More on the Brisbane floods

Once again, a pity this wasn't timed for the G20

Army mobilised to help cleanup after Brisbane’s freak storm

Clean up starts in storm-hit Brisbane

Courier Mail,

 

28 November, 2014

SIX people have been trapped inside a Brisbane house since the storm hit yesterday, with police telling them it’s too dangerous to leave their home.

Louise McBryde cowered under a table as her next door neighbours’ roof ripped off and landed on her house at Herston on the corner of Clyde and Scott roads.

“I was hiding under the table in the middle room because I knew something bad was happening,” Ms McBryde said.

“It was like hearing a train screeching on the tracks and then this really weird swooshing noise.”

That was the sound of the roof tearing off the neighbouring apartment block, trapping them inside the house.

Unfortunately Ms McBryde estimates almost two-thirds of her house has received extensive water damage, including short-stay accommodation she runs on the bottom level.

“Two-thirds of the house was a waterfall because the sheeting iron and big, wooden roofing beams flew and javelined into the roof so there’s lots of holes in the roof,” she said.

“The bathroom is sort of dangerous because the VJ has been pushed down and may collapse.

“There’s just water everywhere, my kids’ rooms are all wrecked.”

Ms McBryde said her neighbours have run a power lead from their house into hers, and have been keeping them stocked up on necessities – coffee, food and wine.

“The neighbours have been great, they’ve been bringing us coffee and somebody has gone on a run to get us some food.”

A car drives through floodwater in Brisbane's CBD. Pic: Dan Peled/AAP

The six don’t know how long they’ll be housebound for, and any time they step on the veranda police firmly direct them back inside.

“The police get very angry at us because we keep going outside (but) we’re going stir-crazy,” Ms McBryde joked.

“There’s tin sheeting that is in the fig trees and on our roof that is a danger I guess and the wind is picking up so they don’t want anybody outside.”

Deathy-defying experience as unit disintegrates

A RESIDENT of Toowong’s Scenic Point apartments narrowly escaped death when the roof was torn off the building above him and the ceiling collapsed behind him as he dashed out the fire exit.

Tin roof sheeting and insulation is hanging from trees outside the apartment, while timber frames from the ceiling have been thrown to the ground and crushed a neighbouring fence.

James Marriott in the remains of his top floor apartment at Toowong. Picture: Mark Calleja

Toowong resident James Marriott said his flatmate was a “miracle man” and lucky to be alive.

“He was in the kitchen when the roof came off, he almost died,” he said.

“He said it was like a bomb going off.

“The roof over my room is still on, but the other guys have lost everything, literally everything they have.”

Cars submerged in flash flooding in Alexandria St, Fortitude Valley, after a storm hit Brisbane.

He said with more rain predicted to come he was concerned about the integrity of the rest of the building.

The top floor apartment at Scenic Point in Toowong was devastated by the storm. Pic Mark Calleja

Council ‘refused’ to remove tree that fell on car

COUNCIL had refused to remove a tree that yesterday crushed a ute in Annerley, according to a resident of Victoria Terrace.

The neighbour, who did not want to be named, said he complained to Brisbane City Council two years ago because the tree was not suitable to being roadside.

“They flat out refused,” the neighbour said.

“Trees like that don’t belong in a neighbourhood.

“It would cost a lot less (than the damage bill now) to chop down that tree and plant something more suitable - less canopy, less height.”

Workers had a hard time trying to remove this tree off a Toyota Hilux without further damage. Picture: Adam Armstrong.

Classrooms hit by hailstorm damage

AT Yeronga State High School, cricket ball-sized hail smashed through thousands of windows with enough force to leave shards strewn across the classrooms and even embedded in the wall.

Brisbane smashed by huge hail storm: Bowen Hills

Principal Terry Heath said students had been in the rooms just an hour and a half before the hail crashed into the school “like missiles”, but fortunately no one was hurt.

“I was shocked at the amount of damage mother nature can bring to a school,” he said.

“The shear strength of the storm not just cracked windows, but cracked windows with shards of glass through the rooms.

“Almost every classroom in the school has been affected.”

He said teachers and parents had been at the school since 6am to clean up the devastation.

The damage bill is unknown, but roofs have been cracked, carpets need to be replaced due to the shards of glass, while windows will be repaired.

Grade 8 and 9 students will be housed in makeshift classrooms untouched by the storm, while the school term was already expected to end today for older students.

Roof blown off Brisbane church

A BRISBANE church is facing a huge repair bill after yesterday’s storms tore off its roof.

