A MAN has been arrested over a blaze on the outskirts of Melbourne, while hundreds of people have been hospitalised for heat stress in South Australia, as the country battles through a dangerously hot weekend.
Total fire bans are in place this weekend for Tasmania, large areas of SA and Victoria, while high temperatures in New South Wales have firefighters on alert.
Thousands of rural and metropolitan firefighters have been placed on the highest state of alert.
The SA heatwave has already put hundreds in hospital, including an apprentice carpenter who was in a critical condition after collapsing while working in extreme heat in Adelaide.
Here we break down what’s happening around the country.
VICTORIA
As temperatures hit at least 40 degrees in many parts of Victoria, firefighters have been battling three fires.
Ambulance Victoria says its officers had been called out to four cases of children locked in hot cars, none of whom needed emergency care.
They said having the car running with the air conditioning is “no excuse” and it is potentially lethal, as well as subject to heavy penalties.
The service said paramedics had attended a higher-than-usual number of cardiac arrest, heart problems and chest pain cases.
There had been 22 cases directly attributable to the weather, including heat exposure and kids in hot cars.
Victoria Police said a man has been arrested over a blaze on the northern outskirts of Melbourne, which caused the closure of the Hume Freeway at Epping.
The fire, which is now detained, started just after 10am as the local temperature hit 36 degrees.
The 34-year-old man, of no fixed address, was arrested in Vearings Road at about 12.50pm and is being questioned.
Meanwhile, homeowners, neighbours and firefighters scrambled to save houses from a rapidly growing grass fire in Wonthaggi in the Gippsland region.
The Country Fire Authority issued an emergency warning for Wonthaggi, Harmers Haven and Cape Paterson.
The blaze started just before 1pm as a small grass fire on the edge of the town just metres from homes and quickly grew as it moved into an area of thick scrub and bushland, the Herald Sun reports.
Flames leaping up to 30m high threatened the area as homeowners and their neighbours rallied behind CFA crews in a brave bid to stop the blaze reaching nearby houses in Shandley Street and Bell Lane.
A separate grassfire burning at the foothills of Victoria’s Dandenong Ranges has now been contained. The CFA has downgraded its warning to ”watch and act” for Wandin North.
“While the immediate threat has passed, continue to stay informed and monitor conditions,” the CFA says.
Wandin North resident Brenny Cullen watched on as numerous waterbombers fought the fire just 500 metres from his home.
“There is a lot of smoke, it’s a grass fire but lots of firefighters are around,” he toldAAP.
Nicole Williams was visiting friends in Wandin North when she was told to leave because the fire was at the end of the street.
“The smoke hadn’t blown over when I was there but there was a huge plume,” she said.
“The colour of the air turned orange just before I left.”
A total fire ban has been declared for Sunday with Melbourne expecting a record minimum temperature of 30C on Saturday night.
A severe thunderstorm warning has been issued for parts of western and central Victoria.
As Melburnians swelter, Victoria’s union chiefs are engaged in a dispute with officials.
Acting chief officer at the Metropolitan Fire Brigade, David Bruce urged firefighters on Thursday to make themselves available over the weekend and update their availability on the firefighter recall system, the Herald Sun reports. His plea came after one in three MFB firefighters called in sick last Saturday night.
The newspaper said the United Firefighters Union told their members to ignore the plea because they weren’t consulted before the request was made, but union secretary Peter Marshall denies the union did that.
“Firefighters will be rostered as usual 24/7 across all MFB stations this weekend,” he said in a statement today.
“As usual they will be available for recall or to form strike teams if they are needed.”
A large number of firefighters called in sick last weekend, following the suicide of two colleagues within 72 hours from the same fire station, Mr Marshall said.
“Firefighters suffer extraordinary levels of post traumatic stress disorder and much of their work is dangerous, dirty and confronting,” he said.
“The sudden loss of two friends recently had a huge impact on the firefighting community.”
The extreme fire season that’s been predicted will also add to an already challenging job, he said.
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