Santa delivers a mixed bag of weather to Aussies this Christmas
Nick Efstathiadis

From: news.com.au December 25, 2012 11:32AM

barbecue

It may be too hot or too cold for a Christmas barbecue today, depending on where you are in the country. Picture: Mark Cranitch Source: The Advertiser

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SANTA just can't get the forecast right, with some Aussies sweating through Christmas Day while others shiver at their festive celebrations.

It's going to be a scorcher in Perth, perfect in Adelaide, rainy in Sydney and a mixture in Brisbane.

Meanwhile Melburnians are enjoying a much clearer Christmas than they did a year ago.

And it may be too hot or too cold for a Christmas barbecue today, depending on where you are in the country.

Western Australia

Perth is bracing for a blistering 39C Christmas Day and faces one of the hottest weeks in recent memory, with temperatures hovering near 40C for the rest of the week.

Hot easterly winds are expected on Christmas morning, swinging south to south-westerly in the middle of the day.

The Department of Fire and Emergency Services has yet to decide whether to implement a total fire ban, which could be a problem for those wanting to have a wood-fired barbecue or other outside cooking for Christmas lunch.

Severe and extreme fire danger warnings remain in place for some parts of the state including the Pilbara and Gascoyne regions, with temperatures soaring into the mid-40s in some parts.

New South Wales

Sydneysiders woke up to cooler weather this morning as a southerly change moved in.

The Bureau predicts a maximum temperature of 23 for the city and 24 in the west.

It will be fine and mostly sunny in southwest NSW, with isolated showers and thunderstorms elsewhere.

Severe thunderstorms could hit the northeast and the central ranges in the afternoon.

South Australia

South Australia is turning on perfect conditions for Christmas Day celebrations, with Adelaide expecting a mostly sunny top of 27C.

Bureau of Meteorology senior forecaster Vince Rowlands said it was ideal conditions for people having Christmas lunch outside or at the beach.

"It's going to be pretty much the perfect Christmas day," he said. "There's mostly sunny conditions and we are going to be having a bit of breeze about.

For the state, Mt Barker has 23C to look forward, Maitland and Minlaton on the Yorke Peninsula can ready for 26C, and Kadina 29C.

Christmas hail

christmas hail

Victoria was hit by severe storms last Christmas. Picture: Kevin Nemeth Source: news.com.au

Victoria

Melbourne is set to enjoy a cool and clear day in a dramatic improvement on last Christmas when fierce storms swept the city.

Isolated light showers are clearing this morning, with a mostly sunny afternoon expected and a top of 22C today.

It follows a warm weekend which peaked at 38.3C in Melbourne and up to 41C elsewhere in the state on Sunday, and a night that failed to dip below 27.6C - the hottest December night on record.

Last Christmas saw strong winds and hail hit the city, causing extensive damage.

Queensland

Brisbane residents should enjoy the blue skies while they can.

The sunshine and clear skies of Christmas morning over southeast Queensland won't last, as wild weather bringing thunderstorms and rain moves in from the southwest later this afternoon.

Bureau meteorologist Ben Annells said there would be thunderstorm activity and showers to the south and west of Brisbane today, particularly throughout inland areas such as the Darling Downs and parts of northern NSW.

Warm weather would bring a top of 31C in Brisbane and 34C at Ipswich, he said.

"We do expect some remnant activity to move across in the form of some showers or lighter rain overnight," Mr Annells said.

He said storm activity and unstable conditions experienced throughout western parts of the state today would close in around Brisbane overnight.

Christmas Day in northern parts of the state, including western districts and the tropics, would continue to experience generally scattered showers and storms producing some heavy falls.

Santa delivers a mixed bag of weather to Aussies this Christmas | News.com.au

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