A dangerous heatwave is bearing down over Victoria today, threatening all-time record temperatures and uncontrollable fire conditions, as Melbourne is tipped to crack 45 degrees.
Parts of the state’s north-west are forecast to reach a record 49 degrees under the worst heatwave conditions since Black Saturday in 2009.
They include large swaths of the Mallee region – including the regional city of Mildura, and the country town of Ouyen– where the previous record was 47 degrees.
Ambulance Victoria set up its emergency operations centre at the start of the heatwave over the weekend, and is prepared to re-deploy paramedics to the state’s hardest-hit areas.
Powercor, the electricity distributor for Melbourne’s CBD and Victoria’s west, said it would have bolstered crews, including dispatchers and controllers, ready for widespread power outages in the coming days, as grids are expected to be overloaded with people using air conditioners.
Melbourne is forecast to swelter through a maximum 45 degrees, only marginally lower than the 46.4 degrees recorded on Black Saturday, before temperatures plummet overnight.
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