EAST COAST OF AUSTRALIA LASHED BY RAGING GALE

Wanganui Chronicle, 6 November 1950, Page 4

EAST COAST OF AUSTRALIA LASHED BY RAGING GALE

SYDNEY, Nov. 5 (Rec. 7 pm).— Gales up to 80 miles an hour swept the east coast of Australia yesterday and last night causing much damage and at least one death. Houses were unroofed, verandahs and walls blown down, trees uprooted and many small craft sunk or driven ashore. In Sydney a huge slab of concrete crashed into Martin Place, narrowly missing passers-by. In the Sydney suburb of Pymble, two giant gums were blown across a luxury two-storey house, smashing the upper storey and doing nearly £lOOO worth of damage. At Kempsey the masts of radio 2KM, which survived two major floods, collapsed in the gale, causing a complete radio black-out over the central north coast of New South Wales. At Casino, the water pumping station was put out of action when trees fell across the power lines. At Newcastle a woman was taken to hospital after the wind had knocked her down, and rolled her along the road. When a party of Girl Guides was picnicking at Cleveland, near Brisbane, the limb of a tree under which they were lunching crashed to the ground, killing one and injuring three. The dead girl was Ann Gibson, aged 14, of Ascot, Brisbane. Storm damage in Brisbane is estimated at £lOO,OOO.