UPDATE: Wild winds have given way to flash flooding across Melbourne on Tuesday afternoon after damaging winds, hail and rain bucketed down on the city.
There are reports of flash flooding in Melbourne’s inner north and eastern suburbs and a roof collapse in Camberwell.
After an eventful night and morning – during which damaging gusts overturned sheds, trampolines, power lines and trees – the Bureau of Meteorology downgraded a severe weather warning issued on Monday, deeming central Victoria and Melbourne metro relatively safe from battering winds as of midday on Tuesday.
Duty forecaster Gary Missen said thunderstorms and rain will replace strong gusts in the afternoon, lashing Melbourne’s eastern fringes and much of eastern Victoria in particular from 3pm.
“Although the winds will start to back off a little bit to about 55km/h … there will be some strong winds associated with thunderstorms this evening,” Mr Missen said.
Fawkner Beach residents experienced the strongest winds of up to 139km/h on Tuesday, he said, while heavy rain lashed Port Phillip Bay from mid-morning and into the afternoon.
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Mr Missen said that while central Victoria had been taken off the severe weather warning list, the state’s north-east, west and south Gippsland areas would be revised about 6pm on Tuesday.
State Emergency Services spokeswoman Sally Lowenstein said SES attended 472 jobs since 7pm on Monday, mainly in central Victoria.
“It was mostly over trees down, and there’s also been a few reports of flying trampolines and a shed that blew over,” she said.
The areas most affected by damaging winds were in and around the Dandenongs, Ms Lowenstein said, such as Emerald, Healseville and the Upper Yarra.
Overnight, Moorabbin Airport experienced the strongest winds in metropolitan Melbourne, with gusts reaching 89km/h at 4.22am.
“On average, Melbourne experienced peak gusts of 75km/h to 90km/h in low lying areas, with winds reaching 139km/h in the Alps,” Mr Godfred said.
A house in Healesville was badly damaged after a tree fell onto the back of the building, and crews were also called to a Notting Hill property, where strong winds caused power lines to fall.
Camberwell is a swimming pool #melbourneweather pic.twitter.com/jE8NxtDD3v
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