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A married man who was fatally struck by a 9kg gas bottle that fell from a Sydney building had been walking home with a friend when the 'freak accident' occurred.

The 37-year-old was walking in The Rocks shortly before midnight on Tuesday when the bottle struck him, causing severe injuries to his chest and hand.

He was taken inside a nearby hotel by witnesses where he went into cardiac arrest. Police performed CPR and he was rushed to St Vincent's Hospital where he died from his injuries.

Police detective inspector David El-Badawi told reporters on Wednesday the gas bottle had fallen 'from a great height' to strike the Chatswood man who had been having a drink with a friend in The Rocks.

'The friend is understandably not doing very well,' Det Insp El-Badawi said.

'It's a tragic event.'

A 37-year-old man was killed in The Rocks on Tuesday when a metal gas bottle fell from a building and struck him in the head amid a wild thunderstorm in Sydney. Pictured: Police at the scene

Police said the gas bottle had fallen 'from a great height' before fatally striking the man in a 'one-in-a-million accident'. The scene of the accident was cordoned off shortly after 

The married Chatswood man was revealed to have been walking home with a friend after having drinks when the freak accident occurred

Rescue workers were called to 600 jobs in the Sydney metropolitan area since 9pm on Tuesday. Pictured: Bondi Beach on Tuesday night

Ausgrid said that 31,000 had power restored this morning with crews working around the clock and that 49,000 homes and businesses were still without power at 8am. Pictured: A car smashed by a tree in Bondi

NSW Ambulance Superintendent Kath Rallings said the death was a 'one-in-a-million' event.

'This is a freak accident and a tragedy for this man's family and friends,' she said in a statement on Wednesday.

'The man was unconscious when paramedics arrived and he then went into cardiac arrest.

'While this is appears to be a one-in-a-million accident, please do not underestimate these wild weather conditions.'

A crime scene has been established on Harrington Street and investigators have appealed for anyone with information to come forward.       

Some 80,000 Sydney residents woke up without power on Wednesday morning after the huge storm, which has been compared to a tornado, hit the city shortly before 11pm. It lasted about an hour before moving out to sea.   

Residents were left stunned by the intensity of the electrical storm which lit up the night sky with frequent and bright flashes of lightning followed by deafening cracks of thunder. 

Severe storms and lightning wreaked havoc in Sydney on Tuesday night causing power outages and commuter delays 

Most requests for assistance related to downed trees and branches. Pictured: Bondi Beach on Tuesday night

A man was killed by a flying gas bottle as severe thunderstorm lashed Sydney overnight. Pictured: The storm hits the Harbour Bridge

A huge clean up operation (pictured in the CBD) was underway in Sydney on Wednesday morning after the storm caused carnage on Tuesday night

'Never seen a storm like this before,' one Twitter user from the city's west said. 'Non-stop lightning and thunder for over an hour. Power has gone off.' 

Commuters were affected as a huge clean-up operation began. The North Shore Line was delayed by a fallen tree near Pymble and the Northern Line was held up by a fallen tree in Thornleigh.  

Endeavour Energy said electricity cuts were affecting 24,000 of its customers after power lines were brought down in northwest Sydney and the Hawkesbury region on Tuesday night, with 270 electrical hazards needing repairs.

Ausgrid said its power network had also been damaged by the intense lightning storm in, with 72,000 properties left without electricity.

It said that 31,000 had power restored this morning with crews working around the clock and that 49,000 homes and businesses were still without power at 8am. 

NSW SES spokesman Jason Simms told ABC radio that volunteers had been called to 600 jobs in the Sydney metropolitan area since 9pm on Tuesday, with most requests for assistance related to downed trees and branches. 

Ausgrid warned residents not to go near powerlines as they may still be live and could cause electric shocks

Hundreds posted on social media in the midst of the storm. One woman in Sydney's east said: 'Some seriously wild weather here in Clovelly. Pictured: A tree fell on a car in suburban Sydney

A severe thunderstorm has barrelled into Sydney, bringing lightning, hail and damaging winds to the city after the same weather system lashed Melbourne

Emergency workers had ideal conditions as Sydney was sunny with a forecast top of 29C for Wednesday after the storm passed but in other parts of NSW cooler weather conditions are expected as a cold front moved up from from the southeast.

A dry air mass means southern parts of NSW could have temperatures drop below 20C, particularly in the Southern Ranges and South Coast region.

Western NSW regions were not expected to have any significant rainfall over the next few days. 

Several flights coming into Sydney were also turned around, unable to land due to the chaotic weather. 

The weather system had moved south from Melbourne, with a severe thunderstorm warning issued for that city's inner east on Tuesday afternoon lifted by about 9pm.  

Flash flooding had earlier swept through parts of the city including Berwick, Officer, Pakenham, and surrounds. 

The thunderstorms moved quickly, meaning rainfall totals have been quite low across the state, with 24 millimetres the highest recorded in Greenstead near the Hawkesbury River. 

Orange recorded 12mm in 10 minutes, due to thunderstorm activity. Damaging winds of 90km/h pelted Nowra and Wollongong. 

A severe thunderstorm warning was issued for parts of the Blue Mountains and Hawkesbury areas from a separate storm cell.