TRANSCRIPT
For those who celebrate Christmas Day, the weather forecast helps to decide whether to eat lunch indoors or outdoors.
But with bushfires blazing across Western Australia, floodwaters escalating in northern Queensland, and heatwaves predicted in the Northern Territory, some Australians are seeking advice on whether or not they will spend Christmas evacuating.
Firefighters in Western Australia are continuing their battle as a number of emergency-level blazes destroy multiple homes in Perth.
Fire and Emergency Services say strong, gusty winds have pushed the blazes to catastrophic levels.
The Bureau of Meteorology is forecasting severe heatwave conditions over parts of Western Australia's Kimberly region and northern regions of the Northern Territory as well as pockets of extreme heatwave conditions in some areas.
Fire Incident Controller Scott Hares says the priority is getting people home.
"Our number one priority right now, once the fire is contained, is to allow the residents back into their homes because we understand they are displaced and that's not a nice thing to be. So we're doing our best to try to get them in as soon as we can."
As for other parts of Australia, Senior Meteorologist for the Bureau Angus Hines says stormy conditions across the eastern states are likely to persist.
"Thunderstorms continue from the 24th to Christmas day itself. Monday afternoon likely to be another stormy day across the eastern seaboard of Australia with thunderstorms across many eastern areas again. QLD and Victoria likely to bare the brunt of that storm activity."
In northern Queensland, the storms may see flood levels rival major floods in 2000 and 2009.
A Cape York community is bracing for major flooding in the wake of ex-Tropical Cyclone Jasper, as the search for a missing elderly man is scaled down.
Almost three hundred residents of Wujal Wujal, one of the areas worst affected by the flooding, have been evacuated to Cooktown.
Mr Hines says conditions may continue to be challenging for parts of Queensland.
"Now those are storms that can get so intense they can bring damaging and destructive wind, heavy and locally intense areas of rain and large or sometimes even giant size hail are forecast across the QLD-NSW border there. Around south-east Queensland including Brisbane and the North-East of NSW so that's an area of particular concern and that's an area we will be paying close attention to."
As for Christmas day in other parts of Australia, Sydney is expected to reach a top in the high 20s with a high chance of showers and light winds.
Melbourne is likely to reach twenty three and will be partly cloudy with a chance of showers while afternoon showers are forecast for Brisbane.
Perth will be partly cloudy with a top in the low thirties.
Adelaide will stay in the low 20s with partly cloudy conditions and much the same is expected in Canberra with a chance of showers.
Similar conditions for Hobart while Darwin is expected to reach 35 degrees with a chance of showers or thunderstorms in the afternoon.
Australians are reminded to stay alert over the holiday period, keeping an eye on weather alerts and emergency service announcements.
