Aus heat claims homes, lives

[Erna]

Aus heat claims homes, lives

_http://www.news24.com/News24/World/News/0,,2-10-1462_2461942,00.html

Melbourne - Australia's second-largest city Melbourne ground to a halt on Saturday, crippled by a once-in-a-century heatwave that has claimed almost 30 lives and razed at least 17 homes.

Wildfires raged through the southeastern state of Victoria, where authorities said flames had come dangerously close to major electricity transmission lines which supplied power to Melbourne on Saturday.

More than 500 000 homes and businesses in Melbourne were left without power on Friday night after an electrical substation exploded in the heat, bringing the city to a standstill.

Temperatures in Victoria topped 43°C for a record-breaking third consecutive day on Friday, when 10 homes and a timber plantation were destroyed in a 6 500 hectare blaze.

The heat was blamed for a spike in sudden deaths in the neighbouring state of South Australia, which was in the grip of its hottest weather since 1908.

At least 22 people died in the South Australia capital, Adelaide, on Friday, said the state's health minister John Hill. Most were older than 70 and had likely just "succumbed to the heat," he said.

By Saturday morning the state's ambulance service said it had recorded another six deaths in a period of just three hours and expected to at least equal Friday's count by the day's end.

In Melbourne, the power cut meant all trains were cancelled, city buildings were evacuated, and rescue crews were called in to free workers trapped in office tower elevators.

Patients were turned away from overstretched hospitals running on reserve generator power.

"The line ... literally exploded in the heat, and I don't know if anyone could ever have prevented that from occurring," Victoria's premier John Brumby told Sky News.

"We're in unchartered waters, unprecedented conditions, and with the week and hot weather (we've had) some of these systems have never been designed to operate in 44 to 45 degree heat," he said.

The unrelenting heat is forecast to continue for the next seven days, according to Australia's Bureau of Meteorology. Temperatures have topped 48 degrees in country areas, the bureau said. - Sapa-AFP

Whether we are dealing with global warming or global cooling, what is noticeable is that extreme climates are experienced. Coldest Winters and hottest Summers in this century. But I'll leave the nitty gritty for the scientists.

 

[Johnno]

Just a note in South Australia, the privatized Electricity company NEMMCO was rolling out "power shedding" which is the Orwellian newspeak term for blackouts........ suburb by suburb. 83 suburbs were hit in the end.

_http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,27574,24994363-2682,00.html

UPDATED: Authorities say more controlled blackouts are unlikely this week - but a list of Adelaide suburbs targeted for "load-shedding" is likely to remain secret.

During a lengthy media conference today, Energy Minister Patrick Conlon switched between defending the decision to keep the list secret and advocating for it to be overturned.

The Government has no power to direct the independent body which owns the list to release it.

South Australia has endured load-shedding - controlled blackouts to safeguard the power supply during periods of excess demand - during the heatwave for the first time since the summer of 2000.

David Swift, chief of the state's Electricity Supply Industry Planning Council, which developed the list for ETSA's use, today on ABC radio stuck by the line that the public could be misled if they saw the document.

This afternoon, the council issued a press release saying further load-shedding was unlikely because a reduction in temperatures in Victoria and Tasmania had substantially reduced the pressure on the national power grid.

"Until load-shedding actually occurs, it is impossible to predict when specific customers will be required to take their 'turn' at being shed as the volume of power that needs to be saved to ensure that the entire system remains stable can vary as frequently as every five minutes," the release said.

"The ESIPC and its predecessors in this area of responsibility have not released the technical load shedding list in the past.

"The list has limited usefulness because of its technical nature which prescribes circuit breaker numbers and feeder names rather than suburbs. The list also contains individual company names where confidentiality needs to be considered and there are potential security concerns with releasing some network information."