An historic moment everyone wishes hadn't happened - Australia's first official catastrophic fire warning issued for Wednesday 18 November 2009

BOM Radar 17 November 2009

The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) has issued the first official catastrophic fire warning this afternoon:

FIRE WEATHER WARNING FOR SOUTH AUSTRALIA
Issued at 4:25 pm CDT on Tuesday, 17 November 2009.

Wednesday, 18 November 2009 is forecast to be very hot and dry for most of South Australia. Fresh northwesterly winds over the pastorals and parts of the northern agricultural districts will shift fresh southwesterly during the day.

Catastrophic Fire Danger [100+] is forecast for the Northwest Pastoral and Flinders Total Fire Ban districts.

Extreme Fire Danger [75-99] is forecast for the Northeast Pastoral, Eastern Eyre Peninsula and Mid North Total Fire Ban districts.

Severe Fire Danger [50-74] is forecast for the Riverland Total Fire Ban district.

The Country Fire Service advises that fires burning under these conditions are likely to be fast moving, unpredictable and uncontrollable. You should action your Bushfire Survival Plan now.

Total Fire Bans
As a consequence of the forecast fire danger, the Country Fire Service has imposed a Total Fire Ban in all the Total Fire Ban districts listed above.

For more information on Total Fire Bans and how to prepare for fires, visit the CFS web page at http://www.cfs.sa.gov.au/ or call the CFS Bushfire Information Hotline on 1300 362 361.

For the latest weather information, listen to your local radio station or visit the Bureau of Meteorology web page at http://www.bom.gov.au/.

This Warning will be updated by 7:00 am on Wednesday, 18 November 2009.