
A young man is the third person to fall victim to a freak 'asthma thunderstorm' that wreaked havoc across Melbourne - overwhelming emergency services and leaving more than 500 people hospitalised.

Paramedics spent almost an hour trying to revive Apollo Papadopoulos, 35, after he suffered a serious asthma attack believed to be caused by an intense storm system that swept past his Epping home, in Melbourne's north, on Monday.

The engineer was the third person to suffer a fatal asthma attack when the storm, dubbed 'thunderstorm asthma', disturbed deadly pollen and distributed it throughout the city, which combined with high temperatures caused thousands to suffer respiratory problems.

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Paramedics spent almost an hour trying to revive Apollo Papadopoulos, 35, after he suffered a serious asthma attack believed to be caused by an intense storm system that swept past his Epping home, in Melbourne's north, on Monday

Law student Hope Carnevali, 20, died in the arms of her devastated family as they desperately attempted CPR on her front lawn while waiting over half an hour for an ambulance to arrive.

Omar Moujalled, 18, also fell victim to the freak weather event only weeks after he finished his year 12 exams.

On Monday hospitals declared a 'major disaster' after receiving more than 1,900 triple-0 calls and almost depleting their Ventolin supplies from 6pm on Monday night, with police and fire brigades pitching in to help transport patients.

A spokesperson for Victoria Ambulance said they were aware of the third death and have expressed their condolences to Mr Papadopoulos' family.

Hope Carnevali, a 20-year-old law student, is one of at least two people who died as a result of a freak 'asthma thunderstorm'

Omar Moujalled, 18, who had just finished his year 12 exams, was the second victim of the freak 'asthma thunderstorm'

The Inspector General for Emergency Management will be conducting an investigation into Ambulance Victoria after the emergency response team struggled to keep up with the vast number of calls from affected members of the public.

‘Ambulance Victoria welcomes the review by the Inspector General for Emergency Management into the circumstances surrounding the response to Monday night’s increase in triple zero calls due to “thunderstorm asthma,' Tony Walker, CEO of Ambulance Victoria, said.

‘Ambulance Victoria is also conducting an internal review and debrief as is done after major incidents,' he said, adding they will be working closely with the Inspector General during the review.

Mr Papadopoulos' shocked friends have remembered the engineer for his 'beautiful smile and sense of humour'.

'We were unstoppable on the dance floor Apollo, hopefully we will have a reunion in the after life. I cherish the moments we had, god bless your soul my friend!' a friend who goes by Dee Kay posted on Facebook.

He earlier revealed that Mr Papadopoulos 'passed away from an asthma attack' after paramedics spent 50 minutes trying to revive him 'with no luck'.

Mr Papadopoulos' shocked friends have remembered the engineer for his 'beautiful smile and sense of humour'

A massive thunderstorm has caused an outbreak of asthma so severe emergency services in Melbourne ran out of ambulances to help those in need

Others expressed their disbelief in the young man being struck down in the prime of his life.

'I can't believe you're gone. What am I going to do without you? Who else is going be there for me the way you always were when I was at my worst and at times when I needed it most. There's no one like you.'

Ms Carnevali was a life-long asthma sufferer but her aunt and uncle - Melissa and John - said they were having difficulty accepting the loss of their niece knowing that a quicker ambulance response time may have been the difference between life or death.

'J ust knowing that if they had of got there a little bit earlier the situation might be different is very hard to deal with,' Ms Carnevali told Seven News.

'Maybe they can let you know how long they might be, just an idea and maybe it will save some lives,' Mr Carnevali added.

Ms Carnevali, a lifelong sufferer of asthma, was one of thousands of people across Melbourne triggered by the rare storm

'(Hope) was just so kind-hearted.'

Friends and family lamented the loss of a 'beautiful angel' online, remembering Hope for her 'infectious smile' and 'kind heart'. A fundraising page to assist with funeral costs raised almost $8,000 in just three hours.

Omar's school, the Australian International Academy - MSC, announced his untimely death on Tuesday, asking people to 'remember him in your thoughts and prayers'.

'Omar was an exemplary student, role-model and principled, who was previously part of the captaincy team and a much loved, respected student.'

The teenager's close friend, Shubaru Talic, remembered his mate's 'positive character',' goofy laugh', and described him as 'my rock'.

'He spent the entire year nervous about exams, cracking jokes about our eventual ATAR results ...then as soon as we were done he was taken from this world,' Shubaru said.

