Thousands of residents in Australia’s Outback could remain without electricity for up to four days after powerful thunderstorms damaged powerlines, roads and buildings across the Northern Territory. Around 9,000 properties were left without power after the sudden storms swept through Alice Springs and nearby areas.
The storms developed on Monday afternoon, bringing heavy rain, hail and wind gusts approaching 100 kilometres per hour, according to the Australian Bureau of Meteorology. Authorities have warned of further thunderstorms, raising concerns about additional damage and disruption.
Severe Thunderstorms Damage Infrastructure in Alice Springs
The Bureau of Meteorology said a low-pressure trough coincided with a warm, unstable air mass over Central Australia, triggering severe thunderstorms.
Although the weather event was brief, its impact was widespread. Trees fell across roads, powerlines and rooftops, damaging infrastructure in Alice Springs and surrounding communities.
Northern Territory Minister for Logistics and Infrastructure Bill Yan warned that the extent of the damage could leave some communities without electricity for up to four days.
Yan and Northern Territory Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro said emergency crews would be sent from Darwin to assist with the cleanup and electricity restoration, according to Xinhua news agency.
Authorities have urged residents to stay away from fallen trees, damaged structures and downed powerlines.
“The damage is significant but thank goodness there are no injuries reported,” Yan said.
“We want to keep it that way. We need people to stay safe with powerlines and trees down all over town.”
The Bureau of Meteorology also warned that similar storm cells could develop on Tuesday afternoon and evening, creating the possibility of further disruption across the region.
South Australia Also Hit by Damaging Storms
The damage in the Northern Territory followed severe thunderstorms in South Australia on Sunday, which left thousands of homes without electricity and prompted more than 100 calls for assistance to emergency services.
The storms moved across large parts of the state before reaching Adelaide on Sunday night. They brought damaging hailstones and strong winds that uprooted trees and affected local infrastructure.
The State Emergency Service reported on Monday that it had received more than 100 calls for assistance since Sunday afternoon, with most incidents involving fallen trees.
More than 7,000 electricity customers across South Australia were affected by outages on Sunday afternoon.
SA Power Networks reported 15 outages affecting 1,872 customers as of Monday afternoon. The largest outage, which affected 966 customers southeast of Adelaide, was not expected to be resolved until Monday night.
The consecutive weather events have disrupted electricity supplies and damaged infrastructure across the two states, placing emergency response teams under pressure as they work to clear debris and restore services.
Residents in affected areas have been advised to monitor official weather warnings, avoid damaged powerlines and keep away from trees that may have become unstable following the storms.
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Sridhar P