A fierce hailstorm has pelted Canberra with stones the size of golf balls inflicting severe damage across the national capital.
The ACT Emergency Services Agency had received more than 1200 calls for help by 3pm after Monday afternoon's 15-minute storm.
Hundreds of windscreens were smashed at Old Parliament House, the Australian National University and other parts of the city.
The grounds of Parliament House were blanketed with the huge hailstones, while Old Parliament House closed to visitors soon after the storm struck.
Canberra tour guide Tim tweeted a picture of the National Sound and Film Archive's roof being punctured "like bullets".
It remained open to visitors on Monday despite the damage with a spokeswoman saying "our collection is safe".
However, the National Archives of Australia was closed due to damage.
The State Emergency Service, Fire and Rescue and Rural Fire Service are responding to hail and roof damage, electrical threats and localised flooding.
ACT Ambulance Service is attending to two people with minor injuries sustained during the storm.
Animals were injured during the damaging storm, with parliament staff looking after a bloodied crow that copped a hailstone to its head and another Canberran took an injured galah to the vet.
The wild weather is the latest twist in Canberra's bizarre summer in which the city has been choked with thick bushfire smoke over the past month.
More than 1,000 homes have lost power, according to the territory's gas and electricity distributor.
A wind gust of 117 kilometres per hour was recorded at Canberra Airport where 2.4 millimeters of rain fell. Tuggeranong in the ACT's south got 5mm in 10 minutes to take its total to 9mm.
