- Temperature records have been smashed as a Christmas heat wave has the southeastern corner of Australia in a stranglehold.
- The hottest place in the country, Marble Bar in the Pilbara of Western Australia hit an all-time heat record of 120 degrees Fahreneit (49 degrees Celsius) on Thursday.
- December and Christmas are only the beginning of the summer season in Australia. It starts getting noticeably toastier around January and February.
SYDNEY, Australia — After firestorms in Victoria killed 173 people in 2009, Australian fire authorities decided it would be best to add a new category to the ubiquitous fire ratings signs that pop up every few miles on rural highways.
When a heat wave sweeps out of the central deserts to smother the heavily populated coastal regions — like what the region has seen this Christmas — officials at the Rural Fire Service bump the measurement up to the new, final notch.See the rest of the story at Business Insider
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