Lexington, Kentucky (09-20-00) (submitted by John; added on 8/30/2000)
On the 20th there was a slight risk of severe storms in North Central Ky, I had put our chase team on alert for the day. At around 6:30 pm NWS was saying there could be isolated tornados in a squall line that will be forming later that evening. At 8:35pm I checked the radar data from 3 different locations and got 3 different readings so I decided I would go to the highest part of Lexington to see where these storms were. Off to the west there could be seen a line of large cells forming in the distance across the horizion. After taking a few pics and some video I headed to the bluegrass airport to catch this line on its way in. 9:13pm storms are 1 county to the west in a line that crossed the state diagonally from Cincinatti Oh to Bowling green Ky. A 727 Delta Airlines jet was attepting to land when the gust front hit. He was about 30 ft off the runway when the sudden gust blew him 30 ft to the left of the runway and made his left wing dip. He had to go to full throttle to avoid slamming into the ground. Just after that I noticed what looked to me like a wall cloud to my NW. I could not tell if there was rotation but it was a definate lowering of the cloud base, during lightning flashes behind this I could see what to me looked like a funnel. Then the rain started. I ran to the stairwell on the 3rd floor roof level of the parking garage just as the winds hit. 45-60+ Mph visibility was about 5 ft the rain was blowing horizontally, you could see the spray coming off the cars near the stairwell that looked like they were driving on a highway. Then the gusts got stronger and started to make the concrete roof of the stairwell to moan and vibrate. It did this 3 times, numerous trees down all over the county power lines down. Small tree/ branch debris all over the roads. Then it all stopped with a light wind from the NE.

Lincoln/Garrard County, Kentucky (06-21-00) (submitted by John; added on 8/30/2000)
On that day I was in Lexington Ky (where I'm from) and had heard on the NWS radio that there were severe storm warnings about 80 miles to the south of me and that the storms were training. Looking outside I could see the monsterous Cumulonimbus towers to the south and decided it was time to head in that direction to see what I could get on video. I stopped to pick up a chase partner in Jessamine County on the way. Checked the radar and saw that the storms were moving NE at 40Knots. We picked a target cell that was about 150 miles to our SSW that had rotation and hail. We drove the 80 miles down Rt 27 into lincoln county where we saw the cell we were after. The horizon was really dark at this point and it was only about 8pm still very light out. We continued south on 27 for 10 more miles and the cell was off to our NE I jumped out of the car with the camera ran up a hill on the side of the road and saw this huge wall cloud about 5 miles NE of my position I taped this for a few minutes then ran back to the car and we headed back to the north about 2 miles. We took a side road to the NE after about 6 miles we caught up with the cell again. This time the cloud base was really low and black. We are now 1 mile from the cell and as we come around a curve in the road right in front of us we see the edge of the wall cloud, with a funnel hanging off it. We keep heading NE and before we know it we enter the rain shaft. Heavy rains are flooding small streams on the roadway and about dime sized hail is pelting the windsheild. We had unintentionally punched the core of this cell 2 times trying to get a good angle on it. There were small tree debris on the roads. We finally give up this chase due to the fact that the roads were not the best to be on if there was a tornado in that area. and we had lost sight of the cell in the heavy rains on the SE side of the storm. Afterwards Checking the local news we had found that there were more funnels reported from that storm and there was some trailer homes blown off their foundations about 50 ft. Estimated winds were 55+mph.

Sydney, Australia (April 1999) (submitted by Sam (Deputy Captain with the New South Wales Rural Fire Service); added on 9/23/2000)
Thank you very much to Sam, who kindly gave us permission to reproduce these short stories which he wrote for his brigade newsletters.

Monday 19 April. A number of Shoalhaven RFS Tankers and their crews gather at Fire Control in Bridge Road Nowra for the trip north to Sydney. We were supposed to travel in convoy, but once the starters pistol fired it was every man for him/herself. It was a fairly uneventful trip, although I think it would do Falls Creek 2 a favour if the brigade had the gearbox, if not reconditioned, at least seen to.

