Bushfire season comes early
CQ weather
EARLY fog and mist cleared to dry, sunny afternoons across Central Queensland.
Rockhampton recorded a low humidity of 9% last Friday and 17% last Wednesday.
Thangool has had 13 frosts and Rolleston 11 frosts so far this month.
Moranbah recorded six frosts and eight near-frosts.
Collinsville had two frosts and 10 near-frosts, compared with two near frosts last August.
Showers off the coast caused an early sprinkle in eastern Capricornia last Monday.
The highest recorded total in the week was Samuel Hill with 2mm.
Early mist and fog patches, then a warm, sunny afternoon on Friday herald a cold, southerly overnight.
This will be followed by more frosts inland and dry, sunny days.
Afternoon humidity could drop as low as 9-15% over the weekend.
Showers on the Central Coast could affect northern Capricornia and the northern Coalfields on Tuesday.
Then the first warm-to-hot maximums into the 30s late week in the Central West.
Rainfall
SIGNIFICANT rainfall over the past seven days: Sandy Cape 16mm; Daradgee 5mm; Mt Sophia 5mm; Felton 5mm; Innisfail 4mm; Lenthalls 3mm; Glenelg 2mm; Bingil Bay 2mm; and Durong South 1mm.
Did you know?
NORMALLY, the bushfire season starts in September - but it seems to have started earlier this year.
There have been fires in the Lockyer Valley, west of Gladstone and around Miriam Vale, plus at many locations in the southern half of the state.
After the record rain in early July in CQ, the cold winter has caused record frosts. Charleville has had 21 frosts in a row, Roma recorded 19 frosts in a row, Warwick recorded eight frosts in a row with temperatures under -2, with six severe frosts early this month.
These consecutive frosts have extended north into Clermont and Moranbah, plus west of Sarina. Also, Kingaroy recorded 12 frosts, with four severe, plus Gayndah nine frosts - all this month.
This has caused the grasslands cure state to rise.
The afternoon humidity has bottomed into the low teens, with a few places recording sub -10% values. With very little to no rainfall and high evaporation in the past five weeks, things are primed for a decent bushfire season.
All that's needed is 30degC-plus temperatures and fresh to strong north-westerly winds rapidly followed by a dry, gusty south to south-westerly winds and it's shades of the prelude to the 2009 bushfire season.
The SOI sits at -9, an El Nino threshold!
