Hobart residents endured the hottest night in 112 years as a severe heatwave persisted across south-east Australia. The Bureau of Meteorology predicts continued extreme heat in South Australia, Victoria, Tasmania, and southern New South Wales, causing the cancellation of events over the long weekend due to record temperatures. Edithburgh in South Australia and Kanagulk in western Victoria experienced their hottest March day on record. Hobart’s overnight low temperature was 24.3C, the warmest night since 1912.
Sarah Scully, a senior meteorologist, noted the rarity of hot nights in Hobart, where March typically has a mean minimum overnight temperature of 11C. Maximum temperatures in heatwave-affected areas were 10 to 16 degrees above the March average. The intense heatwave is expected to persist until early Tuesday in Melbourne and southern Victoria, with relief when a southerly change occurs. However, northern Victoria and parts of South Australia will continue experiencing high temperatures until Thursday.
Scully attributed the prolonged heatwave to a “blocking” high-pressure system causing northerly winds and dragging hot air over the region. While intense heatwaves in early autumn are unusual, Scully mentioned that they aren’t unprecedented, as autumn is a transition from heat to cooler months. Melbourne, Avalon, and Geelong experienced high temperatures, while a cold front in Tasmania brought cooler temperatures.
Event organizers faced safety concerns and cancellations in south-eastern Australia due to the heatwave. Adelaide’s Womad closed a stage, and some events were postponed or canceled. The Pitch music and arts festival in regional Victoria was canceled due to an extreme fire danger warning. Melbourne’s Moomba parade was canceled for health reasons, but the Birdman rally proceeded. Melbourne was forecasted to reach 37C on Monday, with high temperatures across most of Victoria and South Australia.
While the south-east experienced a heatwave, Western Australia’s Eucla, Goldfields, and southern interior regions were warned about potential flash flooding and intense rainfall from a stationary rain system.
