In Penrith, west of Sydney, residents sweltered as the town bore the brunt of the heat on Sunday.
Sunday's temperatures fell short of the scorching heat to hit the area in 1939, when the mercury reached 47.8C.
Severe fire warnings were issued for the greater Sydney area and total fire bans were put in place across the city.
The sweltering temperatures reached in Penrith were confirmed by the Bureau of Meteorology.
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In September 2017, Australians were warned to prepare for a dangerous bushfire season after one of the driest winters on record.
Experts have warned that land and sea temperatures have been affected by climate change, leading to more extreme weather conditions.
More than 200 weather records were broken across Australia between December 2016 and February 2017, with heatwaves, bushfires and flooding throughout the country's summer season.
Monday's forecast for Sydney, perhaps unsurprisingly, is for more hot weather - and some rain later in the day.
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