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Australia headed for hottest January on record
https://www.dw.com/en/australia-headed-for-hottest-january-on-record/a-47227287Australia's week-long heat wave has triggered power cuts around Melbourne as the midday temperature soared to 42.8 Celsius (109 Fahrenheit). Outdoor play at its tennis Open was suspended for a second day running.
Power authorities imposed sequential electricity cuts on households and businesses across Melbourne Friday as firefighters braced for wildfires across Australia's scorched southeast.
Energy Minister Lily D'Ambrosio conceded that the mainly coal and gas-fired power grid that supplies Melbourne and surrounding Victoria state, home to 6.3 million, was "not up to the task today."
Some 30,000 premises were switched off for up to two hours at a time in what Australia's Energy Market Operator called an "involuntary load reduction."
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