MELBOURNE (REUTERS) - Temperatures soared on Monday (Dec 30) in Australia's normally icy cool state of Tasmania, the country's closest point to the South Pole, reaching more than double the summer average with hot air blowing in from a scorching mainland.

The mercury in the state's capital Hobart hit 40.8 deg C, which would make it the city's hottest December day on record, the Bureau of Meteorology said.