Rain Coming

Consultation has concluded

Image: (Left) Artist impression showing a series of black cockatoos flying to the park, (Right) and collected memory fragments sandblasted into existing sandstone.


On the 10th of December, this public artwork by Alex Miles was launched by the Deputy Lord Mayor, Councillor Helen Burnett. The art work draws together Alex’s concept for a series of cockatoos flying down from the hills, with a number of sandblasted text fragments drawn from stories of the flood provided by local residents, business owners and hospital employees. The work was fabricated by local business Aircon Industries, who were heavily affected by the 2018 flood and installed by Spidertech, a Hobart business specialising in work at height, with employees who regularly climb at the nearby Freuhauf climbing wall.

A series of full length extracts from stories provided via Your Say Hobart or the postcard campaign were read at the launch of the artwork.

Thankyou to all participants in the story gathering campaign.


In May of 2018, Hobart recorded more than 100mm of rain in a single day, doubling the previous record. Heavy rains affected many people, particularly those directly in the flood path along the Hobart Rivulet. This extreme weather event saw the closing of 30 State Schools, all Catholic Schools and most private Schools in the region. The Supreme court stopped sitting, funerals were postponed as flash flooding hit the City and beyond.

You are invited to share your account of the floods as part of a City of Hobart public art project that commemorates the event and aims to connect residents and strengthen community through a sharing of experience.

Please share your account of the floods below or pick up and return postcards at participating South Hobart businesses.

Selected responses will be incorporated as part of this public art work for the Hobart Rivulet Park. Short sections of text, drawn from your accounts of the flood, will be sandblasted into existing paving, as indicated in the artist's impression shown above.

Submissions will be collected until the end of September 2019.



This project has been jointly funded by the Australian and Tasmanian Governments under the Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements.



Image: (Left) Artist impression showing a series of black cockatoos flying to the park, (Right) and collected memory fragments sandblasted into existing sandstone.


On the 10th of December, this public artwork by Alex Miles was launched by the Deputy Lord Mayor, Councillor Helen Burnett. The art work draws together Alex’s concept for a series of cockatoos flying down from the hills, with a number of sandblasted text fragments drawn from stories of the flood provided by local residents, business owners and hospital employees. The work was fabricated by local business Aircon Industries, who were heavily affected by the 2018 flood and installed by Spidertech, a Hobart business specialising in work at height, with employees who regularly climb at the nearby Freuhauf climbing wall.

A series of full length extracts from stories provided via Your Say Hobart or the postcard campaign were read at the launch of the artwork.

Thankyou to all participants in the story gathering campaign.


In May of 2018, Hobart recorded more than 100mm of rain in a single day, doubling the previous record. Heavy rains affected many people, particularly those directly in the flood path along the Hobart Rivulet. This extreme weather event saw the closing of 30 State Schools, all Catholic Schools and most private Schools in the region. The Supreme court stopped sitting, funerals were postponed as flash flooding hit the City and beyond.

You are invited to share your account of the floods as part of a City of Hobart public art project that commemorates the event and aims to connect residents and strengthen community through a sharing of experience.

Please share your account of the floods below or pick up and return postcards at participating South Hobart businesses.

Selected responses will be incorporated as part of this public art work for the Hobart Rivulet Park. Short sections of text, drawn from your accounts of the flood, will be sandblasted into existing paving, as indicated in the artist's impression shown above.

Submissions will be collected until the end of September 2019.



This project has been jointly funded by the Australian and Tasmanian Governments under the Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements.



Tell your story

Please share your account of the 2018 floods here, or if you prefer to do so offline you can pick up a project postcard at a participating business in South Hobart. Selected responses will be incorporated as part of this public art work for the Hobart Rivulet Park. 

Thank you for your submission.  

CLOSED: This discussion has concluded.

