Tornado strikes near Melbourne

Friday January 11, 05:25 PM
A small tornado has hit Nagambie, north of Melbourne, causing widespread damage.
There are no reports of injuries. Fallen trees and power lines have blocked the Goulburn Valley Highway at Nagambie, and the Northern Highway near Rochester. Flooding and fallen branches have blocked the Maroondah Highway in both directions at Black Spur, near Healesville. The state's north-east has been the region hit hardest by wild weather since a cool change earlier today. The State Emergency Service (SES) says it has received more than 150 calls. Jilly Charlwood from the SES says the busiest areas have been Euroa, Sorrento and Frankston. "The main issues that Victorian SES crews are dealing with this afternoon are fallen trees over properties and roads and we've also seen quite a bit of roof damage due to the strong winds," she said. Nagambie resident Max Fothergill says the wild weather came on suddenly but was over in a flash. "The rain was solid and the wind was uppity," he said. "I heard plenty of noise, a lot of noise - it was very surprising as it was calm one minute and the next thing we had a storm on us. If I walked out now, it is almost sunshine."