A bushfire burning in Victoria’s far south-west has reached emergency level, with authorities warning residents to evacuate immediately.
Fire crews have described the blaze in the Little Desert National Park, about 375 kilometres west of Melbourne, as “active and dynamic”.
Residents living in Dimboola should move to a safer location away from the fire.
Residents should leave via the Borung Highway and head towards Warracknabeal and turn right on the Blue Ribbon road towards Horsham, authorities said.
Meanwhile, people living in Wail and Pimpinio should travel south towards Horsham.
A relief centre has been opened at Horsham Senior Citizens Centre, at 17 Roberts Avenue, Horsham.
There is an watch and act warning for people living in Kinimakatka, Winiam Wast, Duchembegarra, Cooack and Nurcoung.
“Don’t wait, leaving now is the safest option – conditions may change and get worse very quickly. Emergency services may not be able to help you if you decide to stay,” the warning said.
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An extreme fire danger rating was in place today across much of the state and total fire bans covered the Wimmera, Mallee, South West, Central and North Central regions.
“The conditions will make it difficult for firefighters to suppress a fire should one start,” CFA chief officer Jason Heffernan said.
A late cool change will push the temperature down by 20 degrees in just a matter of hours, before a top of 22 degrees tomorrow.
After a top of 33 degrees throughout the day, the mercury should drop to 27 degrees by the 7.15pm start of play as a cold front moves across the state.
The cold front, combined with a low-pressure trough, is expected to move through the south of the country early in the week, while the east coast is expected to heat up.
Sydney should experience mostly sunny conditions over the next couple of days, reaching 31 degrees today and 35 degrees tomorrow.
Temperatures in the west of the city are expected to climb to 41 tomorrow, before potential storms bring cooler conditions on Wednesday.
Conditions in the ACT will be stormy and hot, with potential storms bringing highs of 35 degrees today and 37 degrees tomorrow.
Showers and stormy conditions could impact northern parts of WA, the Northern Territory, Far North Queensland and Central Queensland.
Brisbane is expected to cop temperatures of 31 degrees and partly cloudy conditions for most of the week, but the humidity will make temperatures feel a few degrees warmer.
Perth is expecting sunny conditions with a top of 32 degrees today.
The WA capital is set to peak at 40 degrees on Wednesday, with a severe heatwave warning in place for the northern and eastern part of the state.