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Australia has been hit by an intense heatwave as temperatures soar above 40C, sparking warnings of “extreme fire danger” and risks to life.
The country’s Bureau of Meteorology said more than half of Australia was in the grips of extreme heat, especially South Australia and Victoria, with temperatures forecast to reach up to 47C in inland areas.
Firefighters were grappling with blazes in several areas of Victoria on Thursday and a number of towns near Seymour were evacuated as responders struggled to contain outbreaks. A segment of the Hume Highway, the main road between Melbourne and Sydney, was also closed due to fire threats.
Friday “is going to be the peak fire danger day, especially for Victoria”, said Sarah Scully, a meteorologist at the Bureau.
High temperatures, strong gusty winds and “dry lightning”, where thunder storms had little rain, all increased the risk of fires, she added.
Firefighters have raised concerns that cooler temperatures over Christmas may have led to complacency among residents in areas at high risk of bush fires, meaning that they have not prepared their houses for the soaring temperatures which usually includes removing dead leaves and cutting back verges.
The heatwave is expected to become the worst since the “black summer” of 2019-2020, when the country was hit by deadly wildfires that killed more than 30 people and burned an area the size of the UK.
Temperatures are expected to fall by the weekend in places such as Melbourne, but are likely to reach 40C in Sydney, increasing the risks of bush fires around the city.
Michael Wright, president of the Royal Australian College of GPs (RACGP), urged the public to prioritise hydration, rest indoors and check in on people more susceptible to heat exhaustion and heat stroke.
“Heatwaves have caused the most hospitalisations related to extreme weather over the past decade,” Wright added.
The current heatwave came as a report warned that the outskirts of Australian cities, including Sydney, Perth and Melbourne, had similar attributes to those that made last year’s fires in Los Angeles so destructive.
“If you live in suburbia and think bushfires don’t concern you, think again,” said Greg Mullins, former New South Wales fire commissioner and founder of the Emergency Leaders for Climate Action, one of the groups behind the report.
“Nearly every Australian capital city has a dangerous mix of preconditions for a catastrophic fire like LA: the possibility of extreme dry periods; severe winds; steep slopes; bushland near homes; and a history of destructive fires,” he added.
Scientists have long warned that climate change is making extreme weather events more intense across the world.
Temperatures in some rural parts of Australia have been rising in recent years with the town of Onslow in the iron ore-rich Pilbara region hitting 49C on Wednesday. Before that it hit a record-equalling 50.7C in 2022. These high temperatures are also starting to affect urban centres such as Melbourne and Adelaide.
Preliminary data released this month showed that Australia had experienced its fourth-warmest year on record in 2025, with temperatures 1.23C above the 1961—1990 average. Australia’s warmest year on record was in 2019.
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