Search this site

Since March 2020 life as we know it has changed forever due to the coronavirus COVID-19

Local businesses are adjusting to the 'New Normal', please check with the advertised contact for any updates or changes to an advertised service.

Is there such a thing as a cyclone proof roof?

by Mike Brewer
(UK)

We were 22 years old and had arrived in Darwin from the UK just eleven days before Christmas. It was to be a working holiday. Teresa's brother John was living in Fannie Bay and had sorted a caravan in a garden for us to rent, just off Ross Smith Avenue I think. On Christmas Eve we were in John's caravan having a few beers and listening to the radio which I recall sending out warnings of an imminent cyclone. The weather was wild and it became clear that we were unsafe in the caravan, so we all decamped to the landlord's house (Murray Fogel??). As the night progressed others from the street joined us as their houses had been destroyed. Murray told us we'd be ok as he'd built the house with a "cyclone proof " roof. I don't know if there is such a thing but it was reassuring as we could hear and see all around us being destroyed.As daybreak came the storm was lessening and the true extent of the devastation became apparent and Murray's house was the only one with a roof as far as we could see. We learned a lot from the experience, such as ;
* Windows were taped to stop the wind sucking them out on the leeward side of the house, not blowing them in from the windward side.
* Water is precious. We immediately had to ration what we drank and not shower as the mains supply failed.
* Domestic dogs soon run wild. Terrorised by the storm stray dogs formed packs and scoured the neighbourhood looking for food.
* A prison built of corrugated iron isn't a good idea. The prison blew down and many of the inmates took full advantage and went on the run.
* Food doesn't last long when there's no electricity for the freezers.
* There was a constant fear that Tracy would return the next day.
Most of all, we learned that people come together at times of adversity. Teams of strangers toured the suburbs helping to clear wreckage and make homes habitable where possible; roads were made passable: and petrol was hand pumped into the tanks of those evacuating by road.
A group of five of us (Mike, Teresa, John, Leonie and Marilyn) drove south on the Stuart Highway once it was reopened. We drove to Sydney and received exceptional support from Aussies all the way down, passing through Katherine, Charlieville, Winton, Mount Isa, Toowoomba, and Brisbane. Families gave us floors to sleep on, hotels let us all share one room and provided meals without charge. Our cars were a mess, covered in dents and red dust from the trip and we became readily identifiable as evacuees from Darwin.
Once in Sydney the five of us went our separate ways, and Teresa and I continued our working holiday. We returned to the UK a year later having made many new Aussie and Kiwi friends who we remain in touch with, but it is at Christmas time we remember the many Australians who selflessly helped us through a truly traumatic experience by extending their unconditional friendship and generosity at the time of our greatest need.