THEY say Australia is the land of drought and flooding rains, well that will be no more appropriate than this summer's climate outlook overview prediction which has been released by the Bureau of Meteorology on Thursday.
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While last year the threat of bushfires was all too real across the country, this year is the polar opposite is expected to occur with more rain and a greater chance of floods on the horizon.
But temperatures are expected to be slightly warmer than average as a greater cloud cover will mean higher humidity, but an overall less chance of major bushfires taking hold as opposed to last summer where much of the eastern side of the country burned.
The bureau's head of operational climates services Dr Andrew Watkins said with a strong La Nina event underway it would mean that December to February rainfall would be above average across much of the country, except for western Tasmania.
"While the last three weeks have been dry in many parts of the country - due in part to unfavourable tropical weather patterns - it does not signal a weakening of La Nina," Dr Watkins said.
"Our climate outlook is the opposite of what we experienced last year in Australia. This summer, New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland are expected to see above average rainfall, meaning we face an increased risk of widespread floods.
Dr Watkins said that while the risk of bushfires isn't as high as last summer, fires will occur as smaller heatwave events will stay happen.
"There's a great chance of grass fires in some areas as recent rain and warm weather have led to vigorous vegetation growth. South eastern Australia is one of the most fire-prone regions in the world. Even short periods of hot and dry weather increase the risk of fire in summer."
"Every summer we see heatwaves across southern Australia. This summer heatwaves may not reach the extreme temperatures of recent years, but may be longer duration and more humid, which can still have a significant impact on human health.
"Daytime temperatures in summer are likely to be near average, but there will be periods of high heat combined with milder periods.
Emergency Management Victoria said despite the predictions, fires could and would still happen.
CFA acting chief officer Alen Slijepcevic said as one of the world's most bushfire-prone areas, even a normal fire season in Victoria presents a high risk to communities.
"We urge all Victorians in high-risk areas to prepare their properties and take particular care while using harvesting and other machinery," he said.
"Grassfires travel faster than you can run, and they jump highways, so you need to activate your fire plan on those high-risk days before a fire starts."
