Perfect Christmas Day for Melbourne before parts of state swelter

Melburnians will enjoy a near-perfect sunny Christmas Day, before a run of hot days which will see parts of the state hit with scorching heat.

Early bird anglers beating the crowds to catch a feast on Christmas Eve. Picture: Nicole Garmston

Santa and his reindeers had better be prepared for the Australian sun with a perfect day predicted for Christmas before temperatures soar into the 30s.

Melburnians will enjoy a warm 26C today with light southerly winds in the afternoon.

Inland suburbs are expected to see temperatures closer to 30C without the relief of the sea breeze.

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Most of the rest of the state will see a similarly idyllic Christmas, before northern Victoria swelters through a heatwave, with temperatures along the Murray River tipped to be in the mid-40s.

Mildura and Kerang are bracing for a December record of six days in a row above 40C, with Sunday’s temperature climbing to 46 degrees in parts of the state.

Mildura is expected to sit between 43 and 44C until Monday.

Santa braces for a run of hot weather on Geelong’s waterfront. Picture: Glenn Ferguson

Bureau of Meteorology forecaster, Beren Bradshaw, said after a perfect Christmas Day temperatures will cool in the evening with an overnight low of 17C expected.

“It will be another sunny day — we’ll be seeing light winds during the day but by the afternoon we’ll see a fresh sea breeze come through.”

Tomorrow will be sunny again, with clouds clearing for the afternoon and a top of 26C.

It will be partly cloudy on Thursday with north-westerly winds during the day and a high of 35C.

How warm will it be on Christmas Day? Northern Victoria looks hot but conditions will be milder in the south. Check your forecast at https://t.co/wyeHYfk8J8 pic.twitter.com/WZIiHFqEZd

— Bureau of Meteorology, Victoria (@BOM_Vic) December 23, 2018

The dawn sky adopted a festive #Christmas red this morning over #Melbourne! Dry & mostly sunny in #Victoria for your festive celebrations. 🎄 Temperatures in the mid to high 30s in the north and 20s to low 30s in the south. For futher forecast details: https://t.co/7fkUWQB4Jo pic.twitter.com/azqSfB2BGk

— Bureau of Meteorology, Victoria (@BOM_Vic) December 24, 2018

“Going into the 30s we’ll see maximum temperatures increase, it will be much hotter than what we have been seeing over the last few days,” Ms Bradshaw said.

Ms Bradshaw said a warm night on Thursday would lead into a hot Friday, with the mercury expected to hit 33C early, before a cool change in the afternoon.

The warm weather will continue into the weekend with a top of 27C on Saturday and a hot 34C on Sunday.

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