Hottest day in 2 years.
January 18th, 2010
Perth recorded the hottest day in two years yesterday on Sunday the 17th. The temperature reached 42.9 degrees Celsius (109.2 degrees Fahrenheit).
It was Perth’s hottest day since Boxing Day 2007, when the mercury tipped 44.2C.
The electricity usage record was also broken, Power consumption reached 3790 megawatts on the south west electricity grid, surpassing the previous peak level of consumption set in February last year. The increased usage was blamed on air conditioners, pool pumps and big screen televisions.
Movie theaters also recorded higher than usual Sunday attendance, with some theaters reporting 40% to 50% more customers. With the lack of Sunday trading in Perth there is nowhere to go when the temperature soars, apart from the beach, the movies, or staying at home if you have air conditioning. If shops had been open I dare say they would have seen record numbers too.
We also used the most water as a city since 2001, using 100 million litres than the previous usage record.
The previous record for water used in 24 hours was in 1991 before Perth introduced sprinkler restrictions, when a 45.7C day saw us use 1269 million litres of water. I've been thinking about installing a few rain barrels before winter, to help reduce usage. "Propper" rain tanks are too expensive for me at this time.
Yesterday afternoon I was out in the hot sun trying to start a few of my cars that run. The 240K coupe seems to have developed an electrical fault. Nothing at all happens when you turn the key. No gauges move, no lights, nothing. The Super Six on the other hand fired up no problem at all.
I'll give the others a go when the weather cools down a little.
It was Perth’s hottest day since Boxing Day 2007, when the mercury tipped 44.2C.
The electricity usage record was also broken, Power consumption reached 3790 megawatts on the south west electricity grid, surpassing the previous peak level of consumption set in February last year. The increased usage was blamed on air conditioners, pool pumps and big screen televisions.
Movie theaters also recorded higher than usual Sunday attendance, with some theaters reporting 40% to 50% more customers. With the lack of Sunday trading in Perth there is nowhere to go when the temperature soars, apart from the beach, the movies, or staying at home if you have air conditioning. If shops had been open I dare say they would have seen record numbers too.
We also used the most water as a city since 2001, using 100 million litres than the previous usage record.
The previous record for water used in 24 hours was in 1991 before Perth introduced sprinkler restrictions, when a 45.7C day saw us use 1269 million litres of water. I've been thinking about installing a few rain barrels before winter, to help reduce usage. "Propper" rain tanks are too expensive for me at this time.
Yesterday afternoon I was out in the hot sun trying to start a few of my cars that run. The 240K coupe seems to have developed an electrical fault. Nothing at all happens when you turn the key. No gauges move, no lights, nothing. The Super Six on the other hand fired up no problem at all.
I'll give the others a go when the weather cools down a little.
