Murrumbidgee Local Health District acting director Alison Nikitas said mosquito-borne diseases were a serious public health concern.

People bitten by mosquitoes infected with Ross River Virus usually fall ill within three weeks and symptoms include joint inflammation and pain, particularly in small joints such as the wrists, fingers and toes.

The North East copped the brunt of a summer storm early on Friday morning, with strong winds lashing the high country and prompting several calls for SES help.

The biggest falls were at ski resorts Mount Hotham and Falls Creek, which each got a drenching upwards of 50mm.

It brought the month’s total rainfall for Hotham to more than 160mm, just short of the monthly record of 179mm.

Benalla-based SES duty officer Brendan Corboy said any major incidents had been avoided but some trees were toppled in Mount Buffalo National Park.

“There were trees down and traffic hazard jobs,” he said.

“The Mount Buffalo catchment got heavy falls but Goulburn Murray Water harvested it in Lake Buffalo.

“In response, some SES units went down to chat to nearby campers to let them know the river would be running faster than usual.”

Up to 14mm fell at Wangaratta, Wodonga got 27mm of rain while the gauge at Albury airport registered 20mm. 

The SES warned North East residents to steer well clear of creeks and storm drains, and not to ride or drive through flood waters.

But a severe weather warning was lifted in Victoria by late morning Friday, with remaining grey cloud blanketing the sky.

There were strong wind gusts of up to 33km/h in Wangaratta, 30km/h in Rutherglen and 80km/h on Mount Hotham.

Blustery conditions caused havoc on Albury-Wodonga’s roads during the morning commute, with a crash on the Hume Freeway causing major delays to northbound traffic.

Bureau of Meteorology senior forecaster Stephen King said it was common to get summer storms this time of year but that it was unusual for one to sweep through during the night instead of the afternoon.

He said any remaining cloud would clear on Saturday morning for the Border community to enjoy the weekend with some heat.

“The weekend is going to be quite good,” he said.

“It will get up to 31 on Saturday in Albury-Wodonga, similar but warmer on Sunday with 33, hotting up on Monday 37 and then a weak change coming through with a little rain into Tuesday still getting up to 35 and then cooling down for the rest of the week.”