Melbourne weather: fire risk as heat, wind set to hit Victoria

Victoria is bracing for mid-40C temperatures and 100km/h winds, as authorities warn of lightning and extreme fire danger.

Victoria is bracing for extreme heat and wind in parts of the state on Friday.

Victoria is today set for its hottest day so far this summer, as authorities warn a wind change bringing gusts of up to 100km/h and dry lightning poses an extreme fire risk.

Melbourne is forecast to reach 42C — its hottest day since January 2016 — while Echuca, Swan Hill Kerang and Mildura in Victoria’s north and northwest are forecast to hit 46C.

A cool change is predicted to hit Victoria’s southwest in the early morning, reaching Melbourne and the north and northwest of the state about 4pm and crossing into the far east late in the evening.

TOP PRIORITY FOR IMMEDIATE BROADCAST
Severe Weather Warning for DAMAGING WINDS tomorrow Friday 4th Janhttps://t.co/do7sPENskR pic.twitter.com/IksPbCOLvp

— VicEmergency (@vicemergency) January 3, 2019

While the change is expected to lower temperatures to the mid 20s, it is also forecast to bring 70km/h southerly winds, gusting to 90 to 100km/h, as well as thunderstorms with little precipitation which could start fires in parts of central, northern and eastern Victoria.

A statewide total fire ban is in place, and extreme fire warnings have been issued for the Mallee, Wimmera, Northern Country and North Central regions.

“If a fire starts it’s going to be uncontrollable, it’s going to be fast- moving,” Emergency Management Victoria Commissioner Andrew Crisp said.

“So this is a timely reminder for people, if you have not done your preparation and planning in relation to fire, then you better get on to it.”

Bureau of Meteorology senior forecaster Kevin Parkyn said tomorrow’s forecast has “all the ingredients that make fires difficult to control”.

“It’s hot, the air mass is particularly dry, we’ve got north to north-westerly winds that are quite gusty, that fan fires in the landscape, and probably the other element that makes the day more dangerous than it would be otherwise is a wind change,” Mr Parkyn said.

Country Fire Authority chief officer Steve Warrington said wind changes were “the biggest killer” in Victoria when it came to fire fatalities, urging campers and holiday-makers to avoid travel as the change hits.

“Our advice would be don’t get on the road at that particular time, and even consider delaying your return home from holidays,” he said.

“Tomorrow is a spike day. It is the first spike day in a real sense for the whole state (this fire season).

Acting Victorian Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton warned children could become unconscious within minutes of being left in a car on a hot day, reminding parents to be vigilant.

He said children and the elderly, those suffering ill-health and pregnant women were at particular risk in hot weather, with the conditions likely to prove deadly for some.

“There will be scores of people who have cardiac arrest or who present in a really severe state by ambulance,” Mr Sutton said.

Tasmania hit by heatwave

Tasmanians are preparing for a day of scorching, dry and windy weather, with authorities warning of a severe fire risk for parts of the island state. Hobart is expected to reach 36 degrees on Friday, with Campania and Brighton tipped to hit 39.

“Those temperatures are 10 to 15 degrees warmer than what we’d expect at this time of the year,” climatologist Ian Barnes-Keoghan said.

Extra firefighters and equipment are on standby, with the east coast, southeast, midlands and Upper Derwent Valley rated a severe fire risk.

A total fire ban is in place for the eastern half of the state. The mercury is likely to peak around 2pm, before an afternoon cool change brings relief to Hobart and sweeps up the east coast.

Friday is the sixth anniversary of the Dunalley bushfires that destroyed hundreds of homes in the state’s southeast.

Popular national park tracks at Mt Field, Freycinet and Maria Island have been closed due to the extreme heat.