Shopping trolleys flung as Perth tornado carves path through suburbs

June 8, 2012 – AUSTRALIA – The tornado that cut a swathe through Perth’s northern suburbs on Thursday was strong enough to send shopping trolleys flying, the Bureau of Meteorology says. Spokesman Neil Bennett said the tornado that hit Dianella and Morley brought wind speeds of at least 125km/h, so anyone in the area was lucky not to have been hurt by flying debris. Estimates of wind speeds up to 180km/h were guesses and were probably too high, Mr. Bennett said. “We can’t measure the winds directly, so a structural engineer goes off to look at the damage, then gives us an assessment of the type of wind speeds that may have caused that damage, so we’re waiting on confirmation,” Mr. Bennett told AAP on Friday. Tornadoes were not particularly unusual, with a handful usually hitting the Perth metropolitan area and South West region during the cool season from May to October, he said. The State Emergency Service (SES) on Friday said the tornado caused damage to around 100 homes and buildings. The SES said eight homes sustained major damage, with five deemed uninhabitable. Mr. Bennett said a low-pressure frontal system was approaching the South West region, so it was at risk of wild weather on Monday. –9MSN

contribution by Conor B.