Weather tracker: Much of southern Australia on heatwave alert | Environment

Southern parts of Australia are expected to suffer a short heatwave starting on Friday and lasting until next Tuesday. The Adelaide region will be worst affected, with highs of about 36C anticipated in the city on Friday, which is 10C above the seasonal norm.

Daytime maximums are then set to remain above 35C until Tuesday, while minimum temperatures are not forecast to drop below 25C. This will be the longest March run of high temperatures in Adelaide in four years, with only one March day above 35C being recorded over this period.

Meanwhile, across more rural inland regions, temperatures will rise up to 15C above average, reaching more than 40C in places. Melbourne will also experience high temperatures from Saturday onwards, with highs of 38C anticipated there.

Consequently, a low-intensity heatwave alert has been issued for much of southern Australia, with some local severe heatwave warnings issued, including in Adelaide. The dry conditions and light winds will exacerbate the effects of the heatwave.

Authorities have advised residents to not skimp on electricity, and to make use of air conditioning units to stay cool overnight. By Tuesday, temperatures will start to fall, but will remain above average in Adelaide until Thursday.

Last weekend a western disturbance passed across central and southern parts of Asia and brought intense rainfall and heavy snow to Afghanistan, north-west India and Pakistan.

A western disturbance is an extratropical cyclonic circulation that originates over the Mediterranean before propagating eastwards in line with the subtropical jet stream. They occur about five to 10 times a month during the northern hemisphere winter, and are the main source of precipitation in north-west Pakistan during this time. They are often a source of flooding for these regions too.

This western disturbance severely affected Pakistan and led to remote areas being stranded, as a result of which Pakistan’s army was brought in to remove snow off of highways and save stranded civilians.

Torrential rainfall led to landslides that in turn destroyed many houses, and killed at least 35 people, of whom 22 were reportedly children.