A study of extreme fire weather days (EFWD) in Victoria for the twenty-nine fire seasons (November to April) from 1970/71 to 1998/99 inclusive was carried out in order to provide objective information about: (a) the frequency of EFWDs; and (b) the synoptic patterns and wind directions associated with EFWDs. Data from East Sale, Melbourne Airport, Mt Gambier and Mildura were used to calculate the fire danger rating using the McArthur Mark 4 grasslands fire danger meter and the McArthurMark 5 forest fire danger meter. Days that had a fire danger rating of 50 or greater were labelled EFWDs. The number of EFWDs per year was compared to the number of high risk Haines Index days (HRHID), another fire risk indicator. It was found that EFWDs occur most in the northwest and central parts of Victoria while Melbourne Airport had the largest number of extreme days. Extreme fire danger ratings usually occurred at 1500 h local time, however at Melbourne Airport, extreme grass fire danger ratings usually occurred at 1200 h local time. Most extreme events occurred in north to northwesterly flow. HRHIDs were found to be well correlated with EFWDs.
M. Long (Sun,) studied this question.