Roofs were torn off homes and electricity poles ripped from the ground in Queensland
© ABCRoofs were torn off homes and electricity poles ripped from the ground in Queensland
At least 10 people, including a nine-year-old girl, have died in eastern Australia during severe thunderstorms on Christmas and Boxing Day.

Most of the deaths were in the state of Queensland, where tens of thousands of people are still without power.

Victoria and New South Wales were also hit by widespread flooding and destructive winds.

Further thunderstorms have been forecast but conditions are expected to improve over the next day.

The winds were so strong in places, they tore roofs off buildings, felled trees and ripped concrete-based electricity poles from the ground.



"It's the first time we've ever had a concrete power pole destroyed by a storm, that's pretty significant. That's unprecedented," said Queensland Premier Steven Miles.

Residents in parts of New South Wales and South Australia were shocked to find hailstones the size of golf balls blanketing their lawns in summer.

"I haven't seen anything like this in probably the 20 years I've lived in the town," a resident of Melrose in South Australia told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).

The latest storms come more than a week after major floods inundated parts of Queensland during Cyclone Jasper - with some areas experiencing more than a year's worth of rain in just a few days.

Mr Miles said the cost of damage from both storms could run into the billions.

They follow a series of heatwaves that have seen states including New South Wales battling bushfires recently.

The country is currently enduring an El Nino weather event, which is typically associated with extreme events such as wildfires and cyclones.

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