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 The long-running
heatwave, for September, continued to produce day and night temperatures
10 degrees or more above normal along the NSW Central, Mid North and North
Coasts and through southern and central QLD today. In NSW, Yamba and Lismore
set new September maximum temperature records with tops of 35.7 and 37.2
respectively, as did Injune in central QLD with a top of 35.8. Winton
and Longreach QLD recorded overnight minima of around 26C, 13 or 14 above
normal.
 Continuing
hot, dry, windy weather resulted in fresh bushfire outbreaks today,
with a total of 67 burning by late this afternoon. A majority has been
attributed
to arson or unauthorised burning-off fires escaping, and most are burning
in remote bushland areas. However, a fire at Somersby north of Gosford
burnt out a landscape supply business, threatened other businesses, and
partially closed the F3 freeway. Other serious fires were burning
at Salamander Bay near Port Stevens, and three on the South Coast -- 20km south
of Bega at Wolumla (>200ha),
south
of Bermagui, and south of Delegate. Both the Monaro Highway and the Mt Imlay
Roads were closed by fires, as was the Princes Highway in East Gippsland. Over
150 firefighters attended a fire that started early this morning at Katoomba
Tip.
Land
gales caused damage and disruption
in northern TAS as a front passed through overnight. The winds
hit Launceston around 7pm yesterday and continued for much of the night.
Press reports say that winds reached 120km/h, lifting roofs off houses
and
scattering trees over roads, while flash flooding and wet roads caused
major traffic problems. The highest recorded land gust was 93km/h at
Scottsdale. Over 70 calls for assistance were received from Launceston,
St Helens, Corinna,
Heybridge
and Devonport,
and a police
spokesman said that serious storm damage was reported to
homes
in Launceston, Ulverstone and Devonport. There was significant tree damage
in the state's northeast with trees down on houses and cars, and roads
closed, including in Launceston and the Midland Highway south of Perth.
14,000 properties in Launceston, 3,000 in Devonport and 3,000 elsewhere
in northern and western TAS suffered extended power failures.
Sources: AAP, ABC, News.com, SMH, Age, Merimbula News Weekly
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