" Hi Kerry, because of the early warning alert I went straight onto the Bureau of Meteorology and checked out our area…..could see it coming and new it was going to be bad (Shepparton was in the direct path) and our town a little off the direct path. This enabled us to sandbag all the doors to our hotel and our damage because of this was fairly minimal. Would have been completely flooded out like a few businesses in our town if we were not warned in time. Thanks for the service. Anne & Nick Criterion Hotel in Tatura. Vic. "

" Our next door neighbours, who don't have a garage, have had their car written off by their insurance company due to hail damage. Because of your early warning system we drove our car in off the street and parked it in the garage. It was completely undamaged during the storm. We have also found the warnings valuable for less important things like picking up kids from school instead of letting them walk home and bringing in washing - small stuff in the scheme of things but useful in daily life. Many thanks, Evelyn & Howard "

" My early warning sms for the pending storms on 6th March 2010 in Melbourne arrived on my phone a number of hours prior, whilst i was out and about. With this information, i looked in to the details of the warning and saw it was going to be a big one although i never imagined it to be anywhere near as big as it was. I went home and prepared my property, moving cars undercover, pulling down external blinds, bringing in the more fragile things and making sure my dogs were properly secured and their shelter was ready. I left the house to continue on with my day including visiting some relatives on the other side of town. I was on the road near the city when the storm first rolled in. I never saw any hail. Watching the news websites intently, i hear reports coming back that Ferntree gully (where i live) and Rowville have been hit by tennis ball sized hail with a lot of damage being caused. I was dreading heading back home. I knew i prepared, but surely with this degree of hail i would have some damage somewhere. I had spoken to some neighbours before i left for home and they confirmed the tennis ball sized hail had hit our court. As i drove up my court in the dark i was looking around at the parked cars, window after window smashed, panels made to resemble the surface of a golf ball. I got home. First, check the cars, no visible damage (in the dark), then up on to the roof to check my solar panels which i had covered in a blanket, no damage. My roof is a flat metal roof so i didn't expect any damage here. I checked the Plastic roof section, got lucky here, no damage, shed, no damage, house windows, no damage. After this initial survey and another look in daylight the following day, i found only 2 very minor dents on one vehicle which are not the sort worth fixing (i have been quoted $200) If i had not prepared, i would have ended up like many of my neighbours with tens of thousands of dollars damage and the inconvenience of living with waiting for repairs and dealing with insurance claims. I would not have known to prepare without the SMS from "The early warning network" A car yard nearby had nearly their entire stock damaged and the rumour is that they only had partial insurance. Had they had an early warning, they could have fitted the majority of their stock in to the mechanical workshop avoiding much of the damage they have. Thankyou EWN. Keep up the good work. Matt - Ferntree Gully "

" Your EWN helped me because I got to my work site just before the rains and hail could come down. In fact I made sure my car was covered up too. All in good time. Lorraine "

" I greatly appreciate the early warning system and so do the staff where I work. The recent rain storm that flooded Elizabeth Street in Melbourne occurred around going home time (this seems to be the trend in Melbourne) was a good case in point. I asked my staff to put the warning on the intranet and they forgot to so many staff were caught out when they went home - myself included. I was drenched. A previous episode was maybe three years ago when thousands of homes and traffic lights were without power in Melbourne due to a substantial storm. That was also around going home time. It allowed some staff to leave early and miss most of the traffic chaos. The Melbourne hail storm was on a Saturday but I received the message just after I had removed most of the weatherboards of the western side of my house (the most exposed side). I was able to get cover up in time to prevent serious damage to the house and to my friend and me from golf-ball sized hail (no exaggeration - this is the first time I have seen such a thing). The Cancer Council buildings sustained minor damage but nothing that could we could not handle. The service is great, accurate and useful. Thank you so much. Garth Stewart, Corporate Services Manager, Cancer Council Victoria "

