Hail and heavy rain caused havoc in some communities, with townships south-east of Bendigo seemingly hardest hit.

Early reports suggested Harcourt, Castlemaine and Maryborough were the worst affected by the storms.

Axedale resident Alana Kelly was on her way home from Melbourne last night when a hail storm hit at Harcourt about 5.30pm.

Ms Kelly said she and other motorists had to pull over in fear for their safety as visibility was hampered.

“It was actually quite scary,” she said.

“No one could see anything. I’ve never experienced that kind of weather before.”

A staff member at the Cumberland Hotel in Castlemaine said customers from Maryborough reported a grader had been used to clear ice from the road.

“We’ve had quite a bit of rain here and a little bit of hail but it seems we’ve missed the worst stuff,” he said.

CFA crews in the region were also kept busy, with lightning strikes reported to have started small fires at Knowsley, Daylesford and Romsey. In Bendigo, heavy rain lashed the CBD at times, but there were few reports of hail.

A staff member at Braidie’s Tavern in Strathfieldsaye said the community had only copped rain, but had heard about the severe weather in the district.