Multiple states are sweating through an intense heatwave which is set to persist into early next week, as the bushfire risk heightens across Victoria.
Heatwave warnings are in place for NSW, Victoria, Western Australia and Tasmania and severe conditions reaching the 40s are expected for some pockets of the country.
Tops of 45-degrees today are forecast in many locations across Victoria will make for tricky conditions as firefighters continue to battle blazes during a heatwave.
The hot, dry and windy temperatures could pose a fire risk today in the country’s south-east, particularly regions in Victoria impacted by the total fire ban.
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An extreme fire danger warning has been declared in the Mallee, Central and North Central regions of Victoria and total fire bans have been declared across the region, including Wimmera, the South West, Melbourne and Geelong.
The bushfire in Grampians National Park, which began in mid-December, has eased but the blaze is still burning.
It has already razed through 76,000 hectares of land in the Grampians.
In NSW, extreme to severe heatwave conditions are expected to peak today and tomorrow then ease with a cool change later in the afternoon.
The Bureau of Meteorology issued a three-day heatwave warning for WA, with the Northern Interior expected to see temperatures ranging from the low to mid-40s.
Meanwhile, in NSW the south coast could bring temperatures reaching the high 30s.
Similar conditions are expected to blanket Batemans Bay, Braidwood, Bombala, Bega, Eden and Nowra in sweltering heat until late today.
Tasmania is also expected to see temperatures reaching 30-degrees in the Furneaux Islands and the north-east.
A cool change tonight is forecast to make its way across the south-east, moving into NSW, which could ease conditions early next week.
