Firies feel the heat as weather puts Coast on high alert

FIREFIGHTERS are on high alert as the Sunshine Coast prepares for a hot, windy weekend.

Temperatures are expected to soar to 34 degrees in the hinterland and while the coastal strip will be slightly cooler, a string of small fires burning in inaccessible country continues to be a concern.

Queensland Fire and Rescue duty manager operations for the North Coast region, Russell Thompson, said that while the fire rating was high, that estimation was moderate.

"We'll be on high alert by Sunday afternoon," he said.

"Fires at Conondale and Yarraman are starting to poke their heads out (of inaccessible bush).

"But when they do that, we can suppress them. There's also been a number of grassfires across the region.

"We'll be watching conditions very closely across the weekend."

The weather bureau says temperatures will run hot and cold in the next four days.

While sea breezes are tipped to spare the heavily populated coastal strip from the worst of soaring temperatures across the weekend, there will be no escaping nature's whim come Tuesday.

Dry, warm north to north-westerly winds will push coastal temperatures to 30 degrees today and 31 degrees tomorrow and Monday - up to six degrees above those normally expected this month.

Off the beach, without the benefit of the sea breezes, Nambour and hinterland areas will see temperatures climb eight degrees above normal, reaching 32 today and 34 tomorrow.

But as the trough generating the warm conditions moves away, a cold south, south-easterly change will replace it on Monday night.

Bureau of Meteorology weather forecaster Andrew Bufalino said Sunshine Coast residents should expect a 10-degree temperature turnaround by Tuesday.

He predicts a fall to 23-24 degrees by then, temperatures that are below average.

The temperature yo-yo won't bring much-needed rain to farmers and rural residential dwellers on tank water.

Despite the volatility, the troughs are carrying only dry air at their lower levels.