Birdsville is predicted to reach 46C degrees next week as a heatwave affecting western Queensland continues.

January 11, 2019

Western Queensland towns enduring a heatwave can expect the above-average temperatures to continue for at least another week.

Birdsville near the Northern Territory border is predicted to reach 46C degrees next week after similar recent temperatures, while Charleville, 750 kilometres west of Brisbane, will be in the high 30s.

Birdsville Caravan Park manager Julie Steele says it’s like living in an oven when the temperature gets that hot.

“You can’t go out in it or run around in it, even sitting in the shade on the verandah you feel like you’re being slowly roasted,” she told AAP on Friday.

The town is mostly deserted but a few families are staying at the park ahead of a jaunt down the Birdsville track, Ms Steele said.

“One of the ladies said this morning ‘how do you do this?’,” she joked.

Other south-western region towns, including Longreach and Winton, have regularly been around the 40-degree mark to start the year as part of the low-intensity heatwave.

“It’s above the average, about 5-6 degrees above the average for the western region,” Bureau of Meteorology forecaster Chris Joseph told AAP.

“The area extends from up in the north, near Gulf (of Carpentaria) country, down through south-western part of the state into the Maranoa-Warrego.

“So that’s likely to stay in place right through to pretty much most of next week.

“A pretty hot start to the year.”

The region is not expected to benefit from a weak low pressure system associated with former tropical cyclone Penny, which is bringing heavy rainfalls to parts of the north tropical coast.

“That will shift over the northwest over the next 24 hours or so into the Gulf country,” Mr Joseph said.

“It’s unlikely to reform as it’s weakened considerably. It’s going to weaken further.”