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A Queensland mother is beaten and bruised after using her body to protect her baby from a fierce hail storm that has wreaked havoc in the south of the state. "Data-reactid =" 15 ">
A Queensland mother is beaten and bruised after using her body to protect her baby from a fierce hail storm that has wreaked havoc in the south of the state.
Fiona Simpson's back, shoulders and arms are a jumble of wounds and bruises after she was forced to throw herself on the head of her four-month-old daughter when Thursday's storm broke the windows of her car.
She had stopped on the edge of a highway after leaving Nanango when her car was completely shaken by a super-cell storm – one of three that hit the state with two tornadoes.
When a rear window was broken, she jumped into the back seat and put her body between her baby and the big hailstones falling on them.
"I could see that she was screaming but I could not even hear her, that's how strong it was," she told ABC. .
The mother threw herself on the baby when Thursday's storm broke the windows of her car. Source: Facebook
Shortly after, a window opened and the mother desperately tried to protect her elderly grandmother as well. The trio finally drove up to a nearby house and called the ambulance.
"She could have been seriously injured or killed, anything could have happened," said the 23-year-old girl about her daughter.
"It was not until I arrived at the hospital and undressed that I realized how much my back, shoulders and neck were affected … I just can not believe that the Hail could have done that. "
Mrs. Simpson's daughter had bumps in her head and her grandmother spent the night in the hospital after hail stones "shredded" her skin.
The mother jumped into the back seat and put her body between her baby and the hail stones when a back window broke. Source: @ MacLyon7 / Twitter
Talks are underway to determine whether the hard-hit South Burnett region should be declared a disaster area, with entire harvests lost at harvest time and roofs for houses.
In Blackwater, central Queensland, winds reached 144 km / h, the wind speed associated with a Category 2 cyclone.
Queensland Dairy Farmers President Brian Tessmann said the fury of the storm at his Coolabunia farm was unparalleled as the winds ripped through the roofs of his home and dairy products.
"The roof collapsed and that's when everything was done, trying to keep the doors closed, water running through the ceiling and objects flying in the air. It was really something, "he told ABC.
State opposition leader Deb Frecklinton said many farmers in his Nanango electorate had suffered huge losses, after suffering such devastating storms on Christmas Day. ;last year.
"People will lose their jobs today because there are no more fruits to harvest … Many houses will be unlivable."
Teresa Francis estimates that her orchard in Kumbia represents a loss of $ 2 million. Hailstones in some places were as big as tennis balls.
SES teams are repairing roofs in the area, while city councilors are clearing roads and technicians recovering electricity.
About 1,000 claims for storm damage insurance have already been filed.
