Railway company offered 100 tons of galvanised iron to Mackay in aftermath
NSW government offered assistance in aftermath, with vessels and officers
By 10:30 p.m. on Friday 25 January, 19 bodies had been recovered
At least 100 buildings in the centre of Mackay were damaged
20.94 inches of rain to 9:00 a.m. on Saturday 19th January
The weekend of 19-20 January was marked by strong coastal winds, reaching gale force at times
By 10:00 p.m. on 20 January, the pressure had begun to fall heavily
A special message from the BOM in Brisbane indicated that severe weather would occur
Winds reached 70 mph at Flat Top Island (according to lightkeeper) by 11 p.m. on Sunday, after which communication with the island was cut
The wind then continued to increased in intensity
Pressure of 29.371 inHg recorded at telegraph office in Mackay at 9 p.m. on Sunday
"thick rain squalls" added to disturbance
Fear that the peak in winds would coincide with high tide at 5-6 a.m. on Monday
Post office barometer recorded 27.9 inHg at 4 a.m. on Monday, which is the lowest measurement it was deigned to make (and labelled with the word 'catastrophe')
Some residences had already been totally wrecked
Some people had already died due to falling structures
Buildings which were regarded as storm-proof were damaged or destroyed
Until shortly after dawn on Monday, the wind direction had been southerly
The winds then changed to be easterly, then northerly soon afterwards - this increased the damage
Mains gas and water were cut
Sheets of galvanised iron hurled around the streets like paper
The conditions made it almost impossible to go outside
Police force and ambulance workers were aided by volunteers to go about their duties
People had to be rescued from floodwaters
Low-lying areas were flooded
'Refugees' and people who were rescued were put up in several public buildings, including:
town hall
Red Cross Rooms
Technical College
PRF Societies rooms
Post office
School of Arts
Pioneer Shire Hall
Others
Refugees were provided with socks and pyjamas from the Red Cross supplies to replace their soaked clothing, and shopkeepers loaned blankets
State schools in the western side of Mackay had their roofs torn off, and were flooded
Pressure had risen to 29.123 inHg by 1:30 p.m. on Monday, and the cyclone had weakened considerably
Winds began to die down by then (after 14.5 hours), however, strong gusts still occurred until 6 p.m. on Monday
A strong thunderstorm with heavy rain then occurred at 6 p.m over Mackay
Rain was still falling heavily on Tuesday, but otherwise, the weather was back to 'normal'
People surveyed the damage to the town, and found it almost unrecognisable
Almost no building was undamaged
Many buildings were ruined
Galvanised iron, building materials, telephone wire, branches, trees and building contents littered the streets
The banyan trees in Sydney Street and Victoria Street had been either uprooted or left bare of leaves and branches
Everything was surrounded by water
Low-lying areas in the southern and eastern parts of Mackay suffered extensive flooding and fatalities
Early on Monday morning, the high tide and peak winds combined to cause the river to overflow, inundating the neighbourhoods, including areas which were originally thought to be safe from flooding
Many families were trapped by the floodwaters and had to be rescued
Several people died (19?)
Sydney Street bridge was washed away (requiring a lot of money to rebuild)
The Tay destroyed the bridge when it was pushed ashore on the north side of the river by the strong winds and tide
The Pelican ran aground upstream of the bridge, near the Cremorne Hotel
The Brinawarr, Osprey, and Relief all sunk
Other ships ran aground, while others sunk
All buildings in the region between the Pioneer River and a creek in northern Mackay were wrecked, including the Cremorne Hotel; however, all people were accounted for
From 8:00 p.m. Sunday to 9:00 p.m. Tuesday, 24.66 inches of rain was recorded at the post office
Total for the month so far was 16.12 inches? THIS SEEMS TOO LOW, AND CONTRADICTS EARLIER TOTAL OF 20.94 INCHES ON SATURDAY
More heavy rain and thunderstorms occurred on Tuesday afternoon, causing streets to become feet deep in water, with floodwaters stretching in every direction across the city
Unprecedented flooding in Mackay
The river flooding reached the deck of the Sydney Street bridge and the pavement of the post office at 9 a.m. on Tuesday
By Tuesday afternoon, further rain caused the town to become flooded to an average depth of 1 foot
17.25 inches of rain in 24 hours to 9 am on Wednesday
More rain occurred throughout Wednesday and into the night
Pressure was 29.628 inHg at 9 am on Thursday and 29.747 inHg at 10:30 am
Sun shone at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday
A few light showers added 0.6 inches to the total by 9 am on Friday, by which time the pressure was 29.761 inHg
Total rain from start of disturbance on Sunday night to 9 am Friday was 56.2 in, giving 77.66 for the month so far
Roughly equivalent to entire 1917 rainfall
Conditions were fine on Friday, although there were heavy clouds during the night
Initial reports placed the death toll as high as 100
An entire family (last name Welsh), with the exception of the husband, drowned in the town common
A Mackay councillor of 35 years drowned (Mr Robert? Morton)
Several died near the viaduct, including well-known John Carr, brother of painter William Carr
At least two died near Fairleigh, including an African American and an employee of the Pioneer Shire Council
A Malaysian man died near Baker Creek
Two bodies washed up at East Point
A man died at the show ground
Enormous losses of cattle, horses and chickens (shortage of meat, and impossible to deliver goods by horse)
Impossible to bury the dead in the flooded ground, resulting in the police morgue being full
All churches suffered damage
The recently renovated Holy Trinity Church (Anglican) was reduced to a pile of rubble, and the roof of the rectory was severely damaged
Gregory Street's Methodist Church was reduced to rubble (had been damaged in Cyclone Eline in 1898)
Catholic church on the riverbank lost iron and tiles from roof, and the presbytery was partially damaged; however, the nearby school building was partially destroyed
Presbyterian church in Macalister Street lost sheets of iron
German evangelical church on corner of Alfred Street and Wellington Street was stripped of iron
All theatres (Star Court, Olympia, Theatre Royal) were ruined
Roof was torn off Star Theatre and St George's Society rooms in Wood Street
Masonic Hall was reduced to rubble
Balcony of School of Arts was slightly damaged
Salvation Army Hall severely damaged
High school's roof sustained damage
Court House was flooded
Clock tower lost roof
Telegraph office's instruments destroyed after becoming soaked by water which came in once the doors had been blown in
All telegraph poles were knocked down, and only three telephone lines remained in working order
All hotels except for Mr Noble's Railway Hotel and Mr Sharpley's Federal Hotel sustained severe damage or were destroyed
Shops were damaged, with significant stock losses from rainwater. Stock was washed into the street, from the Tattersall's Hotel in Sydney Street to the Post Office in River Street
Almost all residences suffered damage, with many collapsing or being lifted from foundations. Roofs were torn off, and flooding was widespread.
