Almost 6000 homes and businesses are without power in Victoria as wild winds continue to lash the state, bringing down trees and damaging buildings.
Energy providers Powercor are working to restore power to 5,677 properties this afternoon after millions woke to a day of destructive weather.
The State Emergency Service (SES) was kept busy overnight responding to 372 calls for help, largely due to felled trees and building damage.
In once instance a shed was blown into a high voltage line in Camperdown sparking an outage.
Another outage, impacting 1220 customers, was caused by a car hitting a pole in Gellibrand.
The SES has deployed extra crews today to help repair damaged infrastructure and return power to homes safely and quickly.
Overnight the worst-hit areas have been Emerald in the Dandenong Ranges, as well as Warragul and Pakenham, southeast of Melbourne.
The Bureau of Meteorology this morning issued a severe warning for damaging winds, driven by a strong cold front over southwestern Victoria tracking eastward over the remainder of the state in coming hours.
The strongest winds have been in the alpine region, with Mount Buller recording a gust of 128km/h in the early hours.
In and around Melbourne, the strongest gusts have been at Kilmore Gap, which was hit by 93km/h gusts and Avalon (96km/h).
Forecasters warn winds could reach up to 110km/h in coastal regions of Victoria later today before they ease tonight across the entire state..
Motorists are being urged to take care and to watch for downed trees and debris on the roads.
The SES is warning drivers to avoid driving near trees, drains, low-lying areas and floodwater.
Residents are also being warned to secure items they have in gardens and on balconies.
Large parts of New South Wales will also be impacted by the wild weather as the cold front moves north through today.
Powerful wind gusts are expected in the Sydney Metropolitan region, the Illawarra, South Coast, Blue Mountains, Hunter region and Southern Tablelands this afternoon and throughout this evening.
Wind speeds of up to 125km/h are forecast in alpine areas, while the Illawarra is heading for maximums of 110km/h.