Those in the area were lucky to escape injury when part of the steel roof atop the Australian Christian Church at Annerley flew about 100 metres along Ipswich Road.

The storm cut a swath through parts of the southeast.

Another chunk of the roof landed in a neighbour’s backyard, while the remainder was left hanging to the framework by a thread.

It is understood the damage to the church’s interior is extensive, with electrical equipment ruined in the absence of a roof.

Tammy Reed outside the Australian Christian Church at Annerley. Picture: Adam Armstrong.

A resident of the property where part of the roof fell told The Courier-Mail of the scenes she saw.

“I went to get a drink of water from the kitchen and the next minute I heard the windows smash from all the hail,” Sunita Glykidis said.

“I just ran away, otherwise the glass would have got me ... everything was coming in.

“I went out onto the balcony and was recording and I could hear this noise and then bang (as the roof flew into their property).

“It came off bit by bit.”

Ms Glykidis said the church, who own their property, had advised them to not stay at the house for safety purposes, with part of the roof still in a position to fly away.

“They told us it wasn’t safe to stay here but everything was booked out.”

Supermarket dumps tonnes of food

Flooded train tracks at the Fortitude Valley Station. Pic: Dorian Gray/Twitter

A SOUTHEAST Queensland supermarket has thrown out tonnes of food after power was cut by the storm.

Couriermail.com.au reader Ajo Ozman snapped the pictures of the thrown out food outside Coles at Forest Lake. See more pics here.

Food thrown out by Coles Forest Lake. Picture: Ajo Ozman

Brisbane hailstorm

Injury toll from Brisbane hailstorm

Colin and Margaret Reid were mopping their living room at West End when the roof was blown off. Pic: Steve Pohlner

CAMPBELL Newman says the supercell storm that hit Brisbane injured 39 people, with 12 taken to hospital.

But none of the 39 were seriously injured, including those who needed hospital care.

He said one of those injured was an ambulance officer who suffered cuts when a large hail stone smashed through the window of an ambulance while she was out on a job. Earlier, soldiers hit the streets of storm-ravaged Brisbane to help clean up after the state’s worst storm in decades, after 141km/h winds, large hail stones and heavy rain battered the city.

In latest developments:

*Premier Campbell Newman described it as the worst storm to hit Brisbane since 1985.

* Energex says 70,000 homes are without power this morning.

* More than a dozen schools are closed, mostly in Brisbane’s south.

* Thousands of residents are assessing the damage to homes, businesses and vehicles.

* All trains lines have resumed normal operations except the Ipswich, Rosewood and Springfield lines.

A fallen road sign in Brisbane's CBD. Pic: Dan Peled/AAP

Soldiers were sent out about 2.30am to assist with the clean-up.

Premier Campbell Newman last night urgently headed out to assess damage at Woolloongabba, after the full force of the extreme cell was exposed.

“We’re getting in as many people as we can on the job this evening,” Mr Newman said last night.

“Troops from the Enoggera Army Barracks will be supporting the SES, who are also coming in from outlying areas outside southeast Queensland and other areas outside the Brisbane government local area.”

Mr Newman described it as the worst storm to hit Brisbane since 1985.

Soldiers help clean up in Annerley where a tree fell onto a car.

“It is a very significant storm. The Insurance Council have declared a catastrophic weather event and are mobilising their collective disaster arrangements the belief at this stage is it is the bigger than the Gap, I think that is safe to say. Sadly, I am calling it the biggest storm that has hit Brisbane since 1985.”

Planes were flipped over at Archerfield aerodrome. Pic: Josh Holt/Twitter

Mr Newman said he new the minute the storm hit it was going to be catastrophic for the city.

“I was quite scared. I thought this is big, this is huge This is a really big event. I was worried for the people of this city,” he said

He said he called the Defence Minister personally to request help.

Up to 200 SES volunteers, 60 Rural Fire Service Queensland volunteers and 194 urban firefighters will work with police and soldiers to assess and repair damage.

There have been more than 1400 requests for assistance to date, with much of the requests concentrated in the Moorooka and Annerley areas.

It is expected to take several days to fulfil these requests and SES volunteers will work, mostly in the eastern suburbs of Brisbane today.

Firefighters have responded to 475 storm-related incidents since 4pm yesterday.

Parliamentary Annexe outdoor area roof destroyed by Brisbane storm

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Most destructive storm since 1985

The fierce storm was detected on the radar just after lunchtime, but it wasn’t until afternoon peak hour that Brisbane’s inner south and CBD was smashed.

