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Darwin Cyclone Tracy__PDP000589 (ABC Archives)
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Program: Cyclone Tracy 50 years on — the epic survival stories of a cub reporter and a woman in the navy

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It's been half a century since Darwin was nearly completely razed by Cyclone Tracy.

On Christmas Day in 1974, the monster cyclone bore down on the city, killing at least 66 people.

Both Alan Kohler and Patricia Collins survived that night in very different circumstances.

Alan was living in a share house on stilts with other young journalists at the time, and they were all huddled in the bathroom when the house fell down.

The next day, he and his friends set about printing an emergency copy of the Northern Territory news to let locals know what had happened and what do to next.

Patricia was still a teenager and had recently enlisted in the Women's Royal Australian Naval Service.

Stationed at HMAS Coonawarra in Darwin, Patricia and the other women in the Navy were given the option to evacuate after the storm, or to stay.

Patricia chose to stay and help get Darwin back on its feet.

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Image Details

Darwin after Cyclone Tracy, 1974.

Cyclones, Navy, Journalism, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
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