Reports of lightening strikes, tornado-like winds and rain damage came in from random pockets across the shire.

One of the most seriously affected areas was a property on Chapman Hill Road. With help from family members and neighbours, Busselton farmers Rob and Caroline King have spent the last five days cleaning up after last Thursday’s storm. Fierce winds, hail and blanket rain ripped through their property at around 10pm, causing significant damage.

Although the storm lasted less than 10 minutes, it left a trail of destruction which stunned local farmers. “We lost 20-30 big trees which were uprooted by the strong winds,” said Caroline. “The stables were wrecked and one shed has been completely demolished. It was like a tornado that took a very narrow path destroying everything in its way – luckily the house wasn’t affected.”

According to Caroline a number of farmers experienced crop damage but few reports of damaged farm property had been received. “Our insurance assessor said that ours was the worst case he had seen,” she said.

In Sydland Cove, West Busselton, residents lost power and street lights were blacked out during the storm. One resident, Elaine Treen, said that lighting struck her television antenna, blew up the reticulation and disconnected the phone lines. “The lightning struck the house with a huge crack, it frightened the heck out of me,” she said.

Saracen Estate, in Wilyabrup, also copped a lashing and as of yesterday was still without telephone connection. A large gum tree was hit by lightning and literally split in half.

While the force of the storm was violent and caught many locals by surprise, according to Joe Courtney from the Bureau of Meteorology, storms of this nature are not uncommon at this time of year. “This was the first of the summer storms,” he said.

Caused by a combination of warm temperatures, high humidity and unstable air, Mr Courtney advised that Busselton and Dunsborough could expect anywhere up to 10 of these summer storms each year.

“Lightning is characteristic of these summer storms and because Busselton and Dunsborough are located next to the ocean, strikes occurring far out across the water are more visible,” he said.

While he wasn’t predicting any more summer storms in the near future, Mr Courtney did advise that more rain would be on the way.