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Mum Reveals Her Bruised Body After Shielding Her Baby From Huge Hailstones

Mum Reveals Her Bruised Body After Shielding Her Baby From Huge Hailstones

The hail was said to be the size of tennis balls

Jake Massey

Jake Massey

A mum has been left with huge cuts and bruises after being caught up in a 'supercell tornado' which saw areas of southern Queensland, Australia, ravaged by powerful winds and heavy hailstorms.

Fiona Simpson was driving in Kingaroy with her mum and her baby when hail pelted the vehicle and broke the windows. The mum attempted to shield the baby as the huge ice rocks smashed through, but all three had to be admitted to hospital.

Facebook/Fiona Simpson

The mum subsequently shared a picture of her injuries to Facebook, with the message: "I've learnt my lesson, never drive in a hail storm.

"I covered my infant with my body to stop her from getting badly injured.

"My entire back, arms and head are badly bruised. I'm just so relieved that my daughter and grandmother are alright."

Facebook/Fiona Simpson

The tornado first struck Tansey, a small town around 250km to the north of Brisbane, at 3pm yesterday. The storm has had a devastating effect for farmers and it has been reported that an entire season's worth of barley, wheat and melon crops have been destroyed.

According to the Mail Online, South Burnett mayor Keith Campbell said: "The hail was simply intense when it fell. It was very very prolific. It simply shredded the ears of wheat and barley that was out there to be harvested."

There are also reports that lightning has killed some cattle.

Speaking to the TODAY programme, dairy farmer, Gary Tessmann, said: "I'm still in shock, I'm just walking around here at the moment thinking what do I do next - where do I start?"

As well as ravaging crops, the gusts have downed trees and torn roofs off buildings.

Instagram/muffinzbjds

Tansey resident, Greg Hellmuth, told Nine News the sound of the tornado was 'unbelievable'.

He said: "We ran inside and everything was going sideways, all the trees were going sideways, this roof went up (in the air) and down. We went under the mattress and that's where we stayed."

The Queensland Fire and Emergency Service is calling for those affecting to remain calm and patient, as the service has received more than 320 calls for help and must prioritise its responses.

The storms are expected to continue in southeast Queensland, with the Bureau of Meteorology anticipating a further 50mm of rain on Friday and further downpours and powerful southeasterly winds to persist until at least Monday.

Featured Image Credit: Facebook/Channel 9

Topics: World News, tornado, Storm, injury, Australia