New South Wales will feel the brunt of a heatwave sweeping across the country, with parts of the state expected to experience the hottest temperatures since 2020.
Western regions of the state will reach maximum temperatures above 40 degrees for a fourth consecutive day on Friday.
Meanwhile, areas just inland of the coast, including Western Sydney, will reach high thirties.
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The Bureau of Meteorology has forecast extreme heatwave conditions over central parts of New South Wales, and low-intensity to severe heat wave conditions over most of the remaining area of the state.
Parts of southern Queensland and Cape York Peninsula, parts of far eastern South Australia and northeast Victoria, and the Kimberley in Western Australia will also experience low-intensity to severe heatwave conditions.
Low intensity heatwave conditions have also been forecast over isolated pockets of northwest Western Australia, parts of northern Northern Territory, and western Queensland.
From Sunday, it’s expected the conditions will move south, brining heatwave conditions to larger parts of Victoria.
According to Weatherzone, the last time New South Wales experienced similar conditions were during Black Summer in 2019/2020.
The early start to the hot summer is synonymous with El Nino, and forecasts show New South Wales will likely experience well above average temperatures.
The public are advised to remain indoors during the hottest parts of the day, keep homes cool, and to limit physical exercise to the coolest parts of the day.
To stay up-to-date with the latest heatwave forecast, visit the Bureau of Meteorology website.