Extreme Heatwave raises the risk of bushfires in eastern Australia

Tuesday saw exceptionally warm springtime temperatures across Australia's eastern seaboard, and strong winds created some of the riskiest conditions for bushfires since the disastrous "Black Summer" of 2019–2020.

In some areas of New South Wales, temperatures have surged to 34 degrees Celsius, which is more than 10 degrees higher than the typical high for this time of year.

Children have been sent home from 21 schools in a coastal region 500 kilometres (310 miles) south of Sydney, where firefighters think the most volatile conditions will be felt.

"Due to stronger than forecast winds along the far South Coast, catastrophic fire danger is expected this afternoon in the region," the New South Wales Rural Fire Service said in a statement on Tuesday.

"These are the most dangerous conditions for a fire."

Sydney Harbour was last week shrouded in a smoky haze, as firefighters on the city's fringes lit controlled blazes to deprive bushfires of fuel ahead of a hot and dry summer.

The Spring heatwave sweeping over eastern Australia comes on the back of the country's warmest winter since records began in 1910.

After several wet years, experts are expecting the coming summer to bring the most intense bushfire season since 2019-2020.

That "Black Summer" saw bushfires rage across Australia's eastern seaboard, destroying vast tracts of forest, killing millions of animals, and enveloping cities in a toxic cloud of smoke.

The hottest month ever recorded on Earth was July 2023, which was characterized by heatwaves and fires all over the planet, according to the European Union's Copernicus climate observatory.