Heatwave to descend on south-east Australia with temperatures forecast to exceed 40C
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Bureau of Meteorology says Melbourne’s hot weather will peak at 38C on Saturday while Penrith will reach 39C on Sunday and 40C on Monday. Much of south-east Australia will swelter through a heatwave over the weekend that is expected to exceed 40C in some places, bringing extreme fire danger before a cool change comes through.
Melbourne was expected to peak at 38C on Saturday, reaching 37C on Sunday and dropping to 22C by Monday as the cool change brings widespread showers. Farther inland, temperatures could reach the low 40s through northern Victoria and along the Murray River at the weekend. In Victoria, Mildura could reach 41C on Saturday and Sunday, while Shepparton was forecast to hit 40C on Sunday.
Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email. In Sydney, the city has a forecast maximum of 29C on Saturday, climbing to 34C on Sunday and 35C on Monday. Penrith is set to reach 39C on Sunday and 40C on Monday, with an evening thunderstorm expected. Blacktown could reach 38C on Sunday and 39C on Monday.
Murray Bridge and Tailem Bend in South Australia were forecast to reach 40C on Saturday, and Barmera could reach 42C on Sunday. Jonathan How, a forecaster with the Bureau of Meteorology, said residents in South Australia, Victoria, Tasmania, NSW and the ACT could expect a run of warm days and nights and warned fire dangers could reach extreme in some areas – including the Grampians national park, where a bushfire continues to burn.
