Severe storm leaves homes in Alice Springs and Hermannsburg outstations damaged

Last Monday a severe storm swept southern Northern Territory, bringing winds of up to 96 kilometres per hour that tore roofs from houses and snapped trees in Alice Springs town camps and an outstation near Hermannsburg. Residents called the event scary, with one woman in Canberra hearing from her children that it felt like a mini-cyclone. Power outages hit most outstations, and electricity was only restored after roughly two days, compounding food-security concerns.

A health worker highlighted the poor quality of many remote homes, warning that future storms could further damage the tin sheds and aging brick houses. The Northern Territory government reported four public housing properties as uninhabitable and identified 59 storm-related repair tasks across public housing, including five town camps, and is moving families to alternative accommodation while work proceeds. Cleanup will require multiple trips to the tip, a costly burden given high fuel prices.