As we approached the outskirts of the Big Smoke tankers began to regain contact with other units of the Task Group, at least until the first set of lights after Tom Uglys Bridge. Then they conveniently lost contact with each other again. We were supposed to meet at SES Headquarters in Marrickville. I never knew there were so many ways to get to the same dot on a map. But as usual the RFS found them.

After a brief stop and to gather some equipment i.e. covers, rope, tape etc we were tasked with our first job. That was to find our way back along the road on which we just travelled to a park somewhere. At this stage we thought, they're having a lend of us, as we hadn't yet seen one storm damaged building. Any way back to the park. All tankers arrived and then after a short break we were tasked with our second job. And that was to find our way back along the road along which we had just travelled to the SES Headquarters at Marrickville. Well, having got that down pat, we said let us at it, being experienced travellers and all.

We were finally allocated three jobs. All situated along some form of main arterial road. So the primary exit got a workout. The first actual job was a house belonging to an elderly gentleman 91 years of age, who assured us that the roof was quite safe as he had just been up there ( sigh ).The manhole was quite small, so the smaller members of the crew got to change some tiles from the inside of the roof. The outside was actually very steep. Our second and third jobs were the same property. Slight damage with some holes having been punched through the fibreglass skylight. Easy fix.

Back at Marrickville SES we were tasked with a factory roof. 70 mtrs by 15 mtrs. So we worked out we would need 24 of the large covers to do it. Well, on arrival, what we were told was a flat roof turned out to be a sawtooth roof, made of asbestos and 100 mtrs long by 25 mtrs wide. Just a wee bit too big for a crew of five, particularly as there were two among us who had gammy knees. So that was left to someone else. We were told to return to Marrickville and await further instructions, which we did, until it was nearly dark. We were advised that the tankers would be staged at Randwick Army Barracks and were told to find our way there. Danger, Danger it was nearly dark and we were all from the country. It was decided that to avoid anyone getting lost we would proceed in convoy. Good move until the first set of lights. Then we slowly began to lose track of the remainder of the taskgroup. Panic stricken we forged on into the darkness, looking for anything resembling the well endowed rear end of a tanker. We did manage to find one and then another and another. Triumphantly we entered the Barracks, got directions from the Military Police and proceeded to get lost again. We actually tried to cram about six tankers and three group vehicles into a dead end street. Lucky it was dark. We finally found the staging area, made sure everyone was there, found out where we were staying, got on the bus with an escapee from Iraq who we affectionately nicknamed SCUD and took off again. Our bus driver friend earned his nickname by not having any apparent sense of direction and by going to damn quick. But the bus wasn't his, he spoke very little english (thank heavens) and it was almost knock off time. So there ended our first day in the Big Smoke. Let's hope tomorrow is just as much fun (not).

Tuesday 20 April. Day 2. The weather was fine as our bus, minus the SCUD, picked us up from the UniLodge at 0630. Arrival at the staging area was met with the air full of the smell of fried eggs and bacon. It truly was an inspiring sight as more RFS and SES units had arrived overnight bringing the number of units in the area to about 130. After breakfast, we waited around for a while before being tasked. It was shortly after leaving that the full extent of the disaster became apparent. Hundreds of homes and vehicles had suffered massive amounts of damage. The first job we attended was a lady who had been living in her kitchen since the night of the storm. It was the only dry, safe room in the house. She told us she had been in bed, her husband had been at work, when she heard the first hailstone impacts on the roof. She then noticed water running down the wall, and thought it might be safer at the rear of the house. It was covered with corrugated iron. As she left the bedroom, the entire ceiling fell on the bed where she had moments before been lying. As she stood looking at the devastation the ceiling in the adjoining room also fell. She brought us out one of the hailstones from her freezer, and no kidding it was the size of a cricket ball. Not from one of those little black insects. But one that Warney would be proud of. So we set about covering her damaged roof, and after about 2 hours we were pretty pleased with the outcome. After many thanks we moved on to our next job.