" I was one of the extremely fortunate folk who receive free extreme weather warnings from the EWN, thus giving me precious time to move my brand-new car into the garage before the recent hail storm in Victoria. Considering the carnage wreaked upon our neighbourhood, and the extensive hail damage my other vehicles sustained, I cannot praise this service enough! Kind regards, Lucas, Sassafras "

" I live in the western suburbs of Melbourne. I can only say how grateful I've been to have your email/text message service available to me. A property has been under construction next door to me now for over 7 months. I have had endless problems with flooding of my property from lack of stormwater connection and blockages in their stormwater connection. Had I not had your text message on Saturday 6 March, I would have been away from my home and unable to take some action to protect my property. I also forwarded your message on to my son who was about to travel from West Footscray into the CBD for Moomba. He told me later that had it not been for the message, he and his girlfriend would have been "in the thick of it" in the Melbourne CBD. Thanks again for what is a wonderful service. Lois "

" Thankyou for the great work you do. We got your report of the hailstorm coming and tried to act on it! We didn't quite make it home and got some hail damage to the car. But we did make it home in time to stop our house flooding from the huge amount of water that was coming down the street. We Thankyou Very much. Keep up the good work. Regards Jeanette "

" This is William from Melbourne. I believe this service is really helpful. I received the email and SMS that day and cancelled my trip even though I didn't realize the hail storm was that ferocious. I also moved my car to the car port. Thanks a lot for the great service. Regards, William "

" Thank you for the warning I put my car in the carport and left the misses out , hers is totalled many thanks, Christopher "

" I think the EWN service is amazing, we were caught up in the severe storms that lashed the Goulburn Valley a few weekends ago and getting an email and text message with a warning gave me enough time to protect my assets and as a result have minimal damage.

I am a SES volunteer and am quite surprised and amazed that your warnings ALWAYS beat the ones we get on our pagers by at least 45 minutes. Good Job. Justin "

" Very useful program. Diverted my car under a sheltered overhang as the storm hit. Thanks. Hakan Gunday, Project Manager, Bovis Lend Lease, New Royal Children's Hospital Site Office, Flemington Road, Parkville , VIC "

" Whilst away on holidays i got the message regarding the damaging winds and large hail stones. I phoned home to inform the rest of the family there, they then packed up any loose items in the yard and moved the new car from the driveway to the garage... saving it from damage. Brilliant service... Keep up the great work. "

" We have been signed on to EWN now for quite some time. Even prior to the devastating bushfires of last year we have been well warned in all events. Our friends and family are also signed up which was a relief as the bushfires were a real threat for many of them as well. I am now convinced EWN is crucial. On the Saturday of the hail storms my family and I were having a lovely bbq with friends at their home in the hills. No possible sign of a storm. Out of no where the terrifying storm arrived. We were completely helpless as we watched all four vehicles be destroyed to the point of write off by hail stones the size of tennis balls. When the storm passed and I returned to the car I remembered the nappy bag in the back seat, complete with my mobile phone, the one the warning came on. Had I had it with me we would have had sufficient time to have us all out of harms way! We are just grateful no one was hurt. If this helps to illustrate how important such a service is then I am happy to lend my support. My mobile is now permanently attached! 20 minutes of mayhem and weeks later we are still looking for cars and are thousands of dollars out of pocket! Thanks EWN.

Yours faithfully, Michelle "

" On 6 March 10 my husband and I drove our Kombi van down to Doveton to watch my brother play cricket. Our two small children, and my friend, were with us. We all got an early warning text at about the same time, warning of dangerous storms approaching. We decided to pack up our picnic and leave for home to avoid the storm. As it happened, we didn't avoid the storm - we got stuck in the middle of it. Fortunately we were driving our Kombi and not our other car, which would likely have been destroyed. We are all extremely supportive of the EWN network and believe that on the 6 March 2010 it probably saved lives. Picnickers, motor cyclists, hikers...anyone hit on the head by one of those hail stones (we saw one the size of a cricket ball) could have been badly hurt or killed. Regards, Brigid "

" Thanks for the alert. We were able to move the car out of range. Captain Jack "

