Queenslanders are in for a record-breaking hot day on Monday as Sydneysiders get a short-lived reprieve from the heat. Dean Narramore, a senior forecaster with the Bureau of Meteorology, says much of southern Queensland will be experiencing an “extreme” heatwave over next three days. “We will be tipping into severe to extreme heatwave conditions … the extreme heatwave conditions will be west of Brisbane, more in the Darling Downs, Maranoa and Warrego,” he said. “Temperatures are expected in the low to mid-40s for those locations, probably peaking tomorrow [Tuesday].” Dalby, north-west of Toowoomba, has a record of 41.1C for this time of year, and temperatures are set to rise to 41C on Monday. Further inland, the town of Cunnamulla is expected to hit 44.6C on Monday, 0.6C above its previous November high. Fire danger warnings were forecast to rise to “severe” for the Channel Country, Maranoa and Warrego districts on Tuesday, with a number of other areas listed as “very high”. This heat is expected to remain until Thursday. Brisbane appears to have escaped the worst on Monday, with a maximum of 31C in the city. South of the border, Sydneysiders, and those along the New South Wales coast have been treated to a day of cooler temperatures, around 24C, after a gusty southerly arrived late on Sunday afternoon. But Helen Reid, a forecaster from the NSW BoM, said this would be short-lived. “[Tuesday] we are expecting temperatures to head right back up again. Western Sydney we’re looking at getting around that 40-degree mark again. It won’t be quite so horrendous along the coast, but it’ll still be definitely a good start to summer.” Reid said other parts of the state won’t be as fortunate on Monday, with NSW’s north-west still tipping 45C. The town of Bourke was forecast to reach 47C by Tuesday. “The western part of the state is still sweltering, particularly in the north, and they’re about 10 to 12 above average for this time of year.” But the heatwave was expected to ease by the end of the week. “Wednesday for Sydney we’re saying a nice drop right across the city basin, about 24 along the coast, and about 28 or 29 in the west. The north-west parts of the states will still be hot, and they will start cooling down a little bit on Thursday,” Reid said. Parts of Sydney – including the city – broke the 40C barrier for a second straight day on Sunday after swathes of western NSW, South Australia and northern Victoria baked through even higher Saturday temperatures approaching 45C. The mercury pushed past 40C in many Sydney suburbs, including Penrith, Canterbury, Bankstown and Holsworthy. Temperatures across the Hunter to the state’s north were also well in excess of 40C, hitting 41.9C at Cessnock airport. Total fire bans remained in place on Monday in NSW’s northern slopes and north-western districts. NSW Rural Fire Service crews battled more than 60 bush and grass fires across the state on Sunday, including a blaze in the western Sydney suburb of Northmead which damaged a home.