Perth weather: City sweats through second heatwave this summer & hottest day so far

Perth has sweltered through its hottest day so far this summer as temperatures soared into the 40s on Sunday afternoon.

The mercury peaked at 41C at 3.48pm in Perth, beating the previous high of 40.1C last week.

Geraldton was the hottest place in WA on Sunday, hitting 46.5C before 12pm, followed by Port Hedland, which reached 46.2C.

Beaches across Perth were packed as punters tried to keep cool and enjoyed the start of the Christmas holidays.

Michelle Leach and her children Zoe, 5, and Alex, 3, were among hundreds who flocked to Hillary’s Boat Harbour on Sunday.

“It’s been such a hot day, but the water was beautiful and cool,” Ms Leach said.

“We’ve been beating the heat at our local public swimming pool in the City of Stirling, so it was nice to be able to come down to the beach.

“We’re not looking forward to another hot day tomorrow, but I think we will put on a movie in the aircon for the kids.”

A heatwave warning is in place from the Bureau of Meteorology stretching almost the entire length of the WA coast.

Bureau of Meteorology senior meteorologist Angeline Prasad said Monday’s forecast was tipped to reach over 40C in the Perth metropolitan area, with people in the hills likely to face temperatures in the mid-40s.

“The updated forecast for tomorrow is 40.3C, but it’s likely we could see 41C in the Perth metro area again,” she said.

“In the eastern suburbs and in the hills, we will likely reach temperatures up to 42C to 44C tomorrow.”

Today’s maximum temperature has helped break weather records for Perth, with 10 days over 40C so far this year, the highest on record in a single year. The previous record was nine days, which was recorded in 2007.

Royal Life Saving of WA spokesperson Lauren Nimmo urged people to take care in the water over summer after an alarming rise in water-related deaths.

She urged people to be prepared for an emergency and stay vigilant.

“We’ve seen a concerning rise in water-related incidents this summer, with four drowning deaths already recorded since the season began,” Ms Nimmo said.

“The warm start to summer is drawing even more people to the water, often without proper preparation or awareness of safety measures, which increases the risks.

“Summer is the peak time for drownings, and during the holiday season, there’s often a relaxation of safety vigilance, leading to lapses in supervision, overestimation of swimming abilities, and complacency around the water.”

There is a cool change on the way just in time for Christmas.

The temperature is expected to drop in Perth on Tuesday to 31C, while Christmas Day is expected to be a very mild 24C, followed by 25C for Boxing Day.