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Relief for Victoria after hottest day of spring 2025 to date

Maximum temperatures across Victoria on Friday should be around 10 degrees cooler than Thursday's levels, after the state’s hottest day to date in spring 2025.

Temperatures recorded in Victoria up to 5pm Thursday included:

• 36.8°C at Walpeup, a tiny map speck of 150 residents about 130 km south of Mildura. This was Victoria’s highest temperature so far this spring, and an extreme fire danger rating with a total fire ban has been in place across the Mallee today.
• 32.5°C at Avalon, today's highest reading in the Central forecast district (which includes Melbourne).
• 32.4°C at Bairnsdale in East Gippsland, the town’s hottest day since March 9.
• 29.7°C at Melbourne, meaning the city likely missed out on recording its first 30-degree day since April, although Melbourne Airport hit 30.8°C while Moorabbin Airport in the city’s southeast topped 31°C.

The very warm temperatures in almost all parts of the state (except the South West forecast district) were caused by warm northwesterlies ahead of a relatively weak cold front which pushes through central and eastern parts of the state this evening and overnight.

Friday's maximums will be closer to average for October statewide, with Melbourne going for 19°C (October average 19.7°C).

While there will be a pronounced temperature drop for two days before another warm surge on Sunday, unfortunately there won’t be much rain relief, with only a brief passing shower with a rainband currently crossing the state.

Image: Three-hour combined radar and satellite loop over Victoria on the afternoon of Thursday, October 16, 2025.

Melbourne in particular has had a dry time of it in recent months, with below-average rainfall in all but two months of 2025 to date, including each of the last three full months.

Image: Rainfall deciles for Australia in September, 2025 showing large areas of pink or red (below average or very much below average respectively) rainfall over most of Victoria. Source: BoM.

October has also started out in a relatively dry fashion in Melbourne, with only 14mm for the first half of the month. The monthly average rainfall is 65.7mm, in what is traditionally the wettest month of the year.