Severe thunderstorms are hitting southeastern Australia, bringing wild winds, heavy rainfall, and “giant hail” the size of golf balls.
A cold front tracking across the nation is also creating the possibility of tornadoes in parts of Victoria.
Geelong and the Bellarine Peninsula were on high alert Friday afternoon, with authorities warning of a “very dangerous” storm.
Intense rainfall could lead to life-threatening flash flooding in these areas and parts of Melbourne’s outer suburbs, including the airport.
Angus Hines, senior meteorologist at the Bureau of Meteorology, reported that southeastern New South Wales, Tasmania, and Victoria were the primary focus of the storm.
“Severe thunderstorms are causing heavy rain, damaging winds, and large hail, especially in Melbourne where flash flooding remains a possibility,” Hines said.
Dangerous thunderstorms lash Victoria with wild winds, heavy rain, and life-threatening flash floods.By noon Friday, Elsternwick in Melbourne had received 26mm of rain, while Frankston experienced 35mm in two hours.
Hines added that the weather pattern was driven by a low-pressure system and a cold front moving across southern Australia.
Victoria’s State Control Centre reported over 250 emergency service requests since Thursday evening, mostly for building damage and flooding.
Frankston was the busiest, with 45 calls. The storm risk includes destructive winds, hail, and even tornadoes in the state’s upper northeast.
Power outages have affected over 3,000 homes and businesses in western Victoria, while parts of NSW also saw outages due to damaged transmission towers.
Motorists were advised to avoid unnecessary travel due to dangerous conditions.
Severe storm warnings remained in place across New South Wales, Victoria, and the ACT, with winds exceeding 125 km/h and hail over 5cm in diameter possible.
The storms are expected to ease over the weekend.