" Dear Kerry, I failed to take advantage of the warning. As a result I suffered 15K of damage. (Perhaps the cars could have been put undercover). Regards Gwyn "

" This service has been hugely beneficial and potentially saved our brand new car from being hail damaged in the recent Melbourne hail storms. We were able to delay going out until the storm had passed as a precautionary measure and take all messages received very seriously - thank you!! Charmian "

" Your warnings have been extremely helpful to me and my family. Recently members of the family were in Mildura, Vic. and were able to locate to a safer place due to my passing on your warning to me about that area. They had been camped by the river for water skiing races! Also just before the hail storms in Melbourne, I was about to leave home to go shopping when your alert came through to my mobile phone. I heeded it as your warnings are spot on so even although the sun was shining brightly, I left my car in the garage and me safely in the house and any likely missiles from the garden were secured. Fortunately there was no damage to me or my property although my suburb did bear a fair share of the ferocity of the hail storm. Thank you so much for this very much valued service. Regards Roberta "

" Dear Kerry I definitely use you alerts. The last one I was in Tassie and missed the storm here. We did experience some damage on our home though. Had I been here I would have taken some precautions to prevent the damage. I so use your alerts when I am in town If you need me to write more please let me know Lee Ashton You email was surprisingly open and refreshingly honest. I can certainly tell you that your early warning system is wonderful and helped me enormously on that fateful day a couple of weeks ago. Thanks to you, I was able to prepare for the storm (I closed windows, got washing in, put dogs inside etc). Nonetheless, We got flooding (from gutters and downpipes blocked by tennis-sized hail stones, my son's car was totalled by them (no insurance!) and my garden ripped to shreds. For me, I'm just happy knowing that I will always get these kinds of warnings, and feel very comforted by the forewarnings. Thanks heaps - and keep up the good work. Kaz "

" As for the alert, it helps us in securing backyard items, ensuring our cars are under cover and that we do not go out and get caught on the roads. We also live in rural Victoria and keep a close eye on the trees surrounding our and neighbours properties. This alert is invaluable to us as a normal family, I can only imagine how imperative it is to farmers and outdoor workers etc. Thanks heaps for this service and I wish you well. Keep up the great work! Regards, Anna "

" I found the alert very timely - gave me the opportunity to batten down the hatches and ensure any loose items in the backyard were secured/put away. Thanks for the warnings they are greatly appreciative especially when one has to coordinate two young children and the family dog! Bronwyn "

" I got caught out in the hailstorm after watching the storm blow across Northcote. The storm itself was lovely to watch and very fast but the hail literally seemed to come out of nowhere. It was only because I had received your early warning that I knew to expect hail and sought shelter (thankfully in time). When I received your early warning some hours earlier the sky was blue and the sun was shining so without the warning I would not have expected such a storm to occur and wouldn't have been prepared for the ferocity of it at all. Thanks and please keep the ewn system going. - Carmen "

" I got the warning a few hours before it hit us (in The Basin), but as it was looking like such a nice day and as i didn't log in to my email to see the map, i didn't really prepare for the storm. The sms warning did make me change my mind about going for a bike ride (thankfully!). The warnings that came through the next day prompted me to try and protect my things a bit better, but thankfully it didn't hit us a second time. I think that what would have made me take it a little more seriously would be either an MMS with the map showing the size of the storm, and the use of the 1000 character limit in an mms to give a better description of the threat, or a link to a made for mobile website in the sms to get more info and pics/maps. I have attached some photos for you as requested. Some time ago i was advised of a new desktop client that would enhance the ewn experience and make it more interactive. Is there an update on the deployment of this? If you have any questions or would like any further information, please let me know. Thank you, Adam "

" Great work there with the advance notices sent by EWN, many thanks. I make it a point to pass the word around when I get a notification with a mention of my area. I also like to see the website coverage with the map of Victoria highlighting the danger zones. Fortunately for us, we escape the wrath of Nature's fury that day when hail stones rained over the city. However, I am sure many cars were rushed under cover no sooner the advance news broke out. Keep up the good work, its been a job well done! "