If you think driving an RFS tanker down a narrow winding bush track is difficult, try doing it in Sydney. After the previous day of surviving the helter skelter of traffic the very narrow lanes almost made the option of climbing out the windows seem not too far fetched. I mean, when you look out and down, your actually peering into someones living room. Lucky most of the toilets are at the back.

Well, we got to our second job and the resident thought we were there to "REPAIR" his vey badly damaged roof. After trying to explain that we only put in place emergency covers, he became rather irate. So with diplomacy wand and Learn Greek in 5 minutes book in hand our Crew Leader told our customer to ###^% and get a proper @#$%^&* tiler to do the @#$%(*&^ job. And with salutations we again sped off into the unknown.

Our next job was in an alley just wide enough to fit the tanker down. The roof we had to do was about three times as high as this alley was wide and very steep. Daryl King and Myself again drew the short straws and went aloft. I thought the roof didn't look to high, at least until we got up there. Then we realised just how far down terra firma was. As they say " its not the fall that hurts, its the sudden stop at the end". That aside we set about placing a very large cover on the gentlemans roof. I didn't realise just how hard I was gripping the roof with my knees until later that night I felt as though I had received a fairly good kick in the nether regions. Talk about tight muscles I could have cracked a coconut between my knees. Again, that job complete we were advised by radio to return to the staging area. This was about 1730.

While we were out sightseeing the decorators had called around and erected this big white marquee. Great, the circus is in town we thought. And after witnessing some of the previous nights exploits it was obvious that an oversupply of clowns existed. Perhaps they could get a job here. So we parked the truck and went to what turned out to be the feeding area. They infact had it set up very well and I must give credit to those involved. Having satisfied the hunger, we again boarded the bus, with the Erowal Bay Crewie muttering Allah, Allah, Allah just in case the SCUD was again the duty missile, er, driver. But thankfully he wasn't. It was his brother Blind Freddy Abdullah, just joking. So off we went again to the UniLodge for a few well deserved beers and a good nights sleep.

Wednesday April 21. Day 3. Picked up at 0630 from the UniLodge for the trip to the staging area. Weather was cold, wet and unfortunately quite windy. After breakfast we sat around for some time before ops got their act together. We were finally tasked to work at some damaged houses in Kingsford. The first was a two story residence that been covered previously but due to the wind the covers had come loose. The second story had a number of damaged tiles and myself and Daryll had drawn the short straws again. Our safety plan was that, if either of us fell it would be to the first story before impacting the hard stuff. Sounded safe, but still preferred not to try it out. To that end we contacted the SES to see if they could provide assistance in the form a team with all the gear i.e. safety lines, harnesses etc. We repaired what damage we could and after about 40 mins an SES crew turned up. So after explaining to them where the damaged roof areas were we bade them farewell and went to our next task.

It was then that the crew realised the full impact of the damage that the storm had wreaked upon these poor souls. Utter devastation. We had been tasked to assist the homeowners in the Maitland and Aboud St areas. It was truly heartbreaking to see these areas. Mostly aged people. As soon as we stopped they just appeared from their homes asking for help. It was a this stage that the policy of working street by street and house by house was formulated. At least by the RFS. Well, we set to work retying covers placing new ones where the old ones had torn or weren't big enough. This continued for some time until the weather closed in and we decided to have lunch. A kind gentleman offered us shelter from the elements in his carport, where, sat the remains of his car.

During lunch a police car turned up and a young constable got out and came over to us. He was looking for a house in the street we were working. At the same time a lady came over and began to explain to us that she was worried about a gentleman who had not been seen for about 3 months. She directed us to his house, which looked derelict. The roof was punched full of holes, yards were a mess etc. We sort of expected the worst and I asked Daryl if there were any forcible entry tools on the truck in case we had to enter the premises. The best we could do was a hammer and a screwdriver. Well, the young policeman approached the door and after the first knock a voice yelled out quite loudly "What do you B###ards want?". The young policeman s##t himself and jumped back about three feet. The old boy must have heard someone on his porch and took up a position right behind the front door. Daryll and myself could barely contain ourselves but decided not to cause further embarrassment to the policeman by not laughing out loud. We arranged for another crew to tarp the gentlemans roof and returned to our work.

