about both banks of the Pioneer River. The Clarke Range lies to the west of the city. The city is expanding to accommodate for growth with most of the expansion happening in the Beachside, Southern, Central and Pioneer Valley suburbs. Suburbs to the north of the city such as Midge Point are also fast growing with residential estates in demand. There is disagreement about how to describe the location of Mackay, with debate ongoing as to whether the city is located in North Queensland or Central Queensland. There is no uniform agreement among either state or federal government agencies on the definition of North Queensland, with government services for Mackay being provided through both Townsville (North Queensland) and Rockhampton (Central Queensland). In its news coverage, the national Australian Broadcasting Corporation consistently describes Mackay as being in North Queensland. The ABC's local radio station in Mackay is also called ABC Tropical North. However, Queensland Health designates Mackay as a health district distinct from both Central Queensland and Townsville health districts and the Mackay-based rescue helicopter, part of the Queensland Health Aeromedical Retrieval Service, is called CQ Rescue. Climate Mackay has a humid tropical climate (Cwa) under the Köppen climate classification. Average maximum temperatures range from in January to in July, while minimums range from . Winters are sunny and fairly dry, with minimum temperatures usually around , but rarely any lower than . Days are pleasant and warm; however, occasional cloudy days may keep the temperature below all day. Frost is extremely rare in Mackay; however, it has been recorded to the west of the city during some winters. Mackay gets around 110.0 clear days annually. Spring is usually dry, but significantly hotter and more humid than winter, with temperatures beginning to top on a regular basis by November. Occasional thunderstorms may cause heavy downpours, but the very heavy rain will not arrive until later in summer. December is the start of the wet season, which lasts until March or April. High humidity, almost daily rainfall and very warm nights are typical of this time of year. Monsoonal low pressure systems and tropical cyclones occasionally affect Mackay, and cause very heavy, prolonged periods of rain, with totals of up to often being recorded in 24 hours during these systems. Extreme temperatures in Mackay have ranged from . The highest rainfall ever recorded in 1 day was on 22 January 1918, which