Crazy clouds over Melbourne CBD today. Credit:Penny Stephens A series of storms have also struck holidaymakers on the Mornington and Bellarine peninsulas and in the outer north-west and south-east suburbs of greater Melbourne. The temperature was a humid 33.4 degrees at 2.30pm in Melbourne. The mercury dropped to 28.3 just before the rain hit at 2.57pm, then a further degree in just 10 minutes, bringing it down to 27.1.

Brighton beach goers scurrying across Brighton rd at Dendy street as the wild weather hit Melbourne. Credit:Penny Stephens By 3.30pm the temperature was down to 25 degrees and 4pm 23.3 degrees. The weather bureau recorded 11.8 millimetres of rain in Melbourne and 26 millimetres in Elsternwick in about 30 minutes. The sun sets over St Albans on Wednesday, on what was the warmest night of the year. Credit:Gabrielle Costa

VicRoads has issued a warning for wet and slippery roads, with areas experiencing flooding including: West Gate Freeway outbound Kings Way entry ramp

Albert Road at Canterbury Road

Queens Road between Kings Way and Dandenong Road

Dudley Street rail overpass

Mickleham Road at the Moonee Ponds Creek

Buckley Street at Victoria Street, Footscray

York Street, South Melbourne

Geelong Road at Gordon Street An alert has warned motorists to avoid Queens Road between Kings Way and Dandenong Road in St Kilda, with the road underwater in parts. A summer storm rolls across the city on Christmas Eve. Three days later Melbourne sweated through its hottest day of the season. Credit:Brook Mitchell

"Do not drive through flood waters. It is deeper than it looks," said the alert. VicRoads has also issued alerts to avoid Buckley Street near Victoria Street due to water over the road and Mickleham Road near Moonee Ponds Creek. A storm front hits Melbourne city on Thursday afternoon. Credit:Louise Radcliffe-Smith An SES spokeswoman said minor flooding in homes had been reported in Caulfield, St Kilda, Port Melbourne, Brighton and Bentleigh. She said a brokendown vehicle required rescuing after becoming stuck in rising flood waters in Footscray.

The thunderstorms are not forecast to pass until well into the night, meaning those of us working through the holiday period face a wet commute home. The Bureau of Meteorology has issued a severe weather warning for flash flooding from the thunderstorms. A threat of lightning delayed inbound and outbound flights at Melbourne Airport as ground crews were pulled from the tarmac. A spokesman said crews were returning at 3.35pm. The rain also put a stop to play in the second test between Australia and Pakistan at the MCG.

Melburnians sweated through the warmest night of the year, with the temperatures refusing to dip below 27 degrees. The rains will not provide relief from the hot and humid conditions. The temperature is expected to hover around 32 degrees today, and we will have to wait until Friday evening for a cool change to blow through.

The Bureau of Meteorology has issued a severe weather warning for heavy rainfall from the thunderstorms. Bureau senior forecaster Beren Bradshaw said between 8 and 25 millimetres of rain is expected, accompanied by winds of up to 35km/h. Mr Stewart said the high humidity meant it was likely there would be heavy downpours over a short space of time. The warning has been issued for much of the state, including Mildura, Horsham, Bendigo, Shepparton, Seymour, Maryborough, Ballarat, Geelong, Melbourne, Wodonga and Wangaratta.

The storm also carries a risk of lightning strikes. But while there is a risk of the lightning strikes causing fires, the fire danger rating for Thursday is very low because the strikes are being accompanied by heavy rainfall. On Wednesday Melbourne recorded its hottest day of the summer so far, a 38.2 degree scorching peak that was reached shortly before 6pm. While the city had a windy, baking hot and generally dry day on Wednesday, the south west of the state received sustained rainfall from the system that smashed Uluru on Boxing Day, creating a series of stunning waterfalls on the rock.

Waterfalls stream down Uluru after record rains. Credit:Parks Australia A weaker version of the system brought 36.2 millimetres of rain to Portland, and significant falls to Cape Nelson (35.8 mm) and Warrnambool (22.4 mm). Melbourne, however, received just 1.4 millimetres of rain in the 24 hours to 9am Wednesday. Melbourne's top temperature for the day, and for summer thus far, was recorded at 5.45pm. Ms Bradshaw said the maximum temperature for the city came later in the day than normal. "Mostly, we see our maximum about 4pm," she said.