The Brisbane CBD resembled night time at 3:30pm, when lightning and thunder sent workers scuttling indoors.
Thousands of lightning strikes have been detected and the weather bureau recorded heavy rain at Wacol, south-west of Brisbane, where 98mm fell in an hour and 70mm in 30 minutes.
In the city's north, 70mm of rain was recorded in an hour at Mitchelton.
The weather bureau says the immediate threat of severe storms has passed, but the situation will be monitored and further warnings will be issued if necessary.
It says the first line of storms rolled in this afternoon with ominous clouds, hail and spectacular lightning shows.
A second line of storms followed, hitting Brisbane's CBD from about 6.20pm.
They caused commuter chaos, with train services disrupted, particularly on the Ipswich line, and one of Brisbane's major highways, the Gateway Motorway, congested after several small crashes.
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