1918 Cyclone
This cyclone was widely regarded as the worst to hit a populated area of Qld. The towns of Babinda, Innisfail, Cairns, Ingham & Cardwell were destroyed. The cyclone swept inland over the Bellenden-Ker Range & the Atherton Tableland. Contemporary reports list 37 dead at Innisfail, and 40-60 aborigines killed nearby.
Below are interviews acquired from the Mulgrave Settlers’ Museum.
W.T. Johnston Interview
J.F. Howard Interview
A. Moffat Waddell Interview
1956 Cyclone Agnes
On the 6 March 1956, Cyclone Agnes, the first Australian tropical cyclone tracked on radar, passed over North Queensland and then into the interior. The event caused damaged roofs on multiple properties. Subsequent inland flooding caused four deaths. The 1956 estimated damage cost was £2.5m in Cairns area and an estimated damage cost of £1million in Townsville area.
1986 Cyclone Winifred
Category 3 cyclone Winifred crossed the coast south of Innisfail (about 90 km to the south) with wind gusts in Cairns recorded at 118 km/hr. Substantial wind damage, especially uprooted trees, was reported from Cairns, mainly from westerly winds. A storm surge of 0.5 metres was measured at Cairns; however, no coastal inundation was reported.
2006 Cycle Larry
Category 5 Cyclone Larry severely devastated the Babinda area. Fortunately, no lives were lost or severe injuries reported. Unfortunately however infrastructure and crops were heavily damaged. Damage was estimated in the many millions of dollars and the public via the Prime Minister and Premiers fund raised over $1million for victims of the event. The cyclone continued across the gulf and petered out around Croydon, but not before devastating many lives and income.
JW Edmonds Interview
Robynn Butler Interview
Beryl Ball Interview
Annie Pierce Interview
2011 Cyclone Yasi
Category five Cyclone Yasi crossed the far north Queensland coast near Mission Beach, between Cairns and Townsville, in the early hours of February 2, 2011, with wind gusts estimated at 285 kilometres per hour.
Damage was considerable. Cairns and Townsville escaped somewhat unscathed. Cardwell, Mission Beach, Tully, Innisfail and Babinda were badly damaged.
Yasi, being such a large, strong cyclone kept up a considerable intensity as it tracked north west and weakened to a tropical low near Mt Isa. This being more than 20 hours after Yasi crossed the coast. Since records commenced, only one death was recorded from this powerful cyclone. There were some amazing survival stories in the wake of Yasi.
Before and After Cyclone Larry 2006
Q150
Living with extreme weather in Babinda – Australia’s Wettest Town
The Babinda District Community Association Inc received grant funding from the Queensland Governments Q150 Grants Program. This program was designed to give Queenslanders the opportunity to celebrate and commemorate Queensland’s 150th birthday. Grants were available for activities and projects that reflect the unique culture, heritage and aspirations of our diverse communities.
Babinda is Australia’s wettest town (Bureau of Meteorology) and records an average annual rainfall in excess of 4 metres. While much of Australia battles drought, Babinda people face other challenges that involve torrential rain, mosquitoes, inhospitable wildlife and floods.
Our project was to record oral histories of the 4 significant weather events that have shaped our community. These weather events came in the form of Tropical Cyclones being 1918 (unnamed), 1956 (Agnes), 1986 (Winifred), 2006 (Larry) and 2011 (Yasi).