Brisbane and surrounds are in for a very hot Sunday to kick off the start of summer. The mercury is set to creep into the mid-to-high 30's about southeast Queensland, and the low-to-mid 40's in the west on Sunday. With a very hot and dry airmass extending over the much of the state on Sunday, temperatures will climb quickly. Brisbane nearly reached 38 degrees on Wednesday, with a good chance that Sunday could be just as hot and uncomfortable. Ipswich is forecast to reach 41 degrees, which would make it the hottest December day since 2002. It looks that along the coast or in the pool will be the best places to escape the heat - with coastal areas remaining in the low 30's. Unfortunately the heat will linger into the late afternoon and evening, only dropping to 27-29 degrees by bedtime. However, some relief is in sight, but not until the very early hours of Monday morning. Typically in December, Brisbane will see overnight temperatures around 20 degrees, while days will be around 29 degrees. The hottest day in Brisbane last summer was 37.5 degrees, recorded on the 14th January. For the remainder of the week, temperatures will hover in the high 20's for Brisbane, with Ipswich likely to stay warm until Tuesday.