While we were going about our business, we noticed an old man being helped down the street by a person we took be his son. Myself and Daryll went over to them to see if we could help. The old man must have about 80 years old, stooped over and really had a lot of trouble walking. With tears in his eyes he asked if we could look at the tarps on his roof as they had come off in the wind. Believe me, I had a lump in my throat the size of an apple. We said we'd be there ASAP and he took us by the hand and began to cry. Allan, our captain contacted Group 5 and explained the situation, whereupon we were tasked to give immediate assistance. He lived on Tunstall road, which was about 300 mtrs from where we were. When we arrived and looked around, the enormity of the destruction took on a whole new perspective. As we were located on top a rise we could see for some distance, and it was nothing but a continuos field of tarped rooves. Hundreds upon hundreds of them. Anyway, just as we started to replace the oldmans tarps, an urgent message came over the radio that ordered all roof and elevated work to cease as the weather conditions were beginning to deteriorate further. It was very frustrating and upsetting to have to explain to the residents and in particular the oldman and his family that we had to stop work. From then until the wind eased, all we could do was attempt to retension what tarps and ropes we could reach from ground level or about the fifth rung of the ladder. As the afternoon wore on the wind did not abate, but we kept doing what we could. About 1600 the call came in that crews were finish the job they were doing and return to the staging area. As we had promised the oldman we would help him, Daryll and myself took the ladder and walked down Tunstall Ave to his home. The remainder of the crew finished the other job and came down to help us. We covered the roof as best we could and explained to the oldman that because of the wind causing the covers to flap there were tiles continuing to be dislodged from the roof and it would be best if they stayed inside while the wind was blowing. Just as we finished a tile dislodged and began to slide down the roof. The oldman grew wings on his feet and hurriedly disappeared indoors. It's amazing how quick people can move when given the right incentive. Anyway we gathered up our gear and returned to the staging area. I hope in my heart that the oldman and his family are ok. Because the memory of his tears will be with me for a long time yet.

So day three ended with a good feed, and a much lowered level of conversation in the marquee. This probably due to the fact that for many of the crews this was their first exposure to the hardest hit areas. When we got back to our accomodation, we had a quick shower and proceeded to consumme probably one to many beers. Drink and be Merry for tomorrow is another day.

Thursday 22 April. Day 4. Well, as the day before, this one was even more miserable. The rain fairly tumbled from the heavens and the wind was even colder and stronger. We had heard reports from the night before that some more major damage had occured in the already devastated homes. Ceilings and rooves collapsing etc, so we all thought that today was going to be even more distasteful than yesterday.

Having gotten to the staging area, breakfast was eaten in near silence within the big marquee. After this, I believe most people will think that putting out a fire is a piece of cake. As it turned out the morning just got worse. State ops seemed to have bogged down overnight. Because nothing was happening, people began to get frustrated. Particularly after having seen the damage from the day before. 10 o'clock came and went then 11. It was nearly midday when the Southern Task Group was finally tasked. And our task, to doorknock the areas street by street in areas that were not even affected by the storm. Why, who knows, but it only caused the volunteers to become more frustrated. So that was day 4. I was the lucky one as I was crew leader in Culburra 1 and the only driver, because for a fair amount of the time the crew were walking the streets it fairly pi##ed down at times.

One of the other crews had gone up to a house to ask the owner if the house had suffered any damage during the storm and did they require assistance. The reply was "love I didn't even know we had a storm". As we had finished our doorknocking our allocated streets we were told to go to Bangor Park, eat our bag lunch and wait for further tasking. So just before dark after having sat by the road near Bangor Park for over two hours ( waiting for further tasking ) we were finally told to return to the staging area, which we could see from the truck. Looking at the map we were only about 1Klm north of it. So we went back, got fed, boarded the bus and went to a motel out in Ashfield. This was another thing that the vol's didn't like, was having to carry your personal baggage with you. All because you weren't sure where you would be spending the night. The tankers were full to overflowing with tarps, rope etc and the bulk of the baggage just took up so much room. Needless to say the tanker was quite cosy.

