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More on WA weather warnings
Circling back to the Kimberley and Pilbara, with severe thunderstorms on the way, the department of fire and emergency services has warned of minor flooding along the Fitzroy River.
The warning reads:
People in the area along Fitzroy River to Fitzroy Crossing in the Fitzroy River catchment need to take action now as minor flooding [is] expected today and tomorrow.
There is no immediate danger but you need to keep up to date in case the situation changes.
Updated at 22.39 EST8m ago22.32 EST
Electricity demand on track for record in Queensland as several states swelter
As noted in the blog earlier, Queensland is on course to hit record power demand later today, and it could do by some measure:
Current peak electricity demand forecast for later today would easily be a record for Queensland. (@aemo has the previous high at 10,070MW from last March.) pic.twitter.com/VqF40RLdhi
— @phannam@mastodon.green (@p_hannam) January 22, 2024
The Australian Energy Market Operator issued a note earlier today saying forecasted temperatures were likely to run higher than expected in parts of Queensland, South Australia and Victoria, nudging demand up a bit.
The Bureau of Meteorology’s heatwave forecast for Monday to Wednesday suggests there’s a lot of warmth about.
(And as the heatwave forecast tracks how the forecast heat compares with a combination of historical weather and with recent conditions, “it’s just summer” doesn’t cut it.)
As for wholesale power prices, there’s currently (excuse pun) a lot higher in Queensland and NSW. For now, AEMO has a level 1 “lack of reserve” note for Queensland covering 6.30pm to 8pm local time today as it nudges suppliers to hunt for an extra 500 megawatts to give the grid a bit of more buffer should a coal plant trip, say.
Dylan McConnell, an energy expert at the University of NSW, is among those who think Queensland might be in for a tricky couple of days, because tomorrow might not be much easier on the grid.
Updated…
2024-01-21 22:24:51
Source from www.theguardian.com