  • Rivulet Rising

    by JanB, about 5 years ago

    We live in South Hobart overlooking the Hobart Rivulet and on that fateful night we watched the water rise several metres as the rain, thunder and lightning exploded around us. We could see, as the rocks were covered, and the water came pouring down, that it would not be able to fit under the tiny entrance to the tunnel under Campbell Street near the hospital, laden as it was with rubbish bins, concrete culverts that had broken off and trees and other debris that were being hurled down the Rivulet with the water.

    We were grateful that our house was... Continue reading

  • The 3 trials of the Volvo

    by Karla, about 5 years ago

    All my life I’ve had to have big 4wd cars - living in the desert and the Kimberley. They have carted me across the country, my independence, freedom, security, safety... all of it buried in a vehicle. It’s strange that a car could be such a significant marker of identity. When I moved to South Hobart I had the pleasure of buying an old Volvo. I loved it. The smallness and old ness of its luxury yet the normal ness, the ordinary ness of it.

    That flood water, sitting in the lounge room in the cottage in Degraves was so... Continue reading

  • The Rain. The Creek. The Mud.

    by Chris H, about 5 years ago


    https://www.dropbox.com/s/imi8govd690yg1n/the%20rain.pdf?dl=0

  • Future uncertain

    by penelopeclark, about 5 years ago

    It was the first time I began to feel unsure of the ground beneath my feet

    Our street was flowing like a river. Would these extraordinary circumstances lead to landslides that were previously unimaginable.

    What does our uncertain climate future have in store for us?

  • Future uncertain

    by penelopeclark, about 5 years ago

    It was the first time I began to feel unsure of the ground beneath my feet

    Our street was flowing like a river. Would these extraordinary circumstances lead to landslides that were previously unimaginable.

    What does our uncertain climate future have in store for us?

  • Water is rushing, mud is gushing

    by Hudson and Austin , about 5 years ago

    Water is rushing, mud is gushing

    A little bit scary, a little bit hairy

    Lots of sludge, it looks like fudge

    And smelly too, a bit like poo

    Rubble and trash, careful - might get a rash

    Cars were here, cars were there - cars now everywhere

    Much clean-up to be done, not going to be fun

    Shovel and barrow, look on in horrow

    But come the next day, we're all okay


    A poem by Hudson and Austin (with some help from Dad)




  • The Sky Torn Apart

    by maggiemac, about 5 years ago

    The sound of rain and thunder was incredible. One of our children was nervous about the thundercracks; I calmly sat with him to count the seconds from each lightning flash to each thundercrack to show him that the worst was over and the storm was moving away. "But Mum, they're getting closer together!" - and then I realised it wasn't just one storm; it was one storm after another storm after another. The sky sounded like it was being torn apart.

  • A Rivulet in St John's Hospital

    by Tony Brennan, Director of Mission, about 5 years ago

    At two in the morning the deluge continued and water came down back entrance ramps and filled roof gutters. Soon there was a rivulet down the ground floor halls from Gibson Ward to the Kiosk. The Hospital Coordinators over night called extra help from the Director of Clinical Services and everyone was in their gum boots.One Hospital Coordinator recalls "I think the main thing for me amid all the noise (from water gushing from ceilings, ceiling panels falling down, and the fire alarm bells going off) was the commitment and solidarity of everyone involved that night.
    A lot of the... Continue reading

  • Zombie Apocalypse

    by OskarK, about 5 years ago

    The aftermath was the worst. It seemed like it was after a zombie apocalypse. It seemed like District 12 in The Hunger Games.

    - Oskar, aged 10

  • After the flood - what 129mm of rain in 24hours taught us

    by kcrowley, about 5 years ago

    We have only just, one year on, recovered from the May 2018 flooding of the Hobart Rivulet. We have newly restored floorboards and have thrown a lot away. The damp under the house is finally gone. We have no mould, which was a big concern, and held up post-flood recovery all over town. Our insurance is resolved finally, unlike so many other peoples. I’m not worried about rain in the rivulet any more, because I’ve seen a dangerous flood. If the water starts peaking in little standing waves in the street outside, then we know now that it’s pretty bad... Continue reading