Australia Weather News

Victoria's State Emergency Service (SES) has warned of a risk of tornadoes in the state's north-east as wild weather lashes the state.

Heavy rain has fallen over Melbourne withFrankston receiving 42 millimetres of rain in two hours on Friday morning, Moorabbin almost 30mm and Point Cook, Avalon and Laverton more than 20mm.

Drivers have been caught in flash flooding in Frankston, with submerged cars needing to be pulled from inundated roads.

A number of outbound lanes of the Monash Freeway under Toorak Road were closed due to flooding, causing heavy congestion on Melbourne's busiest roadway.

Storms continued to roll in across Melbourne throughout the day, with conditions expected to settle in the evening.

Mid-afternoon ground operations were put on hold at Melbourne Airport due to thunderstorms, causing some delays.  

A spokesperson for the airport said some planes were able to take-off and land, subject to pilot discretion. 

During the afternoon, warnings were issued for "very dangerous storms" in various parts of the state's south-west, including Bannockburn, Lara and Geelong.

The SES received around 460 calls for building damage and flooding throughout the day.

The storms were part of a deep low pressure system that was moving eastward across the state throughout Friday, with a warm and humid air mass creating the risk of severe thunderstorms.

In the state's north-east, the SES has set up an Incident Control Centre at Wangaratta, with the Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) forecasting up to 50mm of rain and hail larger than 5 centimetres.

SES state duty officer Kate Turner says north-east communities could see similar damage as seen in Wednesday's storm in Victoria's west.

"What we saw in Casterton was a supercell storm, and it had a hook in it as well which essentially means it wasn't quite a tornado, it doesn't meet the criteria, but we're certainly approaching that point," she said.

"There is a possibility of tornadoes, particularly in the north-east today, alongside that destructive wind, giant hail and intense rainfall, so certainly one to keep your wits about you this afternoon."

Ms Turner urged communities to take action now.

"Early preparation is the best defence today. The best thing that you can do at this point in time is make sure that you secured any loose items around your home."

She said preparation for a tornado is largely similar to preparations for high winds.

"Tornadoes are certainly a little bit unusual for us, but it is something that the Bureau has forecast … we had a heads up a couple of days ago, so it's something that's come into the range today," she said.

"Parking your car away from trees, but the main one is to stay indoors where you can. Really reconsider your travel today. If you don't need to be outside, please don't be and certainly if you come across a flooded road, you need to turn around. You cannot be driving through floodwater.

About 1,800 homes were without power in the Goulburn Murray by Friday morning, including in Tatura and Murchison.

Safety concerns around flash flooding

The SES has urged all Victorians to monitor their surroundings and resist the urge to walk, drive or play in floodwaters. 

"That risk to yourself is significant," said spokesperson Andrew Feagen. 

"That water will be moving very, very quickly and also we don't know what's in that water."

He said winds could reach up to 125 kilometres per hour so people should secure any loose objects on their property, including trampolines. 

Mr Feagan said drivers should put headlights on, allow more space between them and the next car and pull over if necessary.

Residents cleaning up in state's west

Clean-up efforts continue in Casterton in Victoria's west after Wednesday night's torrential rain and hailstones as large as 4cm in diameter.

Local Renee Kiley said many homes and businesses in the town had caved-in roofs, smashed windows and were damaged by flash flooding.

"It's just carnage absolutely everywhere … you wouldn't think that Mother Nature could be so cruel," Ms Kiley said.

"I think everyone's just a little bit overwhelmed with it, just speaking to people, they all look a bit shattered in their faces and just a bit broken.

"But community spirit always drives high at times like this, and everyone's just out helping each other … just too many houses for the SES to get to."

In Ballarat, Simone Baur-Schmid received a phone call at 9:20am on Friday from a distressed staff member telling her the restaurant she co-owns was flooding.

"We quickly ran over to have a look at what was going on and, unfortunately, we found the whole restaurant had water coming right through the back door all the way through to the front," Ms Baur-Schmid said.

"It just ripped through the restaurant, bar flooring, vinyl has come up, the back staircase is timber which has now lost some integrity and the dining areas are obviously now full of dirt, debris and mud."

She said she would normally have 80 customers in the restaurant for lunch.

She estimated she had suffered more than $5,000 in losses before calculating any cost of repairs.

"It's a huge shock to our trade, the loss of stock with our fresh fruit and vegetables, and now we have the underlying question of whether we can't open for dinner tonight."

Ballarat had 17mm of rain in two hours on Friday morning, and the BOM had forecast a high chance of showers in the afternoon.

The Department of Health has issued a forecast a moderate risk of thunderstorm-induced asthma symptoms for the Mallee and Northern Country.

The rest of the state is forecast as low risk for thunderstorm asthma.

For SES assistance, call 132 500 and for life-threatening emergencies call 000.