Severe storms and flash flooding have lashed swathes of Australia as the first taste of La Nina wreaks havoc on the country's east coast. Melbourne was blasted by huge hailstones, rain, and damaging winds on Wednesday as severe storms barrelled across the city and southwest into Geelong. Similar scenes emerged in Queensland's southeast as entire towns went underwater, with a man dying after his car was swept down a creek near Toowoomba. Police divers and emergency services found the body of the 73-year-old man inside a ute just after 4pm. Another ute driver was also swept down the same waterway but was able to free himself and escaped uninjured. Flood waters are seen across the Beaudesert-Boonah Road in the town of Beaudesert, west of Brisbane, Queensland, Wednesday, December 1 Flash flooding has swamped Brisbane (pictured) as severe rainfall struck across Queensland's southeast on Wednesday Flood waters crept towards houses as creeks spilled over west of Brisbane on Wednesday Severe weather warnings are also in place from Melbourne's western suburbs to the city's east, with flash flooding causing traffic chaos during peak hour due to road closures and detours. Lightening strikes have put 5,000 homes without power and two flights were forced to divert from Melbourne Airport to Avalon. Ferocious winds were recorded across the city, with gusts clocking in at 106km/h at Melbourne Airport and 96km/h at Fawkner Beacon. The State Emergency Service was inundated with more than 230 calls for help due to fallen trees, damaged buildings, and floods cutting off roads. Commuters ploughed their cars through roads which turned into lakes, their vehicles submerged up to their bonnets. Western suburbs, including Sunbury, Essendon and Maribyrnong wore the brunt of the damage, while the majority of power outages occurred in Pankenham, in the city's southeast. Victorians flocked online to share photos of their backyards painted white as hailstones pummelled down over Melbourne, with one man reporting 2cm stones dropping near Geelong. In Queensland, many parts of the state also woke to major flooding on Wednesday after significant rain fall drenched the region overnight. Storms caused commuter chaos in Melbourne on Wednesday afternoon as rising flood waters caused road closures. Pictured: Victoria Street, Footscray Victorians have shared photos of their yards littered with huge hailstones after severe storms swept across the city More than 200mm of heavy rain battered the state's south east corner, with 107mm hitting Banksia Beach on the Sunshine coast, and 89mm recorded 90km south at Bribie Island. Some 800 residents were evacuated from their homes in Inglewood, in the southern Darling Downs, while emergency crews worked to get 200 residents out of Yelarbon, southwest of Toowoomba. Flash flooding also swamped Brisbane's northern suburbs, sparking major road closures and building evacuations. Parents were forced to collect their kids early from Boondall Early Childhood Centre as rising waters at nearby Zillmere threaten to engulf the day care, the Courier Mail reports. Weather bureau senior meteorologist Laura Boekel said a trough moved offshore, which will bring reprieve, but isolated activity could still bring heavy rain and flooding. 'So we’re definitely not out of the woods yet even though this weather system has moved offshore,' she told the Courier Mail. 'Another key message from the bureau today is that our catchments are saturated. 'They’re responding incredibly quickly to any rainfall so we actually don’t need to see these heavy or intense amounts to see impacts on the ground from flash flooding to riverine flooding.' One man shared a photo of huge hail stones found at 13th Beach, near Geelong, on Wednesday State Emergency Services have been inundated with more than 230 calls for assistance due to fallen trees, damaged buildings, and floods cut off roads But experts warn the turbulent weather was just a taste of what's to come as Australians brace for an extremely wet summer, courtesy of La Nina. La Nina, Spanish for 'the girl', occurs when strong trade winds travel along the equator, drawing more moisture into the atmosphere - which in turn leads to more frequent and heavier rainfall. While the rain may be welcome news to farmers, it is bound to disappoint the millions of Australians along the eastern seaboard who had hoped to hit the beach over summer. Spring has already had major flooding across parts of Queensland, NSW, and Victoria - and experts predict La Nina could last until January 2022 or beyond. As the phenomenon ramps up, Dr Nina Ridder, of UNSW's Climate Change Research Centre, said Australians could expect even more extreme weather in coming months. 