And it’s set to be almost as hot again in the lead up to the new year.

The Bureau of Meteorology has predicted a top of 37 degrees for Stawell on Friday and 36 degrees for Ararat.

A heat health alert is in place for the Wimmera, Mallee, North Central, North East and Northern Country weather regions. 

People are being urged to stay hydrated and stay cool as the heat rises.

It comes after a scorching day on Thursday, where temperatures reached 39.9 degrees at 4pm in Stawell and 38 degrees in Ararat at 3pm.

Temperatures have been in the high 30s to low 40s across the Wimmera and Mallee since Monday.

Bureau meteorologist Jonathan How warned people to expect similar extreme conditions in the next few months.

"This is the first month of summer, so there is a long way to go for much of the country," he said.

"At the moment the bureau is forecasting a warmer and drier summer than normal, so this could really just be a taste of things to come."

The fire danger rating is at very high for the Wimmera for Friday.