Women and children being evacuated from Darwin after Cyclone Tracy.

Survivor stories

There are so many stories still to be told, and so many yet to be heard. From simple acts of kindness to outstanding bravery, read some of our survivor stories here

Disclaimer: The stories shared on this website are the personal recollections of the individuals who have provided them. While we strive to present these stories accurately, the views and experiences shared do not necessarily reflect those of the website administrators. We are not responsible for the accuracy of the content or any consequences that may arise from its publication.

Dave Carr – Tracy, Recalled 50 Years On

In the lead-up to Cyclone Tracy's 50th anniversary, Dave Carr recounts his unforgettable experience as one of the young Kiwis ...

Sue Molina-Wilson – 13 years old survivor

13 years old survivor The night of Christmas Eve where we spent opening Christmas presents as a family’s traditional Christmas ...

Sue McIntyre – How we did everything wrong but came out alive

This is an original recording of Sue McIntyre's (formerly Sneath) recollection about a week after the cyclone. It's very lucid ...

My Cyclone Tracy Recollections – Barbara Benporath (now Wright)

Our-Cyclone-Tracy-Journey-the-Benporath-familyDownload ...

Twelve and Terrified: A Christmas Story by Brad Rowlands

Cyclone Tracy had a sound; it was the most terrorizing sound I have ever heard. The sound of literally millions ...

Iljas Adam Jamieson, Canberra Australia

 When tropical Cyclone Tracy devastated Darwin I’d been living there 18 months in a typical wooden house on high stumps, ...

Tracy – Danny Thomas (RIP)

From Danny's sister Georgia: "Danny was always passionate about Cyclone Tracy and that it be remembered as a significant event ...
If this wheelhouse goes, we're dead! - John Howard

If this wheelhouse goes, we’re dead! – John Howard

Darwin Harbour 24th December 1974 "If this wheelhouse goes, we're Dead Forward: This is the story of two young people's ...

Floating Off The Stairs: Antony Bullock

Cyclone Tracy – 25th December 1974 My name is Antony Bullock, and this is my story. Christmas Eve 1974 marked ...

Cyclone Tracy and Us, Christmas Day, 1974 – Ian and Dale Bachelor

(As recalled, Fifty Year’s on - Christmas Eve, 2024) At some point in almost everyone’s life, there will come a ...

Sheltering the Unborn, Surviving the Unseen – Julie Brimson

Cyclone Tracy, 24 December 1974 Julie Brimson It was sometime in early June 1974 when I found out I was ...

The Night From Hell – Michelle Walker Roberts, Deb Walker Hendry, Jannine Walker Hardy

Our Cyclone Tracy Memories (The Night from Hell) Michelle Walker Roberts (aged 21), Deb Walker Hendry (aged 14), and Jannine ...

Wet Floors and Wob’s Return – Joan Andropov

Cyclone Tracy – Darwin, 24th & 25th December 1974 In 2014, on the 40th anniversary of Cyclone Tracy, I retyped ...

Surviving Tracy: An 8-Year-Old’s Tale – Jack Nicaj (Gjoka Nicovic)

Cyclone Tracy Hi, my name was Gjoka Nicovic then, now Nicaj. I was 8 years old and remember most of ...

From the Eye of a Darwin Duty Meteorologist – Lloyd Stümer

Cyclone-Tracy-Viewed-from-the-Eye_Lloyd-Stumer-meteorologist_optDownload ...

Survival and Betrayal – Kaye Tukukino

I'm like most survivors; Tracy doesn't go away. In the unforgiving grip of Cyclone Tracy on Christmas morning in 1974, ...

Two years at Larrakeyah Barracks – Dennis Ryan

I spent two years at Larrakeyah Barracks, arriving about a month after Cyclone Tracy with thousands of other troops. After ...

Pregnant in the eye of Tracy – Shirley Lane

December 24, 1974. Living in Jingili near Rapid Creek. I was on maternity leave from the Attorney-General's Department, approximately eight ...

50th Anniversary Recollections – Hugh and Rosemarie Lake

My wife Rosemarie and I lived in Darwin at the time of Cyclone Tracy. We arrived in early August 1974 ...

The Stuart Highway 1975 – Hugh Lake

We all looked into our mirrors as we left Tracy behind we’d done nothing to upset her but she had ...

Were you here?

If you have a story to share regarding Cyclone Tracy, feel free to submit your story here.