Rapid rainfall, winds of 141km/h and hail culminated into a horror event for commuters and home owners and left insurance companies with thousands of claims.

Insurance Council of Australia spokesman Campbell Fuller said the storm had been declared a catastrophic weather event with insurers receiving 2000 calls within hours of the storm.

Weather forecaster Amber Young said: “For Brisbane it’s the worst storm since the 2008 Gap storm which only hit western suburbs, but this carved out a considerable path.”

Just after lunchtime the cell was detected and a severe thunderstorm warning was issued about 2pm as the storm bore down on the Gold Coast hinterland.

The storm didn’t lose any power as it surged towards Boonah and Beaudesert about 3pm.

A wind gust of 141km/h was detected at Archerfield about 4.30pm which alerted the bureau to just how powerful one of the storm cells had become and the warnings were escalated to alert public, police and emergency services.

That storm cell cut a destructive path through the southeast, hitting Archerfield first where it tossed at least five light planes around like toys.

Water, water everywhere in Water St, Fortitude Valley.

With the storm moving at 30km/h, Inala, Corinda, Annerley and Woolloongabba were next in the firing line, with trees toppled, motorists trapped in cars, power lines down and roofs peeled from buildings.

Hail the size of cricket balls pelted inner-city areas just as 5pm peak hour kicked off.

All trains out of the CBD were suspended with some passengers trapped inside carriages for three hours with reports people fainted.

From Inala through to the CBD and up to Brighton, 30 to 50mm of rain fell in just 15 to 30 minutes as the storm caused flash flooding.

The damage was so severe at All Hallows’, Brisbane Grammar School, St Joseph’s on Gregory Terrace, St Lawrence’s, Somerville House, St Sebastian’s at Yeronga, St Joseph’s at Kangaroo Point, Mary Immaculate at Annerley, St Brendan’s at Moorooka, Windsor State School, Yeronga State School and Yeronga State High School that school has been cancelled today. Our Lady’s College at Annerley is closed for students in years 8 and 9.

And fire broke out on a bus at All Hallows in the aftermath of the storm last night.

Hail damage at Leckie Rd, Kedron. Pic: Jamie Hanson

Even superstar Katy Perry’s plans were interrupted, with her concert at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre delayed.

The trough continued through the northern suburbs and up to the Sunshine Coast where it lost steam around Wide Bay.

Suburbs awash with debris

ROOFS shredded, walls were punctured by hailstones and lawns were blanketed with debris as a ferocious storm cell barrelled through the southeast yesterday, battering suburban homes and businesses.

More than 500 power lines were down and 76,000 properties in Brisbane (more than 88,000 in the greater Brisbane region) were without power last night in the wake of the fiercest cell to strike the area since 2008.

Colin and Margaret Reid, from West End, said they were mopping up their sodden lounge room when, “next thing”, the roof peeled off. With hail bearing down, they took refuge underneath an air-conditioning duct in the corridor. “We couldn’t get into the bathroom because the wind was pushing the door shut,” Mrs Reid said.

Mr Reid, who previously lived in north Queensland, said it was worse than “any cyclone” he’d experienced.

A tree blown over in the storm at Rothwell. Pic: Ted Holliday

The scenes on the streets outside indeed resembled the wake of a cyclone. Police warned that traffic congestion was hampering crews trying to reach the stricken areas, telling motorists to delay all “non-essential travel”.

Paramedics last night confirmed a woman was struck on the back by a large tree in South Bank.

A spokesman said she was conscious and alert and had been taken to the Princess Alexandra Hospital.

A Queensland Fire and Emergency Service Brisbane officer said “every” available firetruck had been sent out on the road as crews scrambled to incidents.

At least five light aircraft were “flipped or pushed on to others” at Archerfield Airport. A spokesman said several doors were blown off hangars, including one that landed 150m away.

Airport general manager Corrie Metz last night said the airport would be impacted for “several hours” while debris was cleared.

The widespread havoc was captured on social media, with users uploading images of trees snapped and cars with their windows shattered across the suburbs.

At Woolloongabba in Brisbane’s inner-south, residents emerged to discover sheets of corrugated iron tossed on the road after being torn from a home.

Meanwhile, residents at the Regis Yeronga aged care facility were left with power cut, cracked windows and drenched carpet.

The West End Uniting Church on Vulture St also had its roof blown off.

Across the river, firefighters were called out to a building on Coronation Drive after its roof collapsed. A QFES spokeswoman confirmed there were no reports of anybody trapped inside.