ADVERTISEMENTThe Australian city of Brisbane is clearing up after an overnight storm injured 12 people and caused damaged estimated at nearly 70 million euros.
Winds of up to 140km an hour swept through the province of southeast Queensland along with hailstones described as the size of golf balls.
Around 90 000 homes were left without power as blown down trees tore down cables and roofs were ripped from houses.
Authorities said the storm was the worst to strike the area for at least 30 years and that it was extremely fortunate no one was killed. They are also calling on insurance companies to act swiftly.
“It’s all gone, it’s all pretty much destroyed,” said resident James Marriott, “some of us have been lucky to have a few dry rooms but for the most part everything in the living room and bedrooms and balcony is just gone”.
Emergency services have been stretched, working throughout the night along with the state electricity company to restore power as quickly as possible.