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An isolated freak storm has wreaked havoc in Melbourne's outer-east, flooding homes and businesses and trapping off-guard drivers in their cars on the roads.

The severe thunderstorm hit the Yarra Ranges just before 5pm yesterday, dumping a massive 70mm of rain on the suburb of Lilydale, about half of that in just 30 minutes.

More than 400 requests for SES assistance were requested within a 90-minute period.

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Bureau of Meteorology senior meteorologist Michael Efron said yesterday's severe thunderstorms, which developed across central and north-east Victoria, brought high rainfall totals.

Efron said there were unconfirmed reports that 100mm fell in the Dandenong Ranges.

"It was slow moving and those totals were significant," he said.

Businesses left destroyed 

Lilydale's main street, the Maroondah Highway, was turned into a river.

Nearly all the businesses along the road have been impacted by the floodwaters, including Barry Plant Real Estate.

Director Ashley Hudson said it could take several weeks to re-open after water inundated the space, destroying flooring and furniture.

"I was out of the office and I got a call to say get back to the office, it is flooded," he said.

"I got there and I couldn't even get in. It was just a sea of water.

"It's a complete disaster, it's terrible. It's all gone."

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Business owners claimed the new drainage on the main street can't handle any type of rain event.

The new drainage was installed during the build of the new Lilydale train station, which replaced a level crossing.

"They obviously haven't got it right. They haven't designed the drainage correct," Lilydale Supa Launderette owner Brian Hamilton told 9News.

Level Crossing Removal Projects chief executive Kevin Devlin said they would inspect the drainage system.

"We have to do some minor correction from time to time, but we are confident the drainage system is working well," he said.

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The floodwaters mostly subsided overnight, leaving mud caked over streets and businesses.

Aaron Parker, who runs Lilydale Super Laundrette, has this morning told Today the suburb looked "close to a warzone" when the storm hit yesterday.

"It was mess everywhere. Things floating around and debris everywhere," he said.

The business owner said he had never seen such a freak weather event in the area.

"We've been here close to 20 years and seen nothing like this at all. It's unprecedent really," he said.

He has estimated 20 to 50 businesses in Lilydale near to his will be needing to undertake significant clean up efforts.

More rain is expected in Yarra Ranges today, but the Bureau of Meteorology has said fortunately residents can expect less than 20mm to fall.

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Jurors in the trial of the man accused of raping Brittany Higgins will undertake a sixth day of deliberations after they once again reached another day without a decision.

Bruce Lehrmann has pleaded not guilty to sexual intercourse without consent and is facing a criminal trial in the ACT Supreme Court.

The fifth day of deliberations ended without result at about 4pm (AEDT) today.

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They will return tomorrow at 10am.

On Tuesday afternoon, following three days and six hours of deliberations, the jury sent a note to the court indicating they were unable to reach a unanimous agreement.

But Chief Justice Lucy McCallum sent them back to the deliberation room, saying experience shows juries are able to reach a decision if given more time.

"I ask you to retire again to see if you can reach a verdict in this trial," she said.

She said they must calmly and objectively listen to each other's opinions and try to reach a unanimous decision.

She reminded them they could not join in a verdict if they did not "honestly and genuinely" think it was the correct one.

Within minutes, the jury sent another note asking to finish for the day and return to court with "fresh minds" on Wednesday.

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Earlier in the week, the jury asked for "a little extra time" and the chief justice assured them there was no rush.

She instructed the jurors to find a verdict according to the evidence presented in the courtroom and said they should not feel pressured to make a decision.

"There's no rush. There's no time limit," she said.

The deliberations followed a 12-day trial where jurors heard from 29 witnesses, including Liberal senators Linda Reynolds and Michaelia Cash.

Ms Higgins alleges Lehrmann raped her in the parliamentary office of Senator Reynolds when they worked for her as defence industry minister in March 2019. He denies any sexual interaction happened.

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A young woman on trial for murdering her violent father says she stabbed him after he angrily called her a "slut" and came at her with a knife.

Through sobs, Maddison Hickson told a Newcastle Supreme Court jury she and her father wrestled over the weapon before the then-21-year-old grabbed it with her right hand.