'We were planning road trips, outings, gaming sesh's (sessions) on that very day - yet when he stopped reading messages, and the news slowly poured in, our hearts all sunk.'

A sand storm at St Kilda in Melbourne during the thunderstorm on Monday night which saw an unprecedented spike in asthma problems across the Victorian capital

Hope's auntie and uncle Melissa and John (pictured) told 7 News it was hard to swallow the loss of their niece knowing that a quicker ambulance response time may have been the difference between life or death

Hospitals declared a 'major disaster' after receiving more than 1,900 triple-0 calls and almost depleting their Ventolin supplies from 6pm

Earlier, a spokesman for Ambulance Victoria told Daily Mail Australia it was aware of two cases 'where patients with respiratory symptoms were unable to be revived by paramedic crews'.

He said ambulances arrived to the patients in 31 minutes and 15 minutes respectively, but paramedics were unable to save their lives.

WHAT IS 'THUNDERSTORM ASTHMA'? - 'Thunderstorm asthma' is caused when a large storm sweeps pollen and irritants into the atmosphere. - The irritants cause asthma sufferers to have an attack. - Rain and humidity can also stir irritants that affect asthma. -The elderly and young children are the most vulnerable. Source: Allergy Society Australia Advertisement

At least 30 people, including two children, remain in intensive care on Tuesday evening and one anonymous intensive care paramedic told Fairfax he suspected 'a lot more than two people died.'

The Australian Medical Association described the spike in respiratory illnesses during the storm 'unprecedented'.

The AMA's federal vice-president Tony Bartone, a general practitioner based in Melbourne's west, said he had never seen Victorian hospital resources so stretched in his 30-year medical career.

'I would describe it as extremely unusual as it's been a long time since we've seen anything like this in terms of presentation of patients with asthma on the one day,' Dr Bartone told Daily Mail Australia on Tuesday afternoon.

Dr Bartone said every ambulance was on call, with emergency departments preparing to set up makeshift wards in hospital foyers.

'Completely unprecedented,' he said.

'Even patients who haven't had asthma for a fair time have found the need to present today.

'We've never had the occasion to predict such a volume overload.'

A man breathing in Ventolin as thunderstorms across Melbourne stretched hospital and ambulance resources

About 400 calls were made to the SES overnight after roof tiles were ripped off homes and garage doors were destroyed from flying debris (pictured)

'The hospitals are all at breaking point,' a Melbourne doctor, who chose to remain unnamed, told The Age.

'A number of hospitals came very close to running out of Ventolin altogether.'

Emergency services were also tied up with 400 calls to the State Emergency Service after roof tiles were ripped off houses, cars were damaged and trees came crashing down.

About 600 of the 1,900 calls to hospital were asthma-related and came from residents in Melbourne's west.

'We essentially had a day's workload within five hours,' Ambulance Victoria's Executive Director Emergency Operations Mick Stephenson said.

'Whether or not they (the deaths) are related to this phenomenon we just don't know ... we will have to review each incident,' Mr Stephenson told reporters on Tuesday morning.

The enormous storm caused damage to homes in Melbourne's west, including this car, and left thousands without power

Dust was seen shrouding North Melbourne (pictured) by 6pm on Monday and asthma sufferers quickly declined

On Monday afternoon, people were seen fleeing Melbourne's iconic St Kilda Beach as the unexpected wind caused a huge sandstorm

Pete James snapped this photo in the southwest of incredible lightning strikes overnight

Emergency services were also tied up with 400 calls for assistance to the SES after roof tiles were ripped off houses, cars were damaged and trees came crashing down (pictured)

A major clean-up commenced on Tuesday morning and hospitals were warned to remain on 'disaster alert' following the storm

Roof tiles were ripped of house and the SES commenced a major clean-up on Tuesday morning

A massive thunderstorm caused an outbreak of asthma so severe emergency services in Melbourne ran out of ambulances to help those in need

Dust was seen flying off the roof of homes across the state, causing asthma sufferers to struggle

The enormous storm, which hit at around 6pm on Monday, is believed to have led to a large occurrence of 'thunderstorm asthma' - where irritants are thrown into the air by the storm

Tuesday will be wet in Melbourne, with rain persisting for most of the day, the bureau predicts

A sandstorm engulfed St Kilda beach in Melbourne's south and people were seen running from the water's edge