Senior Cadets were made to conduct salvage operations on Wednesday
The following buildings were all suffered significant damage or were destroyed:
'Gympie' Hotel, Engineer's shop, stables, Queen's Hotel, horseshoer's shop, Japanese quarters, blacksmith's shop, stationery shop, Palace Hotel, blacksmith's shop, Crown Hotel, Riverview Hotel, anvil store, buildings in Brisbane Street, corner store in River Street (mostly from 5 ft storm surge), news agency, Cosmopolitan Hotel, Star Theatre, Olympia Theatre, Olympia Theatre, cordial factory, Australian Hotel, grocer, Pioneer Hotel, Tattersall's Hotel, anvil stores, Prince of Wales Hotel, Barry's Hotel, Metropolitan Hotel, Commerical Hotel.
Many buildings suffered extensive losses to furniture, stock or interiors from flooding
District Hospital lost roof, so the patients were grouped into the isolation ward; Lister Private Hospital damaged (patients transferred to Nurse Hayes's Private Hospital); Maternity hospital in Alfred Street lost roof
Mayor held a meeting with residents, where it was decided that the girls state school would be used as a general hospital
Law enforcement buildings:
Court house, police barracks and offices had roofs torn off
Stockade reduced to rubble
All buildings at Flat Top Island except one cottage were destroyed, with instruments and navigation materials destroyed as well (no lives lost)
300-400 tons of Farleigh (maybe Fairleigh?) sugar lost when Adelaide Steamship Company store was flattened. Large amounts of maize, and hundreds of sacks of flour and salt were also destroyed in these stores, and in other companies' stores.
The Alice May and a barge of the Adelaide Steamship Company sunk at the wharf, and other property of the company was damaged
The "blacks camp" on the northern side of Mackay was destroyed, along with the nearby houses and the butter factory
Customs buildings were destroyed (>1000 pounds cost)
More than 250 people were injured during the cyclone
Racecourse mill buildings and sugar sheds were deroofed, and a large amount of sugar was destroyed by rain at the Farleight Mill, where the stacks were destroyed and the roof stripped off
Almost all Pleystowe houses were destroyed, leaving residents homeless
Homebush Mill water tower was demolished and a sugar storage shed was exposed to flooding
Most buildings destroyed at North Eton
4000 tons of sugar ruined at Cattle Creek Sugar Company mills and sheds
Only five buildings remained intact at Walkerston, many kilometres from Mackay
Churches destroyed, hotels demolished or badly damaged, factories and houses destroyed
In Sarina, many buildings suffered damage, including hotels, houses, shops
In Farleigh and Pleystowe, most cottages were destroyed
Buildings at Finch Hatton lost roofs
Several spans and concrete piers on the Sandy Creek Bridge on the Sarina Line were destroyed
Prime Minister Hugues sent a message to the Premier of Queensland on January 28
Assistance in every way possible
Immediately granted 5000 pounds for relief purposes, to be followed by more if required
Senator TW Crawford and probably Mr Bamford, MP, visited Mackay to assess damage and safeguard the interests of the sugar cane farmers (left Melbourne for Mackay on the night of 28 January)
The acting Premier of Qld, Mr Hunter, requested that all military tents, blankets and available equipment from the military in Brisbane be sent to Mackay to assist cyclone sufferers
Aramac was sent to Mackay with provisions
Arawatta supposedly especienced the full force of the cyclone
Anchored off Bowen on Tuesday morning
Left at 1:00 pm
Anchored 8 miles off Flat Top Island
Wind was extremely strong, and generated enormous seas
Flat Top Island was sighted at midday on Wednesday, but nothing except the lighthouse could be seen
The captain could see Mackay covered by water
Two cows and two horses floated past the boat with the tide
Cantara of the Adelaide Steamship Line anchored at Stone Island, where it was raining extremely heavily