Temperatures Soar In Australia As Heatwave Sees Roads Start Melting

While we're all donning our biggest coats in the UK as winter hits, a record-breaking heatwave is sweeping through Australia and the weather is now so hot the highways are struggling to handle it. In fact, they've started melting.

Temperatures have been soaring above 45 degrees Celsius in several places around the country - Sydney has seen a reported 42C, a striking difference to a typical 29C in the city.

Now the Macley Argus reports that the Oxley Highway in New South Wales (NSW) has started melting, requiring doses from a water cart to cool the surface down and make it safer to drive.

The decision to use water from a nearby river wasn't an easy one for the Walcha Council, which oversees the affected area in New England, NSW.

"Roads and Maritime Services acknowledge water is a scarce resource at this time, however it is required to ensure the safety of motorists and keep the road open," a spokeswoman said in a statement.

Along with this, firefighters have been tackling eight blazes in the Kosciuszko National Park area.

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Deputy Commissioner Rob Rogers said 61 new fires started on Wednesday - with 31 of them started by lightning.

"We're still trying to capture some of these fires and get them contained," he told 2GB radio.

This has led to 13 fire bans being put in place in NSW alone.

Over in Sydney, public transport users have been issued warnings about delays due to the rising heat.

Some have been flocking to the beach to enjoy the hot weather, however with temperatures soaring so high people's health is currently at risk.

The Sydney Morning Herald reported that paramedics were called to see to numerous youngsters suffering with exhaustion, heatstroke and vomiting caused by the extreme conditions.

And people are now being warned to keep their time in the heat to a minimum.

Just recently, to highlight the effects of the weather an employee of the Mildura Dockside Café, in Victoria, claimed to have left a raw steak in a hot car, only to return hours later to a well-done cooked steak.

Although this raised a fair amount of scepticism the café responded to a comment saying: "I wanted to remind people how dangerous this heat can be and that as a community we should be looking out for one another and keeping each other safe."

For those not enjoying the heat, unfortunately it's meant to last a bit longer, as stated by the Bureau of Meteorology forecaster.

Topics: Weather, World News, Australia

Rachael Grealish

Rachael is a NCTJ qualified journalist from West Cumbria, with a passion for news, features and journalism. Outside of work Rachael loves plenty of coffee, running and reading.

@RachaelGrealish