'We will likely see a lot more large scale, flash flooding this year due to this weather event,' she told A Current Affair. La Nina will also increase the chance of tropical cyclones this summer by 65 per cent. 'What will most likely happen, is these cyclones will bring more rainfall,' she said. This is the second year in a row Australia has endured a La Nina over summer, with the wet weather leading to devastating flooding across Sydney in March. A map shows how the La Nina weather system is leading to heavy downpours across Australia's eastern seaboard After a number of months on La Niña alert, the Bureau of Meteorology officially declared the event last week, predicting higher than usual rainfall across Australia's summer Experts said flooding would likely be worse next year as the back-to-back storms mean catchments were already filled to the brim. 'It doesn’t have to be a stronger La Nina, it doesn’t have to be longer - it’s just the pre-load is already there for flooding to occur,' extreme weather expert Thomas Hinterdorfer, of Higgins Storm Chaser, said. Insurers are already preparing for the worst and calling on homeowners to ensure they have appropriate coverage if they live in a flood risk zone. Meanwhile, landscaping businesses are already witnessing a peak in demand as lawns overflow due to the increased downpours. The SES urged Victorians to take extra care on roads this summer as La Nina strikes. 'With catchments wetter and water storages fuller than in 2020 — along with our experience last year — we know Victorians are at increased risk from flooding,' chief operations officer Tim Wiebusch said. Rising floodwaters lapping against the side of buildings in Melbourne on Wednesday Car drove through roads that had turned into lakes as downpours lashed Melbourne. Pictured is Dudley Street in West Melbourne 'Please don’t drive through floodwater, it may be the last decision you make. 'Even if you think you know the road, you can’t see the extent to which it has been washed away. It only takes 15cm of floodwater to cause a car to lose traction, which sadly is how most people lose their lives during a flood.' Australia's eastern capital cities can expect more unseasonably dismal weather in coming days, while sunshine warms the western half of the country. Sydney's streak of dreary weather will continue into the weekend, with showers forecast from Saturday through to Wednesday. Temperatures will hover between the high teens to mid 20s, dropping to a max of 21C on Sunday. HOW DOES A LA NINA EVENT FORM? 'La Niña is a change in ocean temperatures out in the Pacific Ocean,' the Bureau of Meteorology's Andrew Watkins said. 'We get cooler waters out near South America, warmer waters near Australia, and with that shift comes a change in our weather patterns.' Typically during La Niña, a large body of warm water north-east of Papua New Guinea, where sea-surface temperatures are some of the warmest in the world, becomes even warmer. This phenomenon increases evaporation and leads to increased rainfall in the western Pacific, including eastern Australia. La Niña is part of the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO), a climate phenomenon producing an oscillation between El Niño and La Niña states in the Pacific region. When a La Niña is in effect, sea surface temperatures across the eastern equatorial part of the central Pacific Ocean are lower than normal by 3-5°C. Source: Bureau of Meteorology El Niños typically produce drier seasons, and La Niñas lead