Possum Valley Microburst Storm on the News

Interview with Mark on Channel 10 Perth News

 

 

 

Possum Valley Microburst Storm in the Media

By Holly Thompson, 20 February 2025, from the WA Today website.

Thousands of residents and businesses in the Perth Hills are still without power, more than 17 hours after a freak storm tore through the area on Wednesday.

The storm, which brought strong wind, hail and heavy rainfall to the area, uprooted trees and ripped roofs from homes hit the area around 6pm Wednesday and was described by those who saw it as a ‘mini tornado’ lasting several minutes. Emergency crews received over 60 calls for assistance in the hours that followed.

Residents in Parkville, Mount Helena, Mundaring, Stoneville, Sawyers Valley and Gigegannup remain the most affected areas for power outages, with an estimated restorations time across the network of 8pm Thursday at the earliest.

Western Power said 12,200 homes in total had lost power, with destructive winds damaging equipment and bringing down powerlines.

Wind gusts associated with storms in the region reached 70 to 90km/h, but it is likely that localised wind gusts were stronger, the Bureau of Meteorology reported.

“These thunderstorms were driven by a combination of high daytime temperatures, reaching the mid-to-high 30s, and lingering tropical moisture left behind by the remnants of Ex-Tropical Cyclone Zelia,” the agency said.

Amaroo Retreat, in Mount Helena, was one business impacted by the storm. Owner Kirstin Westerman told Radio 6PR the weather had changed rapidly.

“I think best described as a tornado, it just came on out of the blue, went from blue sky to black, intense wind with hail, and the devastation was catastrophic for us unfortunately and our surrounding neighbours,” she said.

“Our restaurant and kitchen, two chalets, our shed, a pool, our water tank has been flattened. We have significant damage and will be closed for a considerable amount of time I think.”

Westerman said she had run up to the restaurant from her home on the property as the storm hit to check on the guests who had been staying, entering the building right as a tree crashed down onto it.

She said it was “extremely lucky” no one was hurt.

Possum Valley Animal Sanctuary owner Mark Hayman said they had lost a number of fences, with trees falling across them, and some water tanks had been destroyed.

None of the 320 animals living at the property were harmed.

“We have quite a dedicated team of volunteers so … we had eight or so that came up just to help us do some assessment and make sure everybody was secure back in their shelters and paddocks and quickly do some repairs to some fences and clear some trees off the main road so people could get in and out,” he said.

“We were able to get some sleep last night, comfortable knowing that everybody was safe and secure.”

Bureau of Meteorology forecaster Johnathon Howe said residents were faced with significant damage.

“We did have reports of tornados and tornado-like damage across the region, so the Bureau staff will be doing a full assessment today looking at the radar as well as doing a damage assessment to determine whether or not it was a tornado,” he said.

“The highest wind gust we did see at observation stations were between 80 to 90 kilometres per hour, but it is likely that in these localised areas those wind speeds were much greater than that to cause this damage.”

Department of Fire and Emergency Services metropolitan operations assistant commissioner Danny Mosconi said it was “quite an unusual event.”

“My understanding is these types of events happen about five times a year across the southwest land division,” he said.

“We might not have had the rotation type of movement that a tornado has, but certainly unusual event.”

Microburst Storm Hits Possum Valley

 

Wednesday the 19th of February started out cool but humid, as many days had done in the past week. The forecast noted the chance of storms in the east, possibly severe, which caught our attention. Come the afternoon, only a few small storms were noted on the radar, nothing too worrying. 

Shortly before 6pm, however, we received notice from a friend that a significant storm cell was forming nearby. Only Mark made it home from work in time, having minutes to move some marquees and secure cover for Boots and Judy sheep, then the storm hit. 

 

With winds reaching over 100km, heavy rain and thunder, the storm was over as soon as it began, but what havoc it had caused! The storm was certainly worse than the one we experienced last summer, and the Sanctuary sustained significant damage. Fences were down, tanks smashed, shelters destroyed and power out, but fortunately all the animals were ok! 

A huge thanks to our voli’s who swung into action tonight at short notice to herd goats, clear fence lines, check water troughs and make sure all the animals were ok.

The media covering the story of the storm at the Sanctuary.

 

 

Dumping some of the many branches that fell during the storm.

Thank you to all the kind hearts who came to the busy bees following the storm – we appreciate everyone’s efforts to get the show back on the branch covered road!

Sundowner at Hainault Winery

 

Sundowner at Hainault Winery, Sunday 16th February 2025.

A big thank you to Lyn and Michael and their crew from Hainault for holding an incredible Summer Sundowner for the Sanctuary in late February. Over $4500 was raised for the animals! 

  

  

 

Thank you to everyone who supported the event, and a special mention of Johnno for his great music throughout the night and raising extra money through his very popular request songs which were so much fun!

 

 

 

Summer in the Valley

 

It was a mild summer in the Valley compared to previous years, which was a great relief for both the animals and gardens. 

 

The water lilies were a show throughout the hot days, and the kangaroo paws were a welcome treat for the honeyeaters visiting the Valley. 

The Sanctuary now has three bird baths and the pond, which were frequented throughout the heat by wrens, robins, fantails and even two golden whistlers! 

 

The summer rose flowers were well enjoyed by the possums, especially Merlin who likes to eat both the blossoms and leaf tips from the various garden rose bushes.