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What came to Darwin Christmas Eve 1974?
Cyclone Tracy
Cyclone Tracy, which hit Darwin in the small hours of Christmas Day 1974, killed 71 people and devastated 80 per cent of the city. In the days and weeks following the disaster, most of the traumatised population left the city.
What was the population of Darwin in 1974?
The population decreased by about 15 000, from about 105 000 people in June 1974 to about 90 000 in June 1975. The population of Darwin went from an estimated 46 700 to 25 700 in the same period (and included Cyclone Tracy evacuees who stated they were away from Darwin for less than six months).
How were people warned about Cyclone Tracy?
The first warning that Darwin was under threat came at 12:30pm on Christmas Eve when a top-priority flash cyclone warning was issued advising people that Cyclone Tracy was expected to make landfall early Christmas morning. Despite 12 hours’ warning of the cyclone’s impending arrival, it fell largely on deaf ears.
How many times has Darwin been rebuilt?
The settlement there became the town of Palmerston in 1869, but it was renamed Darwin in 1911. The city has been almost entirely rebuilt four times, following devastation caused by the 1897 cyclone, the 1937 cyclone, Japanese air raids during World War II, and Cyclone Tracy in 1974.
How many people were killed in Darwin cyclone?
In the seven hours it took for the cyclone to pass over Darwin roughly 70 per cent of the small capital city was destroyed. Up to 71 people were killed in the chaos, 16 of them lost at sea.
What kind of houses were in Darwin in 1974?
“A lot of the old buildings in Darwin in 1974 were constructed in what we would call Queenslander style, where the main body of the house is elevated and underneath you would put the car or the rumpus room in or something like that,” says Kevin Walsh, an associate professor at the School of Earth Sciences at the University of Melbourne.
What was life like in Darwin during Cyclone Tracy?
The residents of Darwin were busy being cheerful. Radio announcements about an incoming tropical cyclone could be heard, but faded into the background, drowned out by the crinkling sounds of present wrapping and the delicious smell of Christmas food.