to wetter years, but the influence of each event varies, particularly in conjunction with other climate influences. When a La Niña is in effect, sea surface temperatures across the eastern equatorial part of the central Pacific Ocean are lower than normal by 3-5°C. The phenomenon can last for around five months. La Niña means 'little girl' in Spanish, It's opposite, an El Niño, means 'little boy'. Advertisement Melbourne residents are also in for grey skies for the next week, with cloudy conditions expected from Friday to Monday. Thursday could see a possible storm, with the mercury hitting a hot 31C, before cooler temperatures between the mid teens to low 20Cs over the weekend. Similar patterns will hit Canberra, where storms are predicted leading into the weekend when temperatures will drop to a low of 9C. Showers will continue on Saturday before easing into cloudy conditions heading into next week, with the mercury bouncing between mid teens to low 20Cs. Farther south, clouds will also blanket Hobart until next Wednesday, with showers expected on Friday and Saturday. Minimum and maximum temperatures will jump through out the week, with a humid top of 26C Thursday to a high of 15C on Saturday. A business owner sweeps water out of his store on Wednesday as heavy down pours flooded streets Northern Territorians will need their umbrellas for the next week as daily showers and storms drench Darwin. However, the tropical Top End will remain extremely humid - with the mercury sitting between 27C and 35C. In the east, Brisbane is the only city that will enjoy summer weather over the weekend, with mostly sunny conditions on Friday and Saturday and tops of 31C. Showers will return from Sunday and persist until the middle of next week, with temperatures dropping to highs in the high 20Cs and lows around 20C. Adelaide will be spared rain with temperatures sitting in the mid teens to mid 20s - although skies will remain partly cloudy until Saturday. But sunshine will return from the second half of the weekend, with conditions warming to 31C on Monday. Perth will sweat under perfect beach weather, with sunny days stretching through until next Wednesday. Minimums will bask in the mid teens, while highs bounce from the high 20Cs to low 30Cs. FIVE DAY WEATHER FORECAST IN YOUR CITY SYDNEY THURSDAY: Min 17. Max 26. Partly cloudy. FRIDAY: Min 18. Max 25. Becoming cloudy. SATURDAY: Min 17. Max 24. Shower or two. SUNDAY: Min 16. Max 21. Possible shower. MONDAY: Min 17. Max 23. Shower or two. BRISBANE: THURSDAY: Min 21. Max 29. Possible shower. FRIDAY: Min 20. Max 31. Mostly sunny. SATURDAY: Min 20. Max 31. Mostly sunny. SUNDAY: Min 21. Max 27. Shower or two. MONDAY: Min 20. Max 26. Shower or two. ADELAIDE: THURSDAY: Min 14. Max 24. Partly cloudy. FRIDAY: Min 12. Max 24. Partly cloudy. SATURDAY: Min 11. Max 24. Partly cloudy. SUNDAY: Min 12. Max 28. Sunny. MONDAY: Min 15. Max 31. Mostly sunny. PERTH: THURSDAY: Min 13. Max 29. Sunny. FRIDAY: Min 14. Max 32. Sunny. SATURDAY: Min 16. Max 34. Sunny. SUNDAY: Min 20. Max 34. Sunny. MONDAY: Min 18. Max 34. Sunny. MELBOURNE: THURSDAY: Min 18. Max 31. Showers developing. Possible storm. FRIDAY: Min 13. Max 20. Partly cloudy. SATURDAY: Min 12. Max 19. Cloudy. SUNDAY: Min 11. Max 22. Partly cloudy. MONDAY: Min 12. Max 28. Partly cloudy. CANBERRA: THURSDAY: Min 13. Max 28. Shower or two. Possible storm. FRIDAY: Min 14. Max 26. Showers. Possible storm. SATURDAY: Min 13. Max 26. Shower or two. SUNDAY: Min 9. Max 18. Cloudy. MONDAY: Min 9. Max 22. Partly cloudy. DARWIN: THURSDAY: Min 27. Max 35. Shower or two. Possible storm. FRIDAY: Min 27. Max 35. Shower or two. Possible storm. SATURDAY: Min 27. Max 35. Shower or two. Possible storm. SUNDAY: Min 27. Max 35. Shower or two. Possible storm. MONDAY: Min 26. Max 33. Showers. Possible storm. HOBART: THURSDAY: Min 15. Max 26. Humid. Showers developing. FRIDAY: Min 11. Max 20. Possible shower. SATURDAY: Min 10. Max 15. Shower or two. SUNDAY: Min 7. Max 19. Partly cloudy. MONDAY: Min 9. Max 24. Partly cloudy. Advertisement All rights reserved for this news site (dailymail) and under his responsibility