FIRE crews already battling blazes across the Hunter are bracing for a three-day heatwave with parts of the Upper Hunter forecast to give temperature records a nudge over the weekend.
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Premier Gladys Berejiklian has declared a state of emergency for Saturday, the third time this bushfire season, as firefighters prepare for another difficult and dangerous weekend. Muswellbrook, Singleton and Scone are all predicted to hit the mid-40s, while Maitland, Cessnock and Wallsend are all forecast to top 40 degrees.
"Saturday will test us but our crews will be ready," Lower Hunter fire control public liaison officer Terry Burns said. "We've been taking advantage of cooler conditions these last couple of days and we'll be in a holding pattern on Saturday, not introducing any fire and monitoring conditions. We'll have crews on standby over the weekend to address any breakouts."
And while Saturday is predicted to be the most problematic day over the weekend, conditions on Friday and Sunday could be just as bad with only the possibility of showers on Monday saving the Hunter from a week-long heatwave in the middle of an already catastrophic fire crisis.
"Hot, dry and windy conditions are really conducive to fire escalation," BOM Acting State Manager Jane Golding said. "What we'll be seeing on Saturday is similar in some respects to what we saw on New Year's Eve. "The difference is the southerly is moving through a bit later. "So similar temperatures, but lasting further throughout the day."
Rural Fire Service crews in the Hunter are already battling blazes at Wangi Wangi, Paterson and Jerrys Plains as well as the massive 162,000 hectare Little L Complex fire and a host of other blazes that have eaten through thousands of hectares.
