Cyclone Tracy: a 4K restoration for its 50th anniversary

From the Film Australia Collection of the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia (NFSA). Made by Film Australia in 1975 and directed by Chris Noonan (Babe), this short film documents the aftermath of Cyclone Tracy, which devastated Darwin in the early hours of Christmas Day, 1974.
The cyclone flattened 80% of the city, forced the evacuation of three-quarters of its population, and claimed 66 lives. Within hours, Film Australia crews were on the ground capturing the destruction and the resilience of Darwin’s people.
Now restored to 4K for the 50th anniversary, this powerful and immediate record of one of Australia’s most significant natural disasters preserves the story of a community rebuilding in the face of unimaginable loss.

[@Whatever_Happy_People]

The cooperation of these residents just astounds me now! They were tough and brave, thankyou.From Darwin ❤

[@MarkHenstridge]

I remember Cyclone Tracy, it was Chrismas 1974, my step sister Marilyn lived up there and she was working at the Darwin Hospital when Tracy struck. Two weeks after Cyclone Tracy Marilyn and her husband decided like alot of others to move away from Darwin. Unfortunantly she did not make it back to Adelaide, the car they was driving collided with a Road Train, the car went off the road and rolled several times, she did not survive... R I P

[@Al-kb2xl]

That is so tragic she survived the cyclone just to be killed anyway. I’m sorry 😢

[@grantwalker4859]

I remember a young girl who was evacuated from Darwin coming to our school in Thornlie (just outside Perth) just after Tracy and apart from the clothes she had on her, she had a Teddy bear that was in an awful state. Turns out that was the only thing she had left after the cyclone. Didn’t mean much to me as a kid at the time, apart from the fact that it was something different. Nowadays, it’s seared into my memory and is one of my saddest memories.

[@meredithpope333]

That siren will always give me cold shivers up my spine and looking out and finding no trees. Seeing these pictures brings back the trauma of not knowing whether we would survive.

[@prudencepineapple9448]

It was our Christmas tradition to spend it at our grandparent's holiday home at Avoca Beach near Gosford. I remember all the adults listening to the radio as this was breaking/unfolding event on the ABC. As the holiday home was built @ 1900 and kept in our family since then, it had no bathroom and more importantly to us kids, no TV at the house. It didn't have one. We had Avoca beach and the sea baths at the inlet to swim in. I looked forward to it each year, but not that year. I still have the daily newspaper coverage, as my mum was a hoarder of history.

[@JohnWilliams-iw6oq]

I've only ever seen a few natural disasters, no matter how good the cameraman you can never get the same feelings you get when you see the true scale of destruction in person. Trees shattered into match sticks for mile after mile or nothing but ashes for mile after mile. It lets us know just how impotent we truly are.

[@mindimoom9142]

This is one of the first news stories I remember watching on TV as a child. Also the Queensland floods that year.

[@robdyer33]

Remembering all the lives lost in this devastating event.

[@BarkingSpyda]

As a kid, I remember the song, _'Santa never made it in to Darwin'._ It actually gives me _spine tingles_ hearing it now.

[@lachlanjenkin1659]

@@BarkingSpyda especially after the storm came back last year and devastated Queensland

[@carlwhiston8672]

“A big wind came and blew the town away”🎼

[@bradwilliams1691]

That was sung by Bill & Boyd I believe.

[@avidutubewatcher]

Throughout 1974 my mother as an Artist was commissioned by Major General Alan Stretton, at the time who ran the the evacuation and cleanup efforts at Darwin after Cyclone Tracy on Christmas Day 1974. He was head of the National Disasters Organisation and managed the evacuation of tens of thousands people in a week, including military aircraft, every airline in Australia assisted. Television telethons were run raising millions to assist people from Darwin, every government department at the Federal and State level assisted in the recovery and reconstruction of Darwin. What was the National Capital Development Commission (the organisation that designed and built Canberra), was put in charge of designing and red building Darwin. Later, in 1975, after a very busy year for Major General Stretton, he came back to our home and did a last sitting for his self portrait 🇦🇺🌲

[@evad7933]

Wow. Major general. He must have been a brilliant man :):):)

[@BRUMMS]

4:16 is a great example of Darwin humor having lived there.

[@lachlanjenkin1659]

Now it’s been 50 years since this tragedy happened and it’s happened again last year in Queensland rip to all those lives lost on Christmas Day 1974-2024 50 years later

[@jesusislukeskywalker4294]

66 people lost their lives 😳 ..... we shall remember them 🙏

[@danrobinson572]

Great 👍 video

[@amandaraven737]

I was only 9 months old when that happened

[@steveskrobot9496]

Bloody horrifying Christmas day for those poor people

[@martincreely6306]

Yeah, had a mate stationed in the RAAF up there at the time..Spent the night in his bath with a mattress over his head and a bottle of Jack for company..Fing nightmares for years afterwards..

[@H3avyHaul3r]

possibly the first known footage of the aftermath of a cat5 in australia…..

[@johnphillips519]

I remember my sister flew into Darwin Xmas eve with her two little kids, We put them back on the first RAAF Hercules' C130 available, She is still pissed off to this day that she never got to see Darwin : (

[@hoilst265]

My mum went through this. I'll show her tonight.

[@sarah-janegalipo3995]

This was the year I was born. I live in Perth. Growing up we were told year after year. What a disaster. 😢

[@Rose-MarieFoxon]

Poor tiny dogs and people’s pets.

[@edwardcatton1047]

my Dad!, sailed in, the Day Before?, on board the HMAS ARROW!, he never fn came home?, Damn YOU TRACY!!!, you fn destroyed MY LIFE!, R.I.P ROYAL AUSTRALIAN NAVY PETTY OFFICER LES CATTON!, ABLE SEAMAN IAN RENNIE!, ( Both Buried SIDE BY SIDE! ) & TO ALL LIVES LOST!, that 25/12/ 1974!, was only 2 years old?, PEACE!!!, Thankyou.

[@Al-kb2xl]

Darwin cinema Gone with the wind starring cyclone Tracy 😂 They still had a sense of humour during the worst time of the lives ❤

[@michaelhatherly6508]

Great History - Shared/Scheduled

[@poeterritory]

Santa never made it into Darwin.

[@evad7933]

Bill and Boyd. Great opportunism.:)

[@Cannotfindit]

That warning……

[@territorygal]

Gotta say, the dramatic background music over real footage of such devastation and loss just comes off as super inappropriate in hindsight. :/ I know it was a standard part of filmmaking at the time. I lived many years in the Top End; Tracy was before my time, but I've known many survivors, and the trauma of that night continues to this day. If there's a bright side, it's that we learned a lot of lessons with regards to construction and safety... the city today looks far different from the one in the film, and IMHO much better prepared for the next inevitable "big one".

[@LeftIsBest001]

They learned a harsh lesson about the importance of proper building codes and good safe construction.

[@chaunceyrabbit8359]

Narrator sounds exactly like Damien Parer

[@ceeemm1901]

And stock up on triplegrips....

[@stephanierobson1051]

50 years since cyclone tracy Darwin has changed alot Prime minister Anthony Albonse revealed a Moraial and bill and boyd are still trying to witghting another song 🎵 Darwin is a great town Strck down by Tracy Darwin has changed alot Prime minister Anthony Albonse was so nice so Santa 🎅 made it to Darwin and gave Darwin what Thay deserved Steph 😀

[@gjmob]

Suttons Motors Holden dealership.