On Christmas Eve, 1989, a tornadic supercell storm ripped through Redcliffe and the surrounding areas, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake.
Without modern warning technology, many residents were unaware of the tornado heading their way, leaving them only moments to prepare for the biggest storm of their lives.
Nearly 1000 homes were damaged, with 500 having their roofs torn off. Several people were left injured, with two people losing their lives.
Eyewitness Accounts of the Terror
Clontarf resident, Jennifer Mott, was expecting her first child at the time and said she knew something big was coming when she looked out her window.
“My husband and I got into the car straight away and drove to Redcliffe to save my mum, who was terrified of storms,” she said.
“There was hail and lightning, and as we were driving down Maine Road, an electricity transformer exploded, sending sparks onto our car; meanwhile, tree branches were also flying at us.
“But fortunately, the worst of the storm never reached my mum.”
Jennifer and her husband returned home to find their six-foot fence blown over, their garden badly battered, and their shed sitting atop the neighbour’s clothesline.
A personal account from a Mr Gary Kahn, reported in The Courier Mail on Boxing Day 1989, stated that he feared for his life when the storm tore off his roof.
Another resident stated they had been walking on the beach around 4.30pm when they saw the storm coming towards them at incredible speed.
“We saw these three huge waterspouts coming in from the bay, and I just grabbed my son and bolted for the flat,” they said.
“I was trying to hold the front door shut, but the wind just blew it open and blew me across the room.”
According to Mrs Mott, the storm came out of nowhere despite occurring in ‘Storm Alley’.
“We used to call it Storm Alley because storms used to come across the Maine Road area all the time,” she said.
“So, for us, we were not expecting something so big. There were no alerts or anything.”
Despite the destruction, Mrs Mott said her Christmas was not ruined; it just looked a bit different.
“Everyone got together to clean up, there was laughter, and in the end, it was memorable.”
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- Podcast Review:Christmas Past
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- The Way We Were: Christmas, Redcliffe 1960
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