Over 20 schools in New South Wales have been closed today after a total fire ban was announced for the Far South Coast and Greater Sydney area.

The Bureau of Meteorology expects Sydney to reach a temperature of 34 degrees today, with some western suburbs set to get as high as 35.

It marks the first time since November 2020 that Sydney is impacted by a total fire ban as 101 fires are currently burning across the state.

Batemans Bay Public School Principal, Kel Smerdon, said that families of students should remain composed.

“I share many of your own lived experiences with fires and encourage everyone to take a calm and evidenced approach to the normal challenges of living in the hot summers of NSW,” he said.

“As always, we remain committed to our children’s and worker’s safety.”

The same temperature has also been forecast for tomorrow, which would mark the first time on record that it has been above 34 degrees on consecutive days in September. Prior to today, Sydney has only reached a top of 34 in September on three occasions, with the latest dating back to 2000.

A cool change is set to hit Sydney on Thursday as the temperature will regulate to below 22 degrees for the remainder of the week.

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