Gold Coast Christmas Day storm: The impact that can never be forgotten

The great Christmas Day storm of 2023 will be spoken about for years. Everyone has their own story. But there is one stand-out memory that will stay ingrained, writes Keith Woods.

Where were you during the great Christmas Day storm of 2023?

In years to come, everyone will have story. It’s been one of those events.

Just 72 hours in, it’s hard to know where to start.

But there are some memories this columnist is sure will remain ingrained for a long time to come.

Discovering that my youngest, on Boxing Day evening, had set up a little bed for herself in a hallway because she was afraid to sleep near a window.

The surreal experience of meeting media colleagues traversing my street. How strange to be on the other side of that equation.

The extraordinary stoicism and resilience. Neighbours whose homes were half destroyed, insisting it wasn’t that bad, and saying they didn’t want to bother people.

The sound of chainsaws, from late on Christmas night through the 26th and 27th. The sound of people getting on with the job, clearing their streets, and so very often, helping their neighbours clear driveways and yards.

The endless mosquitoes. And the heat, dear God the heat, made all the worse by the lack of electricity to power fans and fridges.

A hot water system lying on a Helensvale street early on Boxing Day. Picture: Keith Woods.

Trees across a street in Helensvale early on Boxing Day. Picture: Keith Woods.

But most of all, this columnist believes the overriding memory from this week’s events will be one of gratitude.

Damage at my property was very minor. Bar a downed tree, a bent and twisted pergola and a buckled fence, there was little enough to see from the front.

But that did not stop an endless stream of people popping their head over the fence, asking if we were ok, offering help.

Among them the SES. It appears there has been some negative commentary about the SES on social media. It won’t have come from my street. By the end of Boxing Day they had checked on every house. Some badly affected properties had multiple visits, including a neighbour directly opposite whose driveway was lined by fallen trees.

Less than 24 hours after the storm hit, the SES had been and cleared it.

A Helensvale house which lost its roof. Picture: Keith Woods.

Kudos too to the crews of Energex. One of the greatest moments, fans and lights suddenly springing back into life just before 7am on Thursday.

After three fitful nights of sleep, never has the gentle breeze from a ceiling fan had such an impact.

And the council workers who kept the water going. There was one horrible moment on Boxing Day when the pressure dropped. But it never fully went. I later found they’d added a generator to the nearby water tower to keep things flowing. They would have had to beat a path through a huge amount of fallen trees to get there.

Dale McVeigh from the Queensland Fire and Rescue Service in the area on Thursday as firies checked on damage to homes. Picture: Keith Woods.

Lucie Simmons at her badly damaged Helensvale home. Picture: Keith Woods.

Yes, this storm was one of those events that makes me grateful for what we have.

Perhaps it was appropriate it hit at Christmas, a time when we celebrate such blessings.

The impact has been devastating for many, not least the family of the poor lady who so tragically lost her life on Helensvale’s Discovery Drive.

But there was the proverbial silver lining in those extraordinarily destructive clouds.

Where was I during the great Christmas Day storm of 2023?

Among the greatest community one could ever hope to find.

Follow @keithjwoods

Originally published as Gold Coast Christmas Day storm: The impact that can never be forgotten