Overview
- A sudden line of severe thunderstorms swept through Alice Springs on Monday afternoon, producing heavy rain, large hail and wind gusts measured at about 96 km/h that toppled trees, poles and roof sections.
- Power and Water said roughly 9,000 properties lost power during the storm and had restored about 5,000 by Tuesday morning, leaving around 4,000 customers still without electricity.
- Extra restoration crews from Tennant Creek, Darwin and Katherine have been deployed and teams are prioritising repairs to bent poles and multiple downed bays of overhead lines to restore safe supply.
- Emergency services logged dozens of calls for help and urged residents to avoid fallen trees and powerlines; authorities reported no serious injuries but noted widespread damage to buildings, vehicles and businesses including the DoubleTree by Hilton and Lasseters Casino.
- Officials and community groups warned the event underlines Central Australia’s vulnerability as storm season begins and advised residents to expect ongoing service disruption while forecasters caution that more severe thunderstorms may follow this week.