Andrew Laming (Bowman, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Severe thunderstorms are just a way of life in South-East Queensland, but yesterday's was a monster, coming through both the Logan and the Redland city council areas with very little warning, taking out 52,000 houses' power supply and taking us back to a pre-Benjamin Franklin era. To see half the city in darkness around dusk last night was a truly chilling experience, with wind-damaged houses, gusts of over 107 kilometres per hour and basically all of the SES on deck. I really do want to thank local SES controller Clare Baker and all of her team for their work in clearing away fallen trees and power lines. In my area, 2,400 dwellings are without power, as are a thousand in Alexandra Hills and the Capalaba area. Living in a leafy part of Brisbane, as I've said, that is what we've come to expect from large storms. Thankfully, no-one was injured or worse. Redland City Council is helping with the clean-up. We're expecting more storms perhaps not today but in future days. These sorts of wind gusts are quite frightening for people living in homes in leafy and bushy areas, but we're confident that, according to Energex, the power will be on for those residents by today. In Queensland, obviously, having prawns in a fridge without any power is not a good thing. There is reimbursement and compensation for those who have been severely affected. In my office, Helen Velissaris and Stephanie Eaton are on the phones to help locals if they'd like to call my office on 3821 0155.