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Parts of Sydney smashed temperature records for the start of October on Sunday as the city sweltered through heat that spiked 15 degrees above average and sent Sydneysiders running for the beach.
Penrith’s heat spiked at 37.3 degrees just after 3pm, Richmond hit 36.7 and Sydney Airport recorded a high of 36.9 degrees, according to preliminary data from the Bureau of Meteorology.
Beachgoers flocked to Bondi, where temperatures surpassed 35 degrees on Sunday.Credit: Jessica Hromas
The previous high for October 1 recorded for Sydney Airport was in 1998, when the temperature reached 34.3 degrees, the bureau’s senior meteorologist Angus Hines said.
It’s common during a heatwave for temperatures to be at their most intense in Sydney’s west, while coastal parts of Sydney have some reprieve, but Hines said that wasn’t the case on Sunday.
“We’re not getting that cooling effect, all of Sydney is in the same boat,” Hines said.
The heat sweeping across Sydney was thanks to a “heat bubble” that formed last week in Western Australia.
Queues at the Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre.Credit: Brent Lewin
“Through the course of the weekend we’ve had a weak cold front move eastwards across southern Australia and that has been pulling the warm air along with it,” Hines said.
The conditions prompted the NSW Rural Fire Service to declare parts of the state at risk of “extreme” fire danger, including Greater Sydney and the Hunter, and a total fire ban is in force.
Over 75 fires are burning across the state on Sunday afternoon and 30 of the blazes are out of control. Sunday marks the beginning of the statutory Bush Fire Danger Period for the majority of the state, which will continue until March 31.
At 4pm Fire and Rescue firefighters were still battling to get a small grassfire under control in Plumpton, near Mount Druitt, that flared near shops, fast food outlets and the electoral office of Industry and Science Minister Ed Husic.
People escaping the heat at Murray Rose Pool in eastern Sydney.Credit: Brent Lewin
The RFS has upgraded two out-of-control blazes burning near towns in the Snowy Monaro area to the ‘watch and act’ alert level. Authorities have also warned residents near a fire that has scorched 27 hectares of bushland in Bawley Point, in the Shoalhaven, to prepare to act.
The NRLW grand final kicked off as temperatures hit 35.5 degrees at Sydney Olympic Park, marking the hottest ever grand final day conditions.
“By the time the men’s game kicks off, we expect it to be about 30 to 31 degrees and cooling off during the course of the match,” Hines said.
Broncos fans keep cool in the shade ahead of the 2023 NRL Grand Final at Accor Stadium, where temperatures hit 35.5 degrees.Credit: Getty
A cool change is expected to move across Sydney from the south about 10pm.
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