Trail of destruction left after suspected freak TORNADO rips through Aussie city

By ASHLEY NICKEL, NEWS REPORTER, AUSTRALIA Published: 14:38, 21 April 2026 | Updated: 14:38, 21 April 2026 A suspected tornado has caused massive damage to properties in Western Australia's largest regional city. The first major cold front of the year hit southern WA about 8pm on Monday night and triggered a storm in Bunbury, about 170km south of Perth. The weather events are rare in Australia with only between 30-80 each year compared to more than 1,200 tornadoes a year in the US. Photos from around the town showed a roof was ripped off a home, while two people were inside, and 40-tonne storage bins were toppled by the system. WA's Department of Fire and Emergency Services (DFES) received eight calls for assistance but there were no reported injuries, the ABC reported. 'Definitely a strong downburst through East Bunbury,' DFES South West Superintendent Matt Folini told the outlet. 'We're just helping out those residents to see what we can do for any temporary repairs.' The Bureau of Meteorology is investigating the nature of the storm and whether it will be classified as a tornado or a microburst.  'A microburst is a straight-line wind, and a tornado has rotating winds around it,' meteorologist Jessica Lingard said. A home had its roof ripped off (above) by a storm in Bunbury on Monday night Meteorologists are working to determine if the storm can be categorised as a tornado or microburst Winds reportedly exceeded 100km/h during the storm, which was triggered by a major cold front (above) 'These things sit on a level playing field; easily packing wind gusts of up to 100 kilometres an hour. 'Very small systems, but that doesn't mean there's such a thing as a mini-tornado, it either is, or it isn't.' The City of Bunbury Council urged its community members to band together amid the clean-up. 'Like many of you, we woke this morning to see the impact of last night's storm across parts of our city,' it said. 'We know that weather events like this can be unsettling, particularly for those in our community still carrying the effects of the tornado and storms two years ago.  'If you were impacted or are feeling anxious, please know you're not alone. 'Please check in on your neighbours, especially anyone who may be vulnerable or living alone.' Council teams assisted in clearing trees and debris from several residential areas around the city. Council workers rushed to clean up debris left by the storm on Tuesday morning Council teams assisted in clearing damaged trees from residential areas Locals reported losing power as the front swept through and hundreds remained without electricity on Tuesday morning. The worst of the damage was inflicted on East Bunbury, specifically the residential streets around the Bunbury Forum Shopping Centre. Winds reportedly exceeded 100km/h during the storm. No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.