"I stabbed him … to protect myself," she said on Wednesday.

"I just wanted him to stop."

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Hickson couldn't recall seeing blood but "felt, like, a pop and I heard a splash" and dropped the knife in the living room of a Maitland home.

"After that happened, I ran straight outside because I was scared of him and I didn't think he would stop," she said.

Hickson has pleaded not guilty to murdering Michael Carroll, 51, who died after being stabbed twice in the heart on January 16, 2021.

The court has been told Carroll was a convicted criminal regularly in and out of prison whose rap sheet included attacking a pregnant partner over her refusal to get an abortion.

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The evening of his death, Carroll had been arguing with another person in the home before Hickson told him to "get the f— out" and "shut the f— up", the jury has been told.

Hickson says he then called her a "f—— slut and a f—— dog" but she didn't think he'd try to hurt her until he pulled out a knife.

"Literally all I saw was the blade, it wasn't short but it wasn't heaps long," she said.

Under cross-examination, she couldn't explain how she ended up with the knife or how she could have maintained a grip of her phone and keys in her left hand.

"I don't know, I was just fighting for my life," Hickson said.

"I don't even know what was going through my head, it happened so quickly and then I just ran."

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Crown prosecutor Brian Costello has told the jury Hickson stabbed her father in a spontaneous response out of anger and frustration following the heated argument and had not been in fear of him or acting in self-defence.

If the jury believes Hickson had been fearful but her actions were not a reasonable response, they can find her guilty of the lesser charge of manslaughter.

The trial continues.

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The link between a common hospital drug and anaphylactic shock needs to be better known after a young man's appendix surgery led to his death, a coroner says.

Sydney law clerk Lucas Peyret was a healthy, fit man preparing to move house when struck down by appendicitis in May 2019.

While coming out of routine surgery to remove the 21-year-old's appendix, he suffered a "severe and unexpected" anaphylactic reaction to an anaesthetic reversal agent, a NSW coroner found on Wednesday.

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Peyret's heart stopped for 23 minutes, his brain was starved of oxygen and he never recovered, dying 10 days later on June 5.

"Hospital staff did all they could in the circumstances to save Lucas but ultimately were unable to do so," coroner Erin Kennedy said, summarising her findings on Wednesday.

The coroner recommended the Australian and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists and the Therapeutic Goods Administration consider further the incidence and risk management of severe reactions to the agent, sugammadex.

"There is a need to look at this issue … to ensure any dangers are understood," Kennedy said.

The full findings are expected to be published within a week.

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Kennedy extended her condolences to Peyret's family, including his mother Katya Denomme.

Denomme had raised concerns that the surgery occurred on a Sunday evening with an anaesthetist-in-training and without imaging to confirm the clinical diagnosis of appendicitis.

The disappointed mother was also concerned that "she was not getting the whole truth" from staff at Randwick's Prince of Wales Hospital, the inquest was told.

However, the inquest was told the hospital's discussions with the Peyret family had been given a positive assessment by an expert in open disclosure following adverse medical events, while an experienced anaesthetist said the surgery was well within the trainee anaesthetist's abilities.

The anaesthetist-in-training, Sukhi Hegde, said she spoke with Peyret about the risks of aspiration and the roughly-1-in-4000 chance of a serious anaphylactic reaction to drugs used in surgery.

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Surgical registrar Jakob Koestenbauer, who diagnosed appendicitis based on symptoms and blood results, told the coroner there wasn't sufficient uncertainty to delay treatment.

Meanwhile, the surgeon who led the appendectomy, Negin Sedaghat, said appendix removal was "the bread and butter of acute general surgery" and Peyret's high score on a diagnostic scale fit the bill for someone needing urgent attention.

Concern was also raised about conducting imaging on a young man that would give him a dose of radiation.

When Peyret crashed, Sedaghat said she was "rather confused because the surgery was so routine".

The law clerk had felt unwell and in pain for about a day before his surgery and slept 12 hours the night of May 25.

With acute right abdominal pain, right shoulder pain, fever and vomiting, he visited a GP on May 26 and was referred to hospital.

He'd never been a patient in hospital and, beside mild asthma, had no medical history.

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