Cyclone Yasi at our back

Cyclone Yasi at our backs

Well the day had finally arrived for our return to Paradise at Lake Tinnaroo, we had waited five long, wet, weeks at Malanda falls caravan park over the Christmas holiday season. We had had the wettest of Christmas days ever, with cyclone Tasha (cat 1) awakening us in the early morning; rocked the van & dumping 600 mm of rain on the district. Many tree’s around the Rainforest Park were uprooted or snapped off, and our campsite quickly became a swamp, needing planks of wood for walkways to and fro the access road. But that was nothing compared to the monster Cyclone Yasi that was heading towards far north Queensland.

We woke early the morning of 1st Feb 2011 excited to be moving back to Yungaburra. The three weeks we had stayed there before Christmas was some of the most memorable. Turning on morning TV there was a cyclone alert for coastal regions Cairns to Townsville. We listened attentively as the authorities gave instructions about securing your home, storm surges and self-evacuation, but what should we do? There were no instructions for caravans, tourists or the tablelands/ Yungaburra, did we need to evacuate??

Still we were packed up and ready to leave for Yungaburra anyway, so we would evaluate the situation with our friends over there, they knew the area better than us. You can imagine our surprise as we entered the park to find most people had gone, and our friends franticly packing the last of their gear into their RV. This was serious, a huge monster of a cyclone; “Yasi” was a category 5 cyclone and would take out most of the coast and inland for 200kms. A decision had to be made fast, as caravans don’t generally do well in cyclones. So it was inland to Mt Surprise away from this monster, with a brief stop for some supplies,and to fill the water tanks, we hit the road westward.

We had friends at Mt Surprise, and surly 280kms was enough distance to out run this cyclone. Pete and Pam were most welcoming of us and the friends we brought with us. All had a great night, unwinding with a few drinks and a good jam with the guitars.

However the next morning it was on again, this monster had been upgraded and was going to hit Mt Surprise as a category 3 cyclone with wind speeds of 200kms.With limited road options, to go south we had to get close to the coast before heading inland. To go west we risked flooding rivers and creeks, which might have us stranded outback for weeks. At first we headed back towards the coast for 30 kms or so but with a headwind ever increasing in strength it was hard towing and we turned around and headed west 147kms towards to George Town.

But by the time we got to George Town, cyclone Yasi had intensified and was to hit George Town as a category 3 cyclone. The information centre didn’t know of an evacuation plan for themselves, so turned all travellers away towards Croydon, further west 150kms.

Now although we were running from a cyclone the tropical wet season brings afternoon storms and rain every day and as we drove into the setting sun two massive storm fronts loomed one either side of the road. Thankfully we made it to Croydon before they joined into one enormous storm front.


Again in Croydon we were told not to stop but head to Normanton on the gulf another 150kms, then south towards to Mt Isa, but enough was enough, it was 40 degrees and we were exhausted. We would bunker down at the Club Hotel and hide the caravan alongside the units and take our chances. We had just enough time to sort things out and have a swim in the hotel pool, when the heavens opened, and one monster of a storm began and lasted all night.

After a restless night we awoke to TV reports of devastation at Mission beach, Tully and Cardwell all coastal areas south of Cairns, Cairns itself had been spared. There was no news of damage on the tablelands so we had to assume all was well as we had no phone reception to check. The edge of the cyclone past south of Croydon heading to Mt Isa around 9am, but it was only flooding rain and 100 knot winds that we could handle, but thank goodness we had not headed to Mt Isa as advised.

Later that day when the cyclonic winds died down we located some friends at the local evacuation shelter, were the local mayor had been cooking meals for the stranded travellers housed there. Troy the local policeman advised us of road conditions and yes we were isolated in both directions. Heading back east the fast flowing Gilbert River was our major concern as the bridge over it is so narrow and low, it could easily be damaged by the flooding waters.

During the cyclone we developed a leak from the skylight over the bed so we couldn’t wait out our time in the caravan unless we could dry out and fix the leak. On mentioning this problem, to a young ringer named Pete, who then introduced us to his good mate Tom, who happened to have an empty shed we could park in, and the local shop had heavy duty tape to fix any problem. We are so grateful for the help & that this was the only damage we had.

It’s this sort of country hospitality by complete strangers that restores ones faith in humanity. The people of Croydon could not have been more accommodating, for the 100 or so refugee’s that descended upon them, making our ordeal tolerable. So to all the residents and officials of Croydon we say a very big thank you.
The Croydon caravan park re-opened a few days later so many of us gravitated to there for what was to be our last day in town. The Gilbert River went down just long enough for us to exit back to the coast five days after cyclone Yasi hit.

Hind sight is a wonderful tool, for the few that stayed at the Yungaburra caravan park,they bunkered down in the motel units, while sheltering their caravans close to the building. They enjoyed an evening of cards and games and escaped with no major damage from a category 5 cyclonic monster,but the outcome the  could have been very different.

We have learnt a lot about ourselves, and each other, as well as cyclones and their nature and hopefully will be better prepared for the next one, for to live in this great country of Australia, we have to be prepared for all manner of disasters it goes with the turf.