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Dumbleyung damages climb as cleanup continues

Wednesday February 10, 2010 - 13:42 EDT

Dumbleyung tavern with the collapsed verandah as a result of storm damage. - ABC

The storm ripped through Dumbleyung with this tree crashing against the school. -

Classes will not be held today after the Dumbleyung primary school lost its roof in the storm. -

Dumbleyung school with its bell on the ground after the storm raged through - ABC

Dumbleyung Primary School before the storm. - ABC

There has been widespread damage in the Great Southern town of Dumbleyung from a storm which ripped through the region.

The storm struck yesterday afternoon, lifting roofs from houses and bringing down trees and powerlines.

The Dumbleyung Primary School will be closed today after the storm ripped its roof off, one of nearly 30 buildings which were damaged, along with the local hotel which is without a verandah.

The school's Principal Kathy Pangler says it was a frightening experience.

"The whole corridor that has the Year 2, 3, 4 and the Year 5 ,6, 7 classes has lost its roof and that goes up to the admin building and as a result, the strong rain that came in afterwards has made the ceiling start to collapse and sections of that had already fallen in when I left last night."

Local Councillor Jamie Dare says the storm struck right on top of the town.

"The most damage is the school which lost probably half of its roof or one complete building lost all of its roof and flew almost a complete block through the air which was quite amazing to see that."

The councillor says the shire is used to storms.

"They come through all the time but they don't usually just come through and happen on top of the town."

"So that's different to what we see on the farm, once every ten or fifteen years you'll see where they go through and they're just a narrow belt a kilometre wide like this one was, or 2 kilometres wide and if you happen to be a town or a building underneath it then you wear the brunt of it."

A team from the Fire and Emergency Services Authority will inspect the damage this morning.

- ABC

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