If there's one thing I've learned from surviving hurricane season, it's that nature is damn scary. We human beings like to think of ourselves as the masters of our domain; safe and sound inside our air-conditioned homes with electricity, Wi-Fi and working plumbing. But all it takes is for Mother Nature to work herself into a belligerent mood, and suddenly all that stuff comes crashing down around us, and we're left helpless in the face of natural forces that render us totally insignificant by comparison ... pretty terrifying huh?
One person who knows just how deadly nature can be is Australian mother Fiona Simpson, whose post about a dramatic hailstorm she was caught in has gone viral on social media. Fiona was driving with her baby daughter and grandmother through southeast Queensland on October 11) when they got caught in a supercell tornado, which hurled down hailstones which were the size of tennis balls. The smashed windows and battered the occupants of the car, leaving Fiona and her family cut and badly bruised. All three people were hospitalised after the accident, and Fiona later took to social media to share images of her wounds.
She wrote: "I’ve learnt my lesson today, NEVER drive in a hail storm! We parked on the side of the road when the storm got to heavy and the hail blew out our windows. I covered my infant with my body to stop her from getting badly injured. Please, please be careful in this storm season. I know I’ll be sore tomorrow, does anyone know of a cream or ointment that will help with the bruising? My entire back, arms and head are badly bruised."
She later added: "I’m so overwhelmed by all of your kind words, honestly didn’t realise how many people would see it, just wanted to alert people to the danger. It was the storm at Kingaroy, we were driving on the Nanango to Kingaroy high way when it happened. I’m just so relieved that my daughter and grandmother are alright. I’ll try some of your ideas. Thank you so much."
Commenters were shocked by the images, with one person stating: "Omg fi! How terrifying! But look at those mamma instincts kick in straight away! Even though you would be so sore and upset you should be so proud of yourself! [sic]" while another wrote: "So glad you're okay, but holy hell you poor thing! That must have been so terrifying, I hope you have a quick recovery!"
Commenting on the sudden bout of inclement weather, Bureau of Meteorology forecaster Jonathon Howe stated: "October is around the time for supercells in south-east Queensland. We’ll see some more supercells through today but probably more into the north and the central highlands rather than around the coast like we saw yesterday Rain is expected to get heavy later tonight and over the weekend. So residents should keep an eye out for possible flood watches."
