A severe storm cell cut power to about 9,000 properties in and around Alice Springs on Monday afternoon, after wind gusts of 96km/h pulled trees down onto roads, powerlines and roofs across Central Australia. Hail and heavy rain hit the town from 3:30pm, and NT Emergency Services had taken 47 calls for assistance by Monday evening.
ABC News reported the gust was recorded locally at 3:44pm, and that the Alice Springs Hilton DoubleTree was among the buildings badly hit, with part of its roof giving way and ceiling damage inside. Cars parked outside the Alice Springs hospital were also damaged.
The Bureau of Meteorology put the system down to a clash of air masses over the southern Territory.
“A surface trough coincides with a warm and unstable air mass in southern parts of the Territory, which has resulted in the development of severe thunderstorms,” the weather bureau said.
9,000 properties in the dark, town and bush
Power and Water Corporation said in a statement on Monday afternoon that “approximately 9,000 properties” had lost power “due to damage caused by a sudden storm cell”. That’s the number worth hanging onto: roughly 9,000 customers off supply in a single afternoon on 12 October 2026, according to the territory-owned utility.
“Our crews are assessing the damage and will work to restore services as quickly as is safely possible,” the statement said.
It wasn’t just the town. The utility listed Arumbera, Burt Plain, Ilparpa, Simpson, Hermannsburg, Hugh, Namatjira and Wallace Rockhole among the affected communities, which puts fault-finding and line repairs across a spread of Central Australia rather than a few suburban streets.
Power and Water also issued the standard warning that matters most in the first 24 hours after a storm: “We remind people to please stay away from fallen trees and powerlines, and always assume powerlines are live.” Residents can check outages through Power and Water’s online tracker.
”Not out of the woods yet”
The BOM’s Robert Urbaniak said Centralians were “not out of the woods yet”, with another similar cell forecast for Tuesday afternoon and evening.
“There’s still the chance of severe thunderstorms again bringing damaging wind gusts, large hail and the chance of heavy rainfall,” he said.
“Unfortunately another day of it, but after that should settle down somewhat.”
Adam White from NT Emergency Services said the damage reports were still coming in and urged people to watch SecureNT for updates.
“I’ve got some reports of multiple trees down, some damage from the hail and the winds,” he said.
“I’ve just seen a couple of reports of some areas that may have experienced up to 100km/h winds, so a very, very short-lived but intense storm that came through there.”
It was the second storm to hit Alice Springs in less than a week. Two cells were moving east over parts of Central Australia and the Barkly region on Monday evening, according to the bureau.
What a storm like this means on the tools
The work queue after a wind event like this one follows a fixed order, and tradies in town already know it. Network crews come first, clearing conductors off trees and roofs and getting the lines back up. Nobody else goes near that, and anything on the ground stays treated as live until the utility says otherwise.
Behind them come the private jobs. Where a tree has taken out a consumer’s mains or torn the point of attachment off a fascia, the property side of that connection has to be made good before supply goes back on, and that’s licensed electrical work in the Northern Territory the same as everywhere else in Australia. There’s no version of that job a homeowner can legally take on themselves.
Ceiling damage is the other one that drags a sparkie in. Water through a ceiling cavity gets into downlight fittings, junction boxes and insulation, and a soaked circuit needs testing before it’s energised again, not just a dry-out and a fingers-crossed. Same story for the roofers and carpenters: make-safe tarping, then the proper repair once the weather window opens, which in this case may not be until Wednesday given what the bureau has forecast for Tuesday. Anyone needing that fixed fast can find a local electrician rather than guessing who’s free this week.
The spread of affected communities is the complication. Hermannsburg, Wallace Rockhole and Namatjira aren’t a 10-minute drive from the depot, so repair work out there carries travel and a day’s work per callout rather than three jobs before lunch.
For anyone putting a quote together this week, the forecast is the thing to watch. Urbaniak has flagged Tuesday afternoon and evening as the next risk window, which means any temporary roof covering going on Monday night needs to hold through another round of damaging gusts and hail. Keep an eye on SecureNT and the bureau’s warnings before anyone goes back up a ladder.
Frequently asked questions
How many properties lost power in the Alice Springs storm?
About 9,000 properties in and around Alice Springs lost power, according to a statement from Power and Water Corporation.
Is there another storm forecast for Alice Springs?
Yes. The Bureau of Meteorology’s Robert Urbaniak said another similar cell was forecast for Tuesday afternoon and evening, bringing the chance of damaging wind gusts, large hail and heavy rainfall.
Can I fix storm damage to my home’s wiring myself?
No. Repairing a damaged consumer’s mains or point of attachment is licensed electrical work in the Northern Territory, the same as everywhere else in Australia, and there’s no version of that job a homeowner can legally do themselves.
Is it safe to go near fallen powerlines after the storm?
No. Power and Water Corporation says to stay away from fallen trees and powerlines and always assume powerlines are live.
Sourced from ABC News, Bureau of Meteorology, Power and Water Corporation, NT Emergency Services. Original article.
