A mix of weather conditions is forecast for Victoria with hail, rain, flash flooding and storms anticipated after an uncomfortably humid night.
Melbourne is set to reach 32C on Saturday with a dust haze in the morning before rain, thunderstorms, hail and gusty winds later in the day.
A deluge of rain may cause flash flooding across the state, the Bureau of Meteorology warns.
Beachgoers escape Melbourne's heat at St Kilda beach. Source: AAP
"We've got a few ingredients in the mix," BOM state manager Andrew Tupper said.
Those include humidity, dust to blow in from the state's northwest, storms, possible mud in the rain and even a chance of hail.
Rain is expected to move through the southwest in the morning before hitting Melbourne around noon. As the day goes on, the rain will become cleaner.
Spectators sit in the rain as play is halted during a second round singles matches at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne. Source: AP
But the rain is expected to miss most of the fire grounds in the state's east.
"We know that there are some fires in their landscape and as they heat up and as the conditions change there are chances for columns to form," Emergency Services Minister Lisa Neville told reporters on Friday.
It comes after a humid, tropical-like night in Melbourne on Friday.
"The humid air has come down from the tropics and it has come down with the sort of moisture that we're more used to staying in the tropics," Dr Tupper said.
The State Emergency Service is expected to be inundated with requests for help similar to the 2300-odd received during storms in January.
Victoria faced its highest demand for electricity in more than five years on Friday, with the Australian Energy Market Operator activating emergency reserves.
But before 9pm on Friday, the state's energy supply was back to normal despite tens of thousands of homes still in the dark as suppliers worked to restore power.
