The State Emergency Service has fielded hundreds of calls for help as flash flooding hit Melbourne, trapping people in cars and forcing businesses to be evacuated.
About 450 requests for help were received from 3pm Tuesday until midnight, including those from five people trapped in their cars by floodwaters caused by Tuesday's afternoon storms.
Businesses were evacuated, houses flooded and major roads thrown into chaos.
Inner northern and eastern suburbs, including Brunswick, Fitzroy, Carlton, Hawthorn, Knox, Bayswater and Ringwood were hardest hit, .
"There were quite a few properties that had damage to their roofs and leaking due to the large amount of rain," SES spokeswoman Sally Lowenstein said.
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"We've also had some flash flooding in the streets."
In Camberwell, a Target store was evacuated as a section of the roof collapsed in the rain, Fairfax Radio reported.
Brunswick's Barkly Square Shopping Centre was also vacated after flooding and part of the roof collapsed and several shops in Sydney Road were flooded as well.
Barkly Square Shopping Centre management said no one was injured and the evacuation was a safety precaution.
Heavy rain also affected public transport, with flooding at the Broadmeadows station subway, and in Eltham an exit ramp submerged in waist-deep water left train passengers stuck on a platform.
Yarra Trams told commuters in Clifton Hill and Northcote to consider other transport for the trip home.
A hailstorm also hit Melbourne's southeast in suburbs including Ringwood, Ferntree Gully and Knoxfield with locals tweeting photos of roads and footpaths covered in hail.
The wild weather followed a night of wild winds across Victoria which saw trees crashing into homes, powerlines and roads.
From 7pm Monday to midnight Tuesday, the SES received 959 requests for help statewide.
The forecast is for calmer conditions on Wednesday, with Melbourne set to reach 19C.
