Roof ripped off Sydney shopping centre in freak storm

A massive cleanup is underway after a shopping centre roof ripped off during a freak storm and sent debris flying at cars.

Motorists in Sydney's west were lucky to escape serious injury as the roof went flying.

The storm at Bringelly Village Shopping Centre lasted less than a minute, but it was forceful enough to peel the roof off and send it flying onto traffic outside.

One piece of debris was flung directly into the windscreen of a stopped car.

The Western Sydney location was one of many that were pummelled yesterday as a powerful series of storm cells swept over NSW and much of Australia's east coast.

Emergency services responded to thousands of call-outs in a matter of hours with trees and powerlines falling across multiple roads and roof damage at countless properties.

A number of locations also experienced flash-flooding with motorists urged to take care when driving in the conditions.