Cyclone Wrecks NSW Village; Damage £30,000

Northern Advocate, 29 October 1948, Page 6

Cyclone Wrecks NSW Village; Damage £30,000

SYDNEY, Fri. (10.30 a.m.). —A cyclone- which hit Black Mountain, north of Armidale, wrecked or badly damaged almost every building in the village. The damage is estimated at £30,000.

Eye-witnesses saw the cyclone approaching on a half-mile front about two minutes before it struck.

Sweeping in suddenly from the west, the wind unroofed dozens of houses and other buildings, broke an aeroplane in half, dragged liners and small craft from their harbour moorings, uprooted hundreds of trees and dislocated electricity and telephone systems.

Clouds appeared to roll over and over above it, causing an eerie atmosphere.

In 10 minutes it severely damaged 23 houses, blew down a weatherboard church and tore oft' the roofs of the railway station and goods shed. Flying timber and roofing material injured several residents. The postmaster cycled eight miles through sleet and rain to get help, as fallen trees and uprooted poles had severed all telephonic connections. Wind reaching 78 miles an hour, accompanied by torrential rain and, in some places, hail, struck Sydney without warning late yesterday afternoon and did heavy damage in the city and suburbs.

The storm lasted only about five minutes, but it did thousands of pounds worth of damage. It followed the end of the heat wave which was marked by a sudden cool snap early this morning.

Power Cuts Arad Snow

LONDON. Thu. (10 a.m.)—Simultaneously with a report that, snow had fallen steadily in Monmouthshire, Britain had a 5 per cent cut in electricity supplies for two hours. Many areas had no power.