Cyclone Tracy

Cyclone Tracy was a tropical cyclone that devastated Darwin, Australia, from December 24 to December 25, 1974. It was recorded by The Age as being a "disaster of the first magnitude...without parallel in Australia's history." It killed 65 people and destroyed over 70 percent of Darwin's buildings, leaving over 20,000 people homeless. Most of Darwin's population was evacuated to Adelaide, Whyalla, Alice Springs and Sydney, and many never returned to Darwin. The town was subsequently rebuilt with modern materials and techniques. Cyclone Tracy was at least a Category 4 storm, although there is evidence to suggest that it had reached Category 5 when it made landfall at Darwin.

References

• Bunbury, Bill (1994). Cyclone Tracy, picking up the pieces. Fremantle, Western Australia: Freemantle Arts Centre Press. ISBN 1-86368-112-4.
• Mckay, Gary (2004). Tracy: The storm that wiped out Darwin on Christmas Day 1974. Crows Nest, Sydney: Allen & Unwin. ISBN 1-86508-558-8.
• Milliken, E. P. (April 1984). People Who Experienced Darwin Cyclone Tracy: Human Responses in Report on Proceedings of a Research Workshop on Human Behaviour in Australia. National Disaster Organisation, Australian Defence Department.
• Mr. Whitlam on the spot. (28 December 1974). The Age. p. 9, 3–5.
• Olds, Margaret (Managing editor); Chan, Gabrielle (Associate editor); et al. (1999). Australia Through Time (7th ed.), Sydney: Random House Publications. Page 441. ISBN 0-091-83815-0.
• Natural disasters — Cyclones — Aerial view of Darwin, after Cyclone Tracy (image, 29 January 1975). National Archives of Australia A6135, K29/1/75/16.
• SEMAPHORE Issue 14, December 2004; Sea Power Centre - Australia, Royal Australian Navy; Newsletter of the Sea Power Centre - Australia, (occasional series). SEMAPHORE Issue 14 deals with the Navy's response to Cyclone Tracy (25 December 1974) and the Tasman Bridge collapse (5 January 1975).