The Bureau of Meteorology has predicted north-west Victoria will experience severe fire danger tomorrow (Friday).
Weather Bureau senior meteorologist Chris Godfred said a strong northerly was bringing hot air from the interior of the continent.
“We should see the fire danger peak at around severe in north-west Victoria, where we are going to see the hottest temperatures in the state,” Mr Godfred said.
“We may see some centres get up to 42 degrees, in parts of the Mallee.”
He said the fire danger in southern and central Victoria was likely to be very high.
Mr Godfred said it was the first burst of genuine summer weather, which was likely to run until Saturday.
“It’s not without precedent, if you look at the record, across Victoria,” Mr Godfred said.
“Getting days in the low 30’s and high 40’s can happen, but you’d see this heat, this early in summer, once every five to 10 years.”
He said the weather was expected to cool on Saturday, as a change passed through the south-west.
“Every heatwave has to end, sooner or later, at least in this part of the world,” Mr Godfred said.
“However, if you’re looking for a cool change on Friday night, I wouldn’t advise staying up late.”
He said it would remain hot in the north, with centres such as Albury and Corryong possibly experiencing higher temperatures on Saturday than Friday.