Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
Figure 3.4
Trend magnitude in annual total Forest Fire Danger Index (FFDI)
Source: Clarke et al., 2012
Notes
a Marker size is proportional to the magnitude of trend.
b Reference sizes are shown in the legend. Filled markers represent trends that are
statistically significant.
c The marker for Laverton has been moved west to avoid overlap with Melbourne
Airport.
d Days of extreme heat are often associated with bushfires. The Black Saturday bushfires
around Melbourne in February 2009, for example, were preceded by a record-breaking
heatwave across south-eastern Australia (
Figure 3.5
)
, with Melbourne and Adelaide
breaking records for consecutive days above 43°C during this period, while Mildura
set a Victorian record with 12 consecutive days of 40°C or above.
Melbourne had a record sequence of temperatures of 43°C, 44°C and 45°C
between 28 and 30 January. The average temperature in Melbourne was nearly
36°C between 27 January and 7 February 2009. Combined with prolonged
drought, these conditions provided extreme fire weather and very dry vegetation
across the state. Melbourne hit a record of 46.4°C on 7 February, the day of the
initial firestorm, with more than 400 fires burning across the south east of the
continent.
