Investigation underway after three-year-old girl found dead in Victoria

Three-year-old Emily Lever was found dead inside a car in a Victorian town on a day when temperatures reached 40C.

The grandparents of a young girl who was found dead inside a hot car in Victoria have described the pain of losing their “cheeky” little “chatterbox”.

Three-year-old Emily Lever was found unresponsive inside a vehicle at The Boulevard in Morwell, in Victoria’s southeast, at about 8.30pm on Friday.

Police said the exact circumstances surrounding her death were yet to be established, including whether it was suspicious.

But Emily's grandfather, Leslie Spark, told the Herald Sun it was “a tragic accident”.

Emily Lever has been remembered as a “cheeky” little “chatterbox”. Picture: Supplied

Emily would have been celebrating her fourth birthday on Tuesday, but instead her family is planning her funeral.

“The worst is to come,” Mr Spark said.

Grandmother Karen Spark described Emily as a “cheeky” and “adorable” chatterbox, who had “so much life in her”.

“It doesn’t feel real,” she said.

Temperatures reached above 40C in Victoria’s southeast on Friday.

The temperature at the Latrobe Regional Airport – a 10-minute drive away – at 8.30pm hit 34.4C, the Bureau of Meteorology told AAP.

It had been 40.2C at 7pm, 38.6C at 7.30pm before a slight dip to 35.9C at 8pm.

The incident is being investigated by the Homicide Squad.