Residents in bayside Manly and nearby suburbs say they watched their street turn white in minutes as giant hailstones punched into roofs and cars, part of a ferocious storm front that tore across South East Queensland and left tens of thousands of homes in the dark.
On Monday, 24 November, the Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) reported hail measuring up to 11 centimetres at Manly and suburbs like Ferny Hills and Alexandra Hills at about 3:30 p.m., as supercell thunderstorms flared from the New South Wales border through Brisbane, the Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast and Wide Bay.
Giant hail, destructive winds and intense lightning cut power to more than 150,000 customers, with Moreton Bay, Ipswich and the Sunshine Coast among the hardest hit.
Community Left Picking Up the Pieces
By early evening, Manly locals were out with torches, tarps and brooms, checking on neighbours and sweeping hail from driveways as the last rumbles of thunder moved north over the bay. On social media, some families in Manly described watching the sky “go green” before the hail hit, while others said they had never seen stones that size in their street. The weather was so violent that Brisbane Airport briefly halted flights after a 107 kilometres per hour wind gust was recorded.
Photos shared with media outlets showed hailstones larger than cricket balls sitting in residents’ hands, with the Bureau confirming the 11-centimetre readings that put Manly among the worst-hit suburbs.
Across Brisbane’s bayside, residents reported damaged roofs, smashed skylights and dented cars as the storm cell swept in off the water. Emergency crews said they had been inundated with calls from the city’s eastern suburbs, including Manly, with the State Emergency Service logging more than 2,200 requests for help across the south-east once the system passed. Brisbane City, Logan and Moreton Bay generated the highest number of SES call-outs.
The damage came after hours of warnings that large and even “giant” hail was likely. BoM and private weather services had flagged “super-cellular” thunderstorms capable of producing hail up to 10 centimetres, as well as damaging winds and heavy rain across the south-east.
Local Resilience and What Comes Next
Despite the scale of the damage, the response in Manly and the surrounding suburbs was swift. SES crews moved from street to street to clear debris and secure damaged roofs, while community groups used social media to match volunteers with residents needing help. Some families in Manly who escaped with only minor damage offered spare rooms and hot showers to friends whose homes had been hit harder, further inland.
BoM indicated that the atmosphere over Queensland remained unstable, meaning more storms were possible in the days following Monday’s outbreak. Residents have been urged to keep an eye on official updates and follow SES advice about securing loose items, moving cars under cover, and staying indoors if new warnings are issued.
Published 25-Nov-2025