" It is the best thing ever it gives us time to check drains and put cars away pick up kids from sport training. I do not think we could live with out it please keep it up doing a great job Regards Ken "

" We were on the ledge of the storm. We only got small hail and a lot of rain. Less than 4kms away in Emerald got damaging hail/wind. The alerts make us more vigilant and also prepare for the issue coming, be it storm or fire. Regards, Andrew "

" Thanks for your e-mail. We had only just logged our number onto the EWN network and were at home on the day of the hailstorms. We had been advised by a friend to join the network and we did receive a text message during the day. We were also on the internet, on the Bureau of Meteorology site and were watching the progress of the storms. Had we not been aware of the impending storm and the severity of it, the only way we would have known would have been via the text message received so we can see the value of having it. If we had been outside away from home we could have found ourselves in quite a bit of danger, considering the effects the storm did have. regards ,Antony "

" I've definitely found the EWN system useful. We rent a unit that has had a tendency to flood via the balcony during storms. With the EWN sms messages, I've at least been able to know when storms are in my area and make sure any furniture is out of the way in case we flood again! Luckily we've now had repair work done to our unit, so hopefully flooding will be a thing of the past. I still find the EWN messages useful though, as they often provide a trigger for me to check the met office website and see exactly where the storms are and roughly where they are headed by looking at the radar maps. This way I can avoid driving at the times when a storm is due to hit and make sure I have the car fully under the car port in case of hail. I did this during the big storm in the Shepparton area a few week ago. These are probably not the most exciting of comments but I did just want to give my support for the EWN service! Kind regards, Jemm "

" Hi , I think the service is excellent, I have forwarded all details of your last email looking for small fee from companies, to my employers Melbourne Water/Transfield Services Alliance. I told them I believe the tool to be invaluable when planning works for the day, to be able to get info quickly to crews of approaching inclement weather. Most of our crews work outdoors and especially our crews that look after the major storm water drainage systems around Melbourne. Good Luck Regards Ashley "

" Whilst I was not directly affected by the hailstorms here in Melbourne, your early warning enabled me to at least be prepared for what could have happened!!! I find the service to be extremely useful, so am curious to know what kind of support you need. :-) Regards, Sean "

" Knowing the storm was likely, allowed me to prepare my house and property to the best of my ability. No damage was incurred partly as a result of my preparations. I live in Belgrave. Unfortunately no photos but the hail size was more than significant. It's shameful that this valuable community service isn't seen to be the value that it is. Probably due to someone focused on dollars rather than on community good. I hope the service can continue. Cheryl "

" I do not have any experiences to share with you as we only received rain in my area. Please take heart that many Construction Safety Professionals are now subscribing to your system & using it warn sites of severe weather conditions etc. I am doing my best to share my positive experiences of the EWN with others in my industry. Regards David "

" Although I was not likely to be affected by the cyclone, I'd like to just say thanks for your warning system and I think you are doing a great job. I try & pass the site details on to friends, and it would be good if Govt or local councils etc would let their citizens know about it too. regards, Linda "

" Unfortunately we weren't in the main hailstorm area (That's fortunately, for us!) . However, your early warning alerts are wonderful. We were travelling around on that day and were aware that bad weather was on its way and so timed our journey accordingly. I think your service is invaluable and I do hope you get the support you need. Regards, Val "

" Living on a ridge in the Macedon ranges early warning of potential damaging winds is very handy. Your early warnings are ALWAYS received before the same BOM message is broadcast on the radio. If located in a good cell phone area one doesn't have to stayed glued to the radio, a text message can be referred to more than once is more valuable than a verbal message and also forms an archive of storm events. I think fire messages will also be invaluable for us, because as we have seen it is prudent to have multiple forms of communication when it comes to warning the public. If messages are missed text is a reliable and easy way to understand a threat escalation or retreat. Keep up the good work! "