The day ended with a few more beers and people wondering what tomorrow would hold for us. So drink and be merry for tomorrow is another day.

Friday 23 April. Day 5. As usual the alarm clock sounded to early, and the bus was waiting at 0630 for the trip to the staging area. This morning the weather was atrocious. Cold, wet and windy. Again, as was the usual routine, diesembark from the bus, find the truck, unlock everything and stow the gear. Then find the nearest hot cup of tea , coffee or soup and prepare to eat breakfast. What had fast become common practise was to eat as slowly as possible, because we knew we would be sitting around the staging area for some time. Suprise, suprise, nothing had changed overnight. It was getting quite late in the morning, and with rain sweeping across the Randwick Army Barracks about every 15 or so minutes, the multitudes decided that if one needs to be entertained then start a game of cricket. Well, it wasn't long before word got to the wrong ears, and it was strongly recommended that the entertainment cease, as it did not look to good that the emergency services were playing cricket while peoples houses fell in around them. And the fact that there were still media news teams in the staging area. After that the people became even more disgruntled. Enter John Ashton.

Thanks to Johns continuous harrassment of any FCO that chose to encroach on his territory, actually I think it was the other way round, they must have gotten sick of the sight of this "Groupie" from the Southern Region and finally tasked us. On yer bike pilgrim.

Our jobs were in the Gardners Road area which has been severely affected. John had managed to get the Southern Task Group this area on our own. So as we were driving there, ( in convoy of course ), a great list of house numbers was being called out over the radio. It went something like this. "All Southern Task Group crew leaders stand by for the following transmission". Erowal Bay 2, copy. Culburra 1, copy. Falls Creek 2, copy. etc etc. Number 9, 11, 12, 17, 19, 25, and so on up to about 118. At the end of the transmission some one belted out over the radio network, BINGO. I thought damn, I only had one number to go. You could hear the laughter through the drone of the traffic. I'm sure the Sydneysiders couldn't work out why the firies were red in the face and holding their ribs while sitting in the traffic. Yokels.

We found our way to a sandbag dump located near where we were working on day 3, and loaded up with as many as we could carry. Then on to Gardners Road. Rain continued to sweep across the affected areas and no sooner had it arrived, it stopped and the sun came out for about 15 minutes, and then the rain would return. We worked on the roof of two flats. One belonged to a very nice guy called John. It was easy to tell he was from overseas as the five o'clock shadow started just below the eyebrows. He was extremely helpful carrying sandbags, rope, tarps etc. All the while saying "you guys are the best".

It was easy to see how different people, who live probably less than 2 klms apart react when confronted with something of this nature. As I had said in a previous days report, we had worked the Tunstall Rd area which seemed to be a fairly upmarket area. Not so much as the offer of a cup of tea or coffee. But here in this mans house he continually asked "can I get you lemonade?". "Can I get you something to eat?". And so it was. When we had finished and about to move on, we were sheltering under a four story apartment block having a cup of hot black coffee ( Thanks McDonalds ) when John came over with a plastic shopping bag. "Here take this" he said. At first I refused, but he insisted that we take something to show his appreciation. So without even looking in the bag it was placed carefully in the truck.

As it was getting late in the afternoon and the rain was making things more uncomfortable ( we chose not to wear the foul weather gear, as it was very slippery on the tarps/covers) we were ordered back to the staging area. On arrival, the usual routine, secure the truck, make sure all the gear is stowed, ET phone home. While tidying up we found the bag that John had given us. Inside were two large bottles of lemonade and two stubbies of VB. I guess that's the where the true nature of the human spirit shows through. It doesn't matter where your from or what language you speak or what hardship you are suffering. Here was this man whose house had been damaged severely, prepared to show his gratitude by providing us with these simple gifts. For that I thank him.

