THE CFA has declared Wednesday, January 13 to be a Total Fire Ban day for Wimmera, Mallee and Northern Country
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Bureau of Meteorology's senior forecaster Chris Arvier said Wednesday would be another day of significant fire danger for Victoria.
"We'll see the winds pick up particularly in inland Victoria and that will lead to elevated fire danger," he said.
Tomorrow's conditions in the Mallee, Wimmera and Northern Country will be very hot and dry, with temperatures forecast to reach high 30s/low 40s in the far north west.
Hot, dry and fresh north-westerly winds have been forecast, before a gusty south-westerly wind change and possible thunderstorms.
The combination of heat and strong winds will considerably increase the fire risk, resulting in a Fire Danger Rating of Severe for the Mallee, Wimmera and Northern Country regions.
CFA Chief Officer Jason Heffernan said the weather conditions meant an elevated fire risk across large parts of the state, which will remain into the early evening.
"Just like we did on Monday, the Mallee, Wimmera and Northern Country will tomorrow experience elevated dangerous fire conditions and as a result, we have declared a Total Fire Ban across the three districts," he said.
Mr Heffernan also expressed concern as many people are out and about during holidays and spending time away across regional Victoria, he urged everyone to take great care and not light any campfires.
"Anyone who has had a campfire in recent days should make sure the fire has been adequately extinguished to avoid flare-ups," Mr Heffernan said.
Top temperatures are forecast to hit 35°C on Wednesday in the Wimmera.
Monday was a scorcher across Victoria with temperatures in the Wimmera area reaching 39°C degrees.
Longerenong was the hottest location in all of Victoria on Monday which reached 39.6°C
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It was the hottest day for several locations since January 31 last year.
There is a bit of reprieve on Tuesday with a maximum temperature forecast of 28°C to 33°C degrees.
Mr Arvier said the rest of the week would be more settled.
"We'll have pretty mild weather conditions right across from Thursday and into the weekend," he said.
A Total Fire Ban means no fire can be lit in the open air or allowed to remain alight from 12.01am to 11.59pm on the day of the Total Fire Ban.
Strict rules also apply to the operation of farm machinery, chainsaws and lawn mowers, and residents in Mallee and Wimmera in particular are encouraged to take extreme care tomorrow.
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