Melbourne, Australia

At least two people have been killed and more than 110,000 homes have been left without power as thunderstorms and strong winds hit eastern Australia, said officials on Tuesday (Dec 26). Warnings of more bad weather have been issued across the Australian states of New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland. 

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At least two killed amid storm

A man in the Australian state of Victoria’s Caringal was killed after being struck by a falling tree branch, on Tuesday, after severe storms lashed the state overnight, said the Victoria police, as per ABC News. The incident took place around 9:00 am (local time).

“It is understood a tree branch fell on the man at a private property on Rusks Road just after 9 am.” It added, “Emergency services provided medical assistance however the yet to be formally identified man died at the scene.”

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The incident in Victoria follows the death of a 59-year-old woman who was struck by a falling tree on a street in the Gold Coast’s Helensvale. 

“She unfortunately suffered a significant head injury and passed away. We were unable to revive her, which was really quite confronting,” said critical care paramedic Jaye Newton, who was at the scene, as per AFP. 

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A man in his 70s was injured after a tree branch fell onto a tent, in Helensvale, reported the Australian Associated Press (AAP). He was said to be in a stable condition in hospital with pelvic and back injuries.

Another man in his 90s also suffered from head injuries after a roof collapsed on him, reported AAP. He was said to be in stable condition. 

Intense storms hit Australia’s east coast

Queensland ambulance service paramedic, Newton, also described scenes “like a disaster zone” as he was forced to drive around fallen trees on the motorway. “It was an extraordinary weather event.” 

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He added, “There were trees all over the road. We are taking whole big trees uprooted.” 

Meanwhile, a severe thunderstorm warning has been issued for Melbourne where officials are expecting damaging winds, hailstones and heavy rainfall. 

The town of Wedderburn in Victoria suffered from major flooding where businesses and homes were inundated in water. 

Australia’s east coast will likely witness a similar weather pattern seen in the past few days, said senior meteorologist Angus Hines from the country’s weather bureau. 

The region has seen relatively sunny and clear mornings followed by intense storms in the evening over the past couple of days, reported AAP. 

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Hines also said severe storms were possible for “pretty large swathes of the country” from central Queensland down to Melbourne on Tuesday (Dec 26). 

Additionally, volatile weather conditions were expected to continue on Tuesday and Wednesday in NSW after large parts of the state witnessed giant hail, heavy rainfall and flash flooding on Christmas Day. 

(With inputs from agencies)