Officials warn of catastrophic conditions as millions suffer from sweltering heat wave: 'There's very little rainfall expected'

Parts of Australia are going up in flames amid tinder-dry conditions and blazing heat. Firefighters on Friday were battling a "catastrophic fire" in the Victoria region, according to 9 News. 

CBC reported that at least three people were missing as two major fires burned across the southeastern Australian state.

"The fires we are seeing are uncontrollable, unpredictable and fast-moving," Victoria's premier, Jacinta Allan, posted on X. "There have been multiple homes already lost – and our hearts are with the communities who have been impacted by this loss. Right now, we need to continue every effort to keep Victorians safe."

The Australian Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) started issuing heatwave warnings early in the week as temperatures were expected to soar to as high as 117 degrees in some spots. That heat, along with gusty winds and dry conditions, has set the stage for rapidly spreading wildfires. The prospect of severe thunderstorms in some regions will only make matters worse.

"There's very little rainfall expected with any of the storms that do form," BOM meteorologist Sarah Scully told the New York Times. "So this creates the risk of dry lightning that could potentially ignite new fires."

Melbourne, Australia's second largest city, is located in the state of Victoria, one of the hardest hit parts of the continent. There are very few parts of Australia that are being spared from the blazing heat and rising risk of wildfires. The only state and territory not under some type of severe or extreme heat warning is Queensland.

The BOM forecast called for extreme fire danger in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) on Saturday. 

"Very hot, dry and windy conditions will lead to extreme fire danger over the ACT on Saturday," read the BOM fire weather warning in effect for the region. "A cooler and gusty east to southeasterly change to move through in the evening." 

The ACT is home to Canberra, the nation's capital.

The New South Wales (NSW) region, home to Sydney, Australia's most populous city, is also under a fire weather warning. The alert for Sydney also mentioned the hot, dry, and windy conditions that are conducive to the rapid spread of any wildfires that should ignite. 

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The NSW region has the added threat of lightning sparking fires. The alert noted the possibility of an "isolated thunderstorm developing with the additional risk of dry lightning."

Parts of Australia were included in the areas of the world's surface that endured a record-high November last year, noted the National Centers of Environmental Information. Scientists have said that rising temperatures are supercharging extreme weather events like heat waves and wildfires.

"The risk of dangerous bushfires has increased in NSW due to population expansion into bushland areas and increasing fire weather due to climate change," said Adapt NSW, a website created by the NSW Government. "Increases in fuel dryness, fire weather and lightning strikes are together likely to result in more frequent bushfires."

Australia's "Angry Summer" of 2012-2013 was the country's hottest on record at the time, as reported by Grist. It was a summer that saw record-breaking summer heat and devastating wildfires. 

A study conducted by the University of Melbourne found that rising temperatures increased the likelihood of extreme weather events that year. 

"Indeed, human influences on the climate system increased the chances of our record hot, 'angry' summer by more than five times," concluded researchers.

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