Victoria braces for heatwave and fire risk not seen since Black Summer

“We are asking communities, in light of this, to have your bushfire survival plan, that you know where to get information, have the VicEmergency app downloaded and listen to your emergency broadcaster,” he said.

“If you don’t have a plan, the best plan for Friday is just leave early.”

The CFA has already battled several large blazes across the state this summer, including major grass fires on December 18 in Goomalibee in Victoria’s northeast and Charlton in the west, where hundreds of firefighters were deployed and more than 4400 were hectares burnt.

Power distributor PowerCor, which covers the north and west of Victoria, is urging its customers to pre-cool their homes before the heat hits, and then keep their air conditioners to 24 degrees “to stay comfortable but not use too much power”.