Queensland was pummelled by weather described as more terrifying than a cyclone yesterday, hitting the Australian state’s capital city Brisbane the hardest.

Power was cut to almost 230,000 homes and businesses, according to the ABC, and one man was killed.

“The damage is absolutely extraordinary - I've not seen anything like it before,” said Brisbane's Lord Mayor Campbell Newman.

Wayne Prowse of Horticulture Australia said there were no reports yet of damage to crops in the area, but thankfully the region hit had finished harvest seasons.

“Most of the crops it could have affected, like avocados, the harvest for that area finished in July,” he said. “I’ve not heard of any major horticultural impacts from the storms yet.”

The storm comes on the back of bad hail south of Brisbane in New South Wales, which caused damage to fruit growers in the area.