Cyclone and fire - Southwest WA: 1937, 1961, 1978

The southwest of Western Australia is vulnerable to bushfires during its long, dry summer, and on occasions, strong, hot winds whip up uncontrollable fires. Perhaps the worst possible conditions are when tropical cyclones move rapidly towards the southwest coast in late summer or autumn, bringing widespread gales.

In February 1937, such a cyclone lashed the lower west coast on the 9th and 10th, flattening trees, lifting roofs in Perth, and causing considerable damage in Bunbury and Busselton. A little rain fell in the Perth-Bunbury area, but none fell inland, where hot dry gales and thick duststorms were experienced.

Fires swept the timber country around Manjimup and Nornalup, and newly-settled land east of Nornalup, burning much farming country and several houses. The fires continued unchecked for days, then were fanned dramatically into action again by strong northwest winds on the 15th. A southwesterly change served only to spread the fires into new areas, though calmer weather on following days enabled the fires to be controlled, and burn themselves out.

Perhaps Western Australia’s worst bushfire disaster - the “Dwellingup fires” - occurred in January 1961. An intense cyclone tracking off the northwest coast led to five days (20 to 24 January) of gusty winds and 40 °C temperatures over the lower southwest. Fires, many started by lightning, burnt uncontrolled through this period. Strong northwest winds on the 24th then caused the fires to race southward, destroying the township of Dwellingup, and many houses in other small settlements. Fortunately there was no loss of human life.

In early April 1978, cyclone “Alby” was drifting slowly southward, but on the 4th it suddenly accelerated past the southwest of Western Australia. Severe gales - with gusts to 150km/h - developed between Kalbarri and Albany, causing widespread damage, coastal (storm surge) flooding, and converted topsoil into extensive, thick dust-clouds. Karri trees near Pemberton snapped like twigs. Five people were killed by the gales. Over 360 separate fires flared, many originating from “normal operations” in agricultural and forest areas.

The fires burnt more than 114,000 hectares of forest and farmland, and destroyed many buildings and homes. Two people died fighting the fires. Light rain and a drop in the wind in the evening possibly saved the towns of Donnybrook, Boyup Brook, Manjimup and Bridgetown. Most fires were brought under control in calmer weather the next day, but some took days to extinguish.

After “Alby”, much scientific effort was put into tackling the difficult forecast problem posed by such systems, and there is now a much better understanding of these storms.

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