The heatwave striking south-eastern Australia has forced Australian Open officials to suspend matches, while Victorians face possible blackouts trying to beat the heat.
As temperatures hit the mid 40s in most areas, high electricity use and generation plant outages put major strain on electricity supplies, with Victorians using the most power since Black Saturday in 2009.
Melbourne had its hottest day since Black Saturday in 2009, reaching 43.9C on Thursday.
Friday's forecast has been lifted to 44C, the last day of the four-day heatwave.
Australian Open officials applied the extreme heat rule at Melbourne Park for the first time this week.
More than 970 tennis fans have been treated for heat exhaustion during the tournament.
Paramedics are dealing with a spike in heat-related cases and heart attacks.
Animals are also suffering, falling from trees due to heat stress on a scale wildlife workers say they have not seen since Black Saturday.
Up to 500 flying foxes from the Yarra Bend Park colony have died in the past two days and the number is likely to rise.
Energy and Resources Minister Nicholas Kotsiras said forced blackouts were possible as the high temperatures put the national electricity network under serious strain.
Victorian demand has topped 10,000 megawatts for three consecutive days, compared to the 6,600MW average for a January weekday.
The Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) was again considering reducing supply to Victoria amid record high electricity demand, which could affect 100,000 homes and businesses.
Premier Denis Napthine said the problem was exacerbated on Wednesday by one of the four generators at Loy Yang A power station breaking down, and the Basslink cable between the mainland and Tasmania not operating at full capacity for technical reasons.
Mr Kotsiras said the total supply available to Victoria improved on Thursday, with the Loy Yang unit back to partial service.
The AEMO says there should be more than 1,000MW of reserve on Friday in Victoria.
Load shedding did not eventuate on Wednesday and Mr Kotsiras said it was not expected to occur on Thursday but could not be ruled out.
Dr Napthine said negotiations were taking place with some of the state's biggest power users to reduce usage.
"We are running very close to capacity, our generators are all working flat out across Victoria and across the interconnected national grid," he told reporters.
AEMO spokesman Joe Adamo said when there was increased demand for electricity and not enough supply there needed to be load shedding, otherwise the system could be damaged.
He said smelters, industrial and commercial premises would be switched off first and then residential properties last.
Dr Napthine said he hoped with co-operation from industry and the public load shedding would not be necessary.
The AEMO and government warn that even without load shedding, some areas may experience localised interruptions due to the heat and lightning strikes.
A fire at a Seaford power station cut power to about 20,000 people in the Frankston area.
The hot weather is causing problems at Bendigo Airport, where the tarmac has started to bubble and crack in the heat.
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