December 25
At about 3:30 AM on Christmas Day 1974,
Cyclone Tracy made landfall in Darwin.
It was one of the most destructive storm cells ever recorded in Australia. Cyclone Tracy killed 66 people, injured more than 600 people and devastated about 70% of Darwin’s houses.
In the days and weeks following the disaster, most of the traumatised population left the city.
On 28 February 1975, the Whitlam government established the Darwin Reconstruction Commission, which effectively rebuilt the city within three years.
Darwin’s near complete destruction led to the introduction of improved building codes across Australia.
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