Wednesday 29 October 2014

Storm Season Begins With A Mini Tornado

Well storm season has kicked off with a bang with 3 very hot days (37 - 40 degrees Celsius) followed by storms in the evening.
On Saturday night there was lots of wind, thunder and lightning but very little rain.  Monday night there was lots of everything including rain which was such a blessing. But Sunday night we had a storm with lots of thunder and lightning and a burst of storm activity that I can only describe as a mini tornado.

We had all the doors and windows open and the cool breeze was cooling things down and the rain was pattering on the roof.  But then I heard the wind pick up and I could hear it roaring through the trees that line the creek nearby.  
I started rushing about shutting doors and windows and called for Hubby to come and help (he was already in bed) and within about 30 seconds it hit the house.  The wind was so strong that I could barely pull the door closed against it and as Hubby was closing  one of the windows the wind slammed it on his finger (enter a few choice four letter words at this stage).
The wind slammed against the house for about 3 minutes and then died back down again.  A little while later just as I was going to bed the rain stopped.

The next morning I was astonished to see that our garden shed has been demolished with a few panels in the neighbors place.



The roof off Jessie's kennel had been blown off (we had her inside with us because of the storm thankfully) and it takes the two of us to lift it as it weighs about 40kg.  The tree branches above her kennel had been torn off and flipped over the fence.



The tree at our neighbors gateway lost a huge branch and locked them in.


The main reason that I think it was a mini tornado and not just a wind gust is the randomness of the things that were affected and where some items ended up.
The roof on Jessie's kennel was only 6 meters from the front porch yet the cane furniture on the porch was still there the next day.
The peg bucket from the back yard was found around the corner of the house and almost in the front yard (so at 90 degrees from where it should have been) about 40 meters away.
One of the flower bushes was blown over but the tomatoes that were staked nearby were still standing.
Our shed was blown to bits but the lid on my worm farm right beside the she was still on the worm farm in the morning.
So many random occurrences.

We spent Monday morning gently removing items from what was left of the shed and having a good old throw out before dismantling the shed and taking it to the dump.  I was a good excuse for a clean out and we had it on the cards for the near future but now it has been done.  It was great to get rid of a whole lot of junk and I hope to get rid of a bit more in the weeks to come.

Hubby pulling the shed apart and loading the trailer
My next job is to deal with all the empty garden pots that were stored behind the shed.  We can't take them with us to NZ so I plan on washing them all and giving them away.

Te cleared shed slab

Today we headed out to buy a new shed but I am not sure when it will be assembled.  I know one thing for sure and than is that noting is going back into the shed without first being scrutinized.
Hopefully the heat wave is over for a bit as it is too early in the season to be getting 40 degree days, it's still supposed to be spring for heavens sake!

How's the weather been at your place? 

5 comments:

  1. Hi Fiona, we had the same sort of thing at our place on the Southern Darling Downs Monday evening. Some pallets and corrugated iron roofing that we had set up as a sheep shelter took off smashing into the bore pipe, the chook house (luckily unoccupied) and finally into the house yard fence. Yet a light shadecloth shelter I have over my lettuces stayed in place. Like your we could hear the roar of the wind as it approached, although our 'tornado' carried a lot of dust from when it crossed cultivated paddocks.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Strange isn't it Barb bit sort of in a good way so that you do not end up loosing everything.

      Delete
  2. Wow! Scary stuff Fiona and Barb!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Sunday night must have been the night for it. We had a storm as well and there was lightening all night, enough to light up the interior of the house. The thunder was rolling all night as well, Tilly was petrified and barked all night long (her first big storm). Of course, no sleep was not the worst of it. Whenever a storm hits town/city the traffic the next day is horrendous and it took 2 hrs to do a 20min trip.

    I can imagine that your tornado was quite scary. Thank goodness the tomatoes weren't in its path.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes Linda is was very loud and our poor dog Jessie was terrified and trembled all night long the poor thing. Thankfully she doesn't bark.

      Delete

I'd love to hear your thoughts...
Thanks for taking the time to comment