On Friday Fives and Extreme Weather
Sep. 14th, 2018 11:39 amI have, except we called them cyclones because of where we were. I grew up in North Queensland, on the coast in Townsville. Every year there would be a few cyclones come over the coast. Usually, not particularly near my town. Queensland is a big place. There would be rain, lots of rain, some local flooding and it would be windy but nothing too severe. Once or twice we had a cyclone go over the coast much, much nearer. This lead to structural damage to buildings and lots and lots of flooding. (I am here to tell you that trying to remove 50 cm of water from concreted area below your traditional Queenslander house is not fun and that, if you ever find yourself doing that, you are going to want stiff bristled broom and dustpan.)
Damaged roofs. Damaged trees. Damaged doors and windows. Landslides, bridges washed away. Wide spread flooding. Power cables down. Water contaminated. Several feet of water on the streets for days.
I once almost fell down a manhole cover that had been pushed up and out of the way by the storm surge coming up through the city drains.
Only once were we evacuated. Mum is a doctor and the whole family got moved to the cyclone bunker in the hospital. I remember watching the streetlamps bending through 40 degrees in the wind, like cast iron coconut trees.
Another year a large cyclone was expected to hit Cairns, the city to the north of Townsville. It was very low lying and the state authorities shipped in 10,000 body bags as a precaution in case it went really, really badly. It didn't, but it was sobering thought.
2. Have you ever experienced outside heat over 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 degrees Celcius)?
I have. In Adelaide, where we also lived for a while, on a many occassions. If I recall correctly we weren't sent home from school unless it reached 42 degrees C, in the shade. 38C was nothing, nothing I tell you for your average tough Aussie battler wearing a tough Aussie hat and drinking a tough Aussie coldie, to deal with. Slip, slop, slap and throw another prawn on the barbie, mate!
It was a dry heat you see. If you want disabiling heat, try 34C in Darwin in the wet. Try fast bowling in that. Try articulating a concept more complex than "Rum and Coke" in that. Thousands of Darwinians have tried and failed. Even more have never, ever tried.
3. When and where was the coldest temperature you have ever experienced?
It might well have been this March in Edinburgh during the cold spell dubbed the Beast from the East. I can't recall how cold it got but I think below minus 5C. I didn't go out in it much as it was a snow storm.
I've felt colder. Going up Mount Kosiosko was pretty cold and one day on Gullane Beach where my internal heating system seemed to fail and I got very, very cold in chilly but not actually cold conditions.
4. Is your household prepared for a possible power outage of two to seven days?
It is not, because I live in Edinburgh where we do not experience severe weather events, and our power companies are not as rapcaciously awful as they are in other parts of the world and a power outage of two to seven hours would make the national news and cause questions to be asked of the First Minister.
I will, however, be preparing my house for a power outage of 2-7 days before Brexit occurs.
5. Do you have a go bag?
Not in Edinburgh, we did in Townsville.