Storm batters Victoria, rips off roofs of 1,100 homes & creates commuter chaos

A storm battered the Australian state of Victoria on Friday, ripping roofs off houses and creating chaos on the road. As off 4 pm, the State Emergency Service (SES) got 1,155 calls for help.

The bulk of those seeking assistance were residence who lost the roofs of their homes to the storm. It also tore trees from the ground and caused problems for commuters across Victoria, reports Sky News.

Besides damaged roofs, other complaints received by the SES include trees falling on roads, debris blowing into properties and roofs leaking. The trees and debris affected the operations of the Metro train lines and slowed down traffic.

A tree that fell in Mount Waverly’s Springvale Road blocked the six lanes, says Jacquie Quaine, spokeswoman of Victoria SES. The bulk of the calls that SES received was from the Central region, reports the Herald Sun.

About 25 millimetres of rain were dumped in Melbourne during the storm, while Dandenongs got 50 millimetres, says Stephen King, senior forecaster of the Bureau of Meteorology. Winds reached 95km/h in Melbourne and 117km/h at Mt Hotham.

He forecast that West and South Gippsland would remain windy overnight on Friday, while showers would continue in the southern part of the state through Saturday.

The bureau issued on Friday afternoon a severe weather warning for damaging winds in Central, West, South and East Gippsland regions, while it cancelled severe weather forecasts for the North Central and North East districts.