Hawke’s Bay family lost everything in the cyclone.

A home in Sydney's eastern suburbs has been struck by lightning as storms roll across the city.

Emergency services were called to the property in Maroubra at 5.30pm this afternoon.

Resident Simon Hodge was at home when he heard a bang followed by a knock on the door.

READ MORE: Voice to parliament referendum date revealed

"The biggest bang I've ever heard in my life, just scared the bejesus out of me," he said.

"Next thing I know, someone was banging on the door saying lightning struck the building and there's smoke coming out of it."

Firefighters and ambulance crews attended the scene.

It comes as Australia's east coast is experiencing storms, with the potential for large hail and damaging winds across parts of New South Wales and Queensland.

An estimated 10,000 lightning bolts lit up Sydney's skies today.

Residents in the two states woke up to relatively dry and clear before the weather system brought showers and storm clouds to the skies by mid-afternoon.

"They're bringing hail and they're bringing strong winds throughout much of south-eastern Queensland and the northeast of New South Wales," Bureau of Meteorology senior meteorologist Angus Hines said.

The system moved through Campbelltown in Sydney's south-west and circled in the inner city late this afternoon.

Heavy hail hit multiple areas in NSW including Murwillumbah on the North Coast, Parkes in the Central West and the Southern Highlands south-west of Sydney.

A severe thunderstorm warning is in place for the north-eastern corner of NSW near the Northern Rivers area.

"In particular, we're watching closely for hail and wind," Hines said.

"However, when thunderstorms are involved, things do move very, very quickly.

"Chances are throughout this afternoon we could well add further warning areas and modify existing warning areas as we track the movement and intensity of these developing storms."

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Severe storms have been downgraded in Queensland with the exception of one nasty storm cell Maleny.

There are widespread storms in the Sunshine Coast hinterland extending down to the area north of Brisbane.

The Gold Coast is expected to experience storms within the next couple of hours.

Three fire trucks are on the scene working to rescue the three trapped inside the car.

Australians will go to the polls to vote Yes or No to the Indigenous Voice to parliament on October 14.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese revealed the date of the long-mooted referendum in Adelaide this morning at the Yes campaign launch.

"The idea for a Voice came from the people, and it will be decided by the people," Albanese said.

READ MORE: How to make sure your Voice vote gets counted

The question for the referendum will be:

"A Proposed Law: to alter the Constitution to recognise the First Peoples of Australia by establishing an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice.

"Do you approve this proposed alteration?"

Albanese gave an at-times impassioned speech to a cheering crowd, calling on them to move Australia's 65,000-year-old story forward.

"In a spirit of generosity and optimism, vote Yes. In recognition of 65,000 years of history, vote Yes. With hope for a better future, vote Yes," he said.

On October 14, he said, Australia had nothing to lose and "so much to gain".

But, he said, if approved by Australians, the Voice was just the start of the journey.

"The Voice will be a committee of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, local representatives from every state and territory, the regions, remote communities, as well as the Torres Strait Islands," Albanese said.

"A committee of Indigenous Australians chosen by Indigenous Australians, giving advice to government so that we can get a better result for Indigenous Australians."

READ MORE: PM, radio host clash over Voice on-air

He said it would face challenges "built up over generations".

"But voting Yes means we'll finally have the right approach in place so we can start finding the solutions," he said.

"We can make this change together.

"And with a Voice that's independent from day-to-day politics, so it can plan for the long term."

Albanese again reinforced the message that the Voice would not have any legislative or governing power.

"With a Voice, though, we will be able to hear directly from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities about the challenges they face in health and education, in jobs and housing," he said.

"And we'll be able to learn about the things that are working in local areas, so we can replicate them and make them work right around the country."

Albanese urged Australians unsure about how they wished to vote to ask questions and listen to answers about issues that puzzled them.

He warned that a No vote was a vote for nothing to change.

"I say today, don't close the door on constitutional recognition, don't close the door on listening to communities to get better results," he said.

"Don't close the door on an idea that came from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people themselves, and don't close the door on the next generation of Indigenous Australians. Vote Yes."

No campaigners urge against 'biggest change to our Constitution'

Speaking in Brisbane on Wednesday afternoon, Opposition Leader Peter Dutton once again accused Albanese of refusing to release detail about the Voice before the referendum.

"There is no detail out there," Dutton said when asked why he wasn't encouraging people to educate themselves on the Voice.

"This is the biggest change to our Constitution in our country's history. It is broad sweeping by design.

"As the advocates have pointed out, it would be a very game government that did not take the advice from the Voice…

"The prime minister is deliberately keeping the design and the detail from the Australian public until after the vote."

There is a federal government website outlining the design principles of the Voice and the government sought legal advice from the solicitor-general about the advisory body, which stated the proposed model was legally sound.

Dutton's comments came after fellow No campaigners Jacinta Nampijinpa Price and Warren Mundine rallied against the constitutional amendment.

"It is wrong to suggest we have not had a voice," Price said.

"Voices like mine, elected parliamentarians, like my good friend Warren Mundine speaking up. We are telling this prime minister our voices are relevant."

Mundine, meanwhile, accused Albanese of "attacking" and "abusing" No campaigners, although didn't provide any examples.

The No campaign will hold its official launch in the coming weeks.

What are Australians voting on?

A first-term referendum on constitutional recognition of Indigenous people and an advisory Voice to parliament was a core promise of Albanese's 2022 election campaign.

Enshrining the Voice in the Constitution means it will not be able to be dismissed by a new government, except through another referendum.

The Australian Electoral Commission is in the process of delivering 13 million booklets to households around Australia outlining the official Yes and No campaign positions.

READ MORE: Qantas takes to sky to support Voice

The case put forward by the Yes team places heavy emphasis on the origins of the Voice in the Uluru Statement from the Heart as something put forward by Indigenous leaders rather than any parliament or political party.

"Vote yes to an idea that comes directly from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people themselves: Constitutional Recognition through a Voice," the document reads.

It said a yes vote was about "recognition", "listening" and "better results".

The No campaign has emphasised the unknowns about the Voice, including its composition and areas of oversight.

Contrary to the Yes camp, the No campaign claims the Voice will prompt waves of legal action and that the body will have a mandate to oversee areas of government such as Defence.

In his speech, Albanese said arguments had been made against Australia's Federation, the minimum wage, Medicare, multiculturalism, and universal suffrage as well.

"But the great story of our country, through the generations, is that Australians come together to answer these calls for change, we rise to the moment," he said.

"Like the kangaroo and the emu on our coat of arms, they never go backwards, they just go forwards."

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A crash blocked two northbound lanes on the Northern Motorway after Fanshawe St on-ramp.

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Police said one other person was taken to hospital in a moderate condition.