So another day ends, and we head off to the motel for a couple of beers and a warm bed. As I travel the mind can't help but think of those unfortunates who will not have a very comfortable night. But tommorow is another day, so drink and be merry.

Saturday 24 April. Day 6. At least it wasn't bloody raining. But the wind was still ahuffin' and apuffin'. Our tasking was to continue on from the previous day. Again there were delays in leaving the staging area, which, by this stage were beginning to fray the nerves just a wee bit. But as we were going home today it didn't really matter much. This time we started further down Gardners Rd. We pulled up in front of a house that appeared to have the tarps coming loose. When I knocked on the door this little Asian lady answered, and she couldn't speak a word of english. If you've ever tried to explain to someone that you are there to help, simply by using your hands, try it sometime. Ask a friend " Is there any water coming through your ceiling?". You may look like you've got a rather nasty wedgie. Anyway there was a voice from inside in broken english and she gestured that I should follow. She led me to a bedroom and therein was an older gentleman lying on the bed watching television, with a huge overcoat on, covered in blankets and what looked like 1000 videos stacked neatly to a height of about 3 to 4 feet in places. They were everywhere. I finally managed to get from him that the rear of the house had been damaged and needed covering. So I went outside, and set the crew to work covering the very holey luandry and kitchen area. Thankfully it didn't take to long.

While packing up the gear, a lady pulled up and parked directly behind the truck. She spoke briefly with Allen, who directed her in my direction. As she approached I could see she was very upset. She asked if we could help daughter who was at home with her 17 month child. They hadn't been seen to since the night of the storm. Hubby had tried to put covers up but the wind over the previous few days had torn them off. I said I'd contact our Group Officer and see if something could be done. As I was climbing into the 1 John Ashton pulled up at the next corner. I asked the lady to come and have a word with him and to explain the situation. Two minutes later we were on our way to Trevilyan Ave. Thanks John ya old softie.

Again there were tears of joy when the big red truck stopped right in front of the young mothers house. So what if the Army had to detour around us we were there to do a job. So again we set to work tensioning and adding more ropes to the covers. The whole time the lady and her daughter stood close to us with tears in their eyes. It wasn't until the main cover was secured that a smile eventually replaced the sadness in their faces. It's still funny how hard and fast men can work work when faced with a blubbering female. Let alone two of them. As we were just setting up to cover the rear of the rear of the house, out came the steaming coffee and the fresh cake. Before the crew had finished the refreshments we were told to return to Gardners Road as the task Force was being relieved at 1300. I told the " groupie that we were nearly finished ( lie ) and we would return as soon as we had finished. So I got the crew mobile again and tried to finish as much as possible. The groupie kept calling for us to return and I think the lady realised it was us they were trying to contact. She asked if there was anything I could do to get the rest of the house covered. So, having spied an Army crew working about five houses down the street, I said to the young lady "come on, I'll get someone to look after you". We walked down there, and I said to this young soldier " where's your OC ?". He replied, "I don't know sir, I'll find out sir". Well I could see I wasn't going to get much sense out of Alexander the Great, so I looked for a guy with a stripe or two. I found the corporal in charge of the detail and after explaining that the young lady needed help I at least got some form of a guarantee that she would be the next house attended to. I wonder if it happened.

Well, we returned to Gardners Road where we met the Southern Task Group tankers, had a quick bite to eat and a drink, off loaded all the paraphenalia that fire tankers don't usually carry, wished everyone a safe trip home and set off. It really strikes me as funny, but when the word "convoy" is mentioned tanker drivers seem to lose all sense of direction.

I'd like to thank all the dedicated firies from my crew in Culburra 1 and all the other crews who under took an immense task to put some sunshine back into peoples lives. You're a bloody fine bunch of guys and gals and should be proud of what you achieved. I for one will hold my hand up should the opportunity ever arise to work with you again.