[ad_1]
A young mother was beaten and bruised after using her body to protect her daughter from giant hailstones during a massive storm.
Fiona Simpson was driving in southern Queensland, Australia, when the storm suddenly swept away on Thursday.
Hailstones, some big as tennis balls, broke the windows of his car and forced Mrs. Simpson to put her body on the line to protect her daughter.
The mother posted photos of the nauseating bruises on her shoulders and arms on Facebook. "I learned my lesson today, never drive in a hailstorm!" She wrote under the pictures.
"I've covered my baby with my body to prevent it from hurting itself badly. My whole back, arms and head are badly bruised. I am so relieved that my daughter and grandmother are doing well.
As soon as Mrs. Simpson stopped her car because of the heavy rain, she heard a loud bang and realized that the rear window of her car, where her young child was sitting, had been destroyed by hail. .
Mrs. Simpson and her child were taken to the hospital for checks after the dramatic incident (Fiona Simpson / Facebook)
"It was so scary, but we did not have time to be scared, everything happened so fast," she later told ABC.
"I looked down and I could see that she was screaming but I could not even hear it, it's how loud it was."
Once the worst storm passed, she managed to drive her jagged car to a nearby house so she could call an ambulance.
A mother protects a little girl with her own body during a hail storm in Queensland
"It was only when I took the ambulance that I realized that if I did not do it [my daughter] could have been seriously injured or killed, everything could have happened, "she said. "I am only a mom – you do everything you can to protect your child, no matter the circumstances, even at your own expense and I would do it again."
The huge storm that swept Queensland was overfed by sucking up several tornadoes as it hit the state of northeastern Australia.
In addition to severe hail, strong winds up to 60 km / h caused considerable damage, cutting down trees and power lines. In some areas, up to 100 mm of rain fell in less than 24 hours.
There have also been flash flood incidents; Authorities said they received more than 300 calls for help, including that of a driver trapped by a fallen tree.
Rescuers fought with chain saws to cut through the broken trees to reach those, especially the vulnerable elderly, cut off by the storm.
Queensland Emergency Services Director Brian Cox said his volunteers had been exposed to several heartbreaking scenes. "People are so unhappy about losing their roof and their damaged property … it's a very emotional time for them," he told the Mail Courier newspaper.
"We ask people to be patient because we have to navigate through the debris. [and] roads to get to some of these areas first. "
"It is timely to recall that we are entering the storm season, these events occur. We strongly recommend that people have a plan. Another important thing is to take care of the elderly or more vulnerable of your street and your neighborhood. "
A series of small rural towns was hit by a devastating tornado that ripped roofs, devastated crops in the fields and even killed 800 chickens.
Support freethinking journalism and subscribe to Independent Minds
The chicken farmer, Leanne Geri, held back her tears as she told ABC what had happened. "It's very dry and this storm is devastating," she said.
"Maybe it's been 800, it's hard to say, there are a lot of deaths there, they've been slammed, or wet and cold, and they're dead. compost. "
Furious winds lifted the farm's sheds, leaving twisted metal sheets scattered across the fields as well as broken solar panels. The damage bill would probably reach $ 300,000 (£ 161,000), Geri said.
Queensland Dairy Farmers President Brian Tessmann said the storm had also shaken his farm, lifting the roof of his house and dairy and sending his goods swirling through the air. "It's from there that it went, trying to keep the doors closed, the water running through the ceiling and the objects flying in the air," he told ABC. "It was really something."
