On 6 March 2010, thunderstorms occurred in the west of Victoria, intensifying as they moved eastward towards the Shepparton region. The same day, severe thunderstorms also developed into the north-west of metropolitan Melbourne, bringing isolated severe wind gusts. Flash flooding was widespread across the city and hailstones measuring 2 - 10 cm caused damage to homes and major buildings including the Arts Centre, Etihad Stadium and Southern Cross Station.

Shepparton experienced localised flooding, hail and wind damage prior to the storm moving south. Power outages occurred to 100,000 homes in Melbourne and 45,000 homes in the Shepparton region. The severe thunderstorms resulted in more than 7500 calls to the Victorian State Emergency Service, prompting crews from New South Wales, South Australia, Western Australia and Tasmania to help in the clean up.

Financial assistance for affected communities was announced by the Federal Attorney-General on 12 March 2010. The Insurance Council of Australia estimated the 2010 damage at $1044 billion, with the 2011 estimated normalised cost of $1160 billion.