Monday, March 8, 2010

Stormy Saturday

On Saturday afternoon at about 3 pm the sky went black and down came enormous hailstones (the biggest I have ever seen, easily 5 cm across and that is not a tall tale), and pouring rain.    We had 20 mm of rain in 15 minutes and there was flooding all across Melbourne.   People took to their canoes and surfboards and paddled down their streets.  People caught in the storm in their short sleeved T shirts suffered cuts and bruising. 

(A hygiene note for those who walk barefoot in flooded waters in the city streets - Don't. Often the floods are caused by backed up sewerage pipes.   Say no more.)

I love the Melbourne weather.  It is Never Boring.   Today it is sunny and the earth smells sweet as it always does after so much rain. 


This is part of our garden after the storm. Some hailstones are visible but many have melted. 

So sadly, all those leaves are what is left of our pear trees and maple leaves, they were shredded by the hailstones.  


But, you will no doubt be relieved to hear, the wooden horse, tricycle, cement mixer and garbage truck all survived.  And there are still plenty of puddles for gumboot splashing. 

13 comments:

brismod said...

Glad you didn't suffer any major damage, Jane. There was this great image in Sunday's paper of a wedding pary trying to save their marquee from blowing away in that storm. Nothing like a sudden hailstorm to keep you on your toes.

count it all joy said...

I've just been hearing on the news about the clean-up efforts in Melbourne. Glad to hear no permanent damage has been done to your lovely home and garden...especially to the cement mixer and tricycle...phew! Meredy xo.

Mise said...

Weather that is Never Boring is exactly what they'd have in the Hundred Acre Wood. I'm glad the wooden horse made it through!

Cath @ chunkychooky said...

Glad you and the toys all survived. I love all that timber in your backyard, it looks great.

Laura said...

My Californian mother once said, after visiting New York a few times, well now I understand why people back east always talk about the weather...there's always something to talk about! Sounds like Melbourne has got New York beat by a mile...glad you survived intact.

Engracia said...

I thought about you and the other Melbourne based bloggers when I was watching the news last night, I was amazed at the ferocity of the storm. I'm a weather freak, so this kind of occurance just rocks my boat. Glad to know there wasn't too much damage to you place, although I do feel for the trees.
Cheers
Engracia

Julie@beingRUBY said...

Hi Jane
Three cheers for the wooden horse!! made of sturdy stock!! Boy..I saw some of this on the news last night and was thinking of you... Glad all is well and only left with a bit of a mess... We had something similar here about 10yrs ago.. it took months for all the roof tiles in Sydney to be fixed.. blue dropsheets roofs as far as the eye could see ... Take care xx Julie

Amanda (Small Acorns) said...

It all sounded so incredible Jane - and obviously it was! Four seasons in one day - sounds like our weather in Wellington.

Jacqueline @ HOME said...

Crikey, that was one hell of a storm. Sounds like the U.K. !!.... and your poor pear trees. I expect they will pick up. I think you are coming into Autumn so they have fruited by now, haven't they Jane ?
Hope that the water didn't penetrate your home. All the best with the clear up. XXXX

karen said...

I heard about this...glad you're okay. Did you get dents from the hail? I had that happen here some years ago, and our house siding was all dented.
Take care out there.
xoxox

Kellie Collis said...

That storm was unbelievable i couldnt believe my eyes on the tv! xx

Samy said...

I know it was unbelievable!
Hope you are well Jane, am going to catchup on your previous posts :)

Devon said...

I'm so sorry to hear about your storm Jane, but dang, your backyard looks amazing!!!

Related Posts with Thumbnails