’, the Bureau of Meteorology warned.
‘Those areas that are currently in flood through northwestern Queensland do have the potential to see significant rainfall developing again, particularly through Friday and into the weekend,’ a bureau spokesperson told AAP.
Hardship assistance payments were on Wednesday activated for 13 councils including northwest residents, businesses and farmers at flood-hit Winton.
Meanwhile, a tropical low that has formed off Cooktown, north of Cairns, is rated a 40 per cent chance of developing into a cyclone by Friday.
The heaviest falls on Thursday were likely to be between Cooktown and Townsville, the bureau said.
‘That low has the potential to become a cyclone. At this stage it is rated a moderate chance,’ the bureau spokesperson said.
‘Whether it becomes a cyclone or not, it is expected to move toward the north Queensland coast and increase rainfall.’
