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Victorians are being warned to prepare for more aftershocks in the coming "days, if not weeks" after a 5.9 magnitude earthquake struck.

The force of the event was felt across the state and into South Australia and New South Wales.

It is the largest recorded earthquake in Victoria since such events were measured.

READ MORE: Victoria rattled by 5.9 magnitude earthquake, terrifying thousands

Few injuries were reported but at least one man, in his 70s, was hospitalised after suffering upper-body injuries when the parts of a weather shield fell down and hit him.

The Mount Eliza man was taken to Frankston Hospital in a stable condition, but experts say it could have been much worse.

Speaking from Washington DC this morning Prime Minister Scott Morrison thanked those involved in the emergency response.

"Obviously, we need to remain cautious because of the threat of aftershocks and wish those well who are going through inspecting and shoring up those properties that are affected and any damage that was there," Mr Morrison said.

"I'm pleased that … those events have ended up being less serious than first thought and we welcome that. But of course, it was an earthquake and that's a serious thing."

While the worst is expected to be over, Seismologist Tanja Pejic from Geoscience Australia said more aftershocks were extremely likely.

"Unfortunately, there will be aftershocks," Dr Pejic told Today.

"We have already recorded about seven of them. They were all smaller than the main shock. The largest aftershock we recorded was a magnitude of 4.1. I would expect that people in Victoria, closer to that epicentre, would have felt it.

"And there will certainly be more aftershocks to come for days, if not weeks. They will generally decrease in size and frequency as the time progresses."

The earthquake was recorded at around 9.15am at Licola North, near Woods Point, yesterday, 180km north-east of Melbourne.

READ MORE: 'Like a truck had crashed out front': How Melburnians reacted on social media to earthquake

It was followed by several aftershocks – the first a magnitude 5.5 tremor at 9.40am, followed by a 4.0 tremor at 9.55am and a 3.1 tremor at 10.15am.

While experts know aftershocks are a given, they can't predict when an initial earthquake will hit.

"There is no technology in this world that can tell when, where and with what magnitude an earthquake will strike," Dr Pejic said.

"We can't predict them. We can forecast from here on and say, yes, there will be aftershocks, this is normal, this is expected after an earthquake of this size, but we can't predict how large they will be or when they will happen."

READ MORE: Melbourne residents reveal terrifying moment earthquake hit

While large earthquakes are uncommon in Australia, because the continent lies centrally on a tectonic plate, yesterday's event took place in an area of "heightened" risk after being identified via a 2018 "national hazard assessment map".

"This map shows that the south-eastern highlands is an area of heightened seismic risk.

"For seismologists, it wasn't unexpected but it was rare for Australia."

The quake struck at a shallow depth of 10km and while it was large, it didn't cause major widespread damage.

READ MORE: History of Australia's most destructive earthquakes

But one of the worst affected areas was Chapel Street in Windsor, including Betty's Burgers which suffered significant structural damage.

Managing director Troy McDonagh said it could be "a number of months" before his business is back up and running.

"It was not the ideal scenario yesterday morning but we've got an amazing business and, as you well know, mate, hospitality, we're a resilient bunch," Mr McDonagh told Today.

"We regrouped yesterday and obviously once we know what's happening here and know the timeframes we'll start the rebuild process."

Stay-at-home orders due to the coronavirus pandemic are believed to have prevented any serious injuries due to the small number of people out and about.

A man will face court today, charged with the stabbing murder of a 51-year-old man inside a popular Far North Queensland shopping centre.

Police allege the 38-year-old slashed the man — a stranger — across the throat about 8am on Wednesday. The older man died about 20 minutes later.

Police locked down the centre and launched a manhunt before an arrest was made.

READ MORE: Queensland cop suspended for allegedly helping daughter without permit cross state border

The victim is believed to be a regular at the Cairns Central shopping centre who was "well known and well liked", according to locals.

They say he would often spend days sitting in the centre just reading a book.

READ MORE: Queensland mum wins $30 million in Oz Lotto draw

Police say many details are still unclear, but it appears the two men exchanged words on the ground level before the conversation turned into an argument.

The 38-year-old was due to face the Cairns Magistrates Court today.