Toormina and Sawtell battered by mid-afternoon hailstorm

WHILE reports of hail damage continue from today’s Coffs Coast storms, one area targeted by the weather gods was the vicinity of Toormina Gardens.

WHILE reports of hail damage continue to pour in from today's Coffs Coast storms, one area that seemed to have been targeted by the weather gods was the vicinity of Toormina Gardens (formerly Centro) Shopping Centre.

Yes, the hailstones were reported as big as golf balls and they certainly didn't spare any cars not parked undercover or out of harm's way.

Dimples in paintwork, cracked windscreens and auto glass were the norm.

One driver - caught in the open in his wife's car and she's still to find out - is facing an extensive insurance job.

"It came down so hard it smashed the bonnet protector," he said.

"Looking around the parking bays you can see hail piled up in mounds like snow."

Two vehicles collided head-on just down the road from the shopping centre as visibility closed in.

On the other side of town, a white carpet of hail covered the surroundings of Sawtell RSL Club as if Thredbo had come to visit.