Coming rains to clear up smoke
SMOKY conditions across Cairns sparked by a combination of hazard reduction burns and cold weather are expected to ease in the coming days.
Queensland Parks and Wildlife Services (QPWS) is carrying out planned burns at Wooroonooran National Park, Walshs Pyramid area, which will continue until August 15.
Rural Fire Service acting Far Northern regional manager Peter Hollier said the mix of cold weather and dry air was impacting the way smoke dispersed across the city.
“Anything that’s in the close atmosphere will tend to sink as cold air comes down,” he said.
“Because of the amount of burning that (QPWS) are doing, we could still have the same sort of conditions Friday.
“The forecast is very mild conditions for the next couple of days, so not terribly windy, so therefore the smoke is potentially likely to hang around.
“Anybody that has health issues, stay indoors, keep your doors and windows closed.”
Bureau of Meteorology forecaster Peter Markworth said showers forecast from Friday would help clear the air across Cairns.
“We’ve got a very slight chance of showers returning to the Cassowary Coast Friday, but it does look like for the broader region we could see a bit more rainfall over the weekend,” he said.
“Around 20-25mm (of rain is forecast) reaching up to just above 30mm over the weekend, particularly on the ranges.
“We are expecting (daytime) temperatures to remain in the mid-20s and those (overnight) temperatures back up into the mid to high teens as that moisture starts to return in the Cairns region.”
Wet weather across the Far North is also expected to result in a potentially reduced bushfire season, which officially kicks off across Queensland from Saturday.
“The forecast this year from the Bureau of Meteorology is that we will still have a fire season this year, but it could be shorter,” Mr Hollier said.
“We’ve already had a wetter winter and they’re predicting whether with a La Nina forecast, it could be that we have an early onset wet season.
“There are areas around the region, more so on the Tablelands west of Mareeba and Ravenshoe, Millstream, which are our usual hot spots.
“So people who live in those areas are generally very good with their bushfire survival plans.”