MULTIPLE fires were being fought in the State's south this week, after 300,000 lightning strikes hit WA on Monday night.
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An evacuation site was established on Tuesday at the Trayning Bowling Club in response to a blaze, which was close to property and towns and 108 fire bans were declared, across most of the State.
The thunderstorms mostly struck through the Central Wheatbelt and the Great Southern, with storms continuing to roll between Albany and Katanning on Tuesday morning.
Bureau of Meteorology WA manager James Ashley was concerned history could repeat itself and WA could experience a tragic bushfire such as in Wooroloo in 2021.
That blaze destroyed at least 86 houses and two fire trucks, and he said current conditions were looking very similar.
"The situation we're in right now is not dissimilar to the conditions we had at Wooroloo - with prolonged days and prolonged, hot, dry temperatures," Mr Ashley said.
Due to a reasonable growing season there was plenty of fuel to light fires, along with the added catalyst of lightning storms.
Mr Ashley said the outlook for fires over summer was worse than usual, especially in the South West where there was more fuel and wind.
With the continued fire bans, the Department of Fire and Emergency Services (DFES) positioned three aerial strike teams in Jurien, Manjimup and Northam, while the grain strike team was relocated earlier this week.
The State is expected to reach maximum temperatures and moderate winds this Friday, before cooling off over the weekend.
Bureau meteorologist Jessica Lingard said farmers could expect temperatures to drop "a good five to seven degrees" through most parts of the State this weekend, which could bring some much needed relief during bushfire season.
Throughout the Central Wheatbelt temperatures were expected to reach 40o celsius, paired with 20 kilometre per hour winds.
The Great Southern is expected to reach a peak of about 38oC on Friday with winds of about 25km/h.
The Central West district can expect strong winds of up to 45km/h and a peak of 40oC .
Kimberley, temperatures wwre beginning to warm up again, and were expected to hit 46oC on Saturday.
"In good news for the northern parts, things are going to return to business as usual," Ms Lingard said.
"By Friday and over the weekend we start to see more of those afternoon showers and thunderstorms returning to the Kimberly region."
Last week, the bureau released its forecast for the coming months, which it said reflected the impacts of La Nia on weather Australia-wide.
For February, above median maximum temperatures were likely for the west coast.
February to April minimum temperatures will likely be warmer than median for almost all of Australia, except southern parts of WA, where there is an equal chance of above or below median minimum temperatures.
Below median rainfall is likely for WA, with the bureau having a high accuracy with its past January to March predictions.
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