SANTA NEVER MADE IT INTO DARWIN
(Bill Cate)

Bill & Boyd - 1975


On Christmas Eve of seventy-four
The warning sounded out
For all the broadcast stations
A great storm was near about

The girls and boys asleep in bed
Tomorrow was the day
Their mums and dads all prayed
The mighty storm would turn away

Santa never made it into Darwin
Disaster struck at dawn on Christmas Day
Santa never made it into Darwin
A big wind came and blew the town away

Christmas morning was a nightmare
As Cyclone Tracy struck
It ripped apart the buildings
Like an atom bomb had struck

It twisted iron girders
And it flattened all the trees
The might of such a cyclone
Must be seen to be believed

Santa never made it into Darwin
Disaster struck at dawn on Christmas Day
Santa never made it into Darwin
A big wind came and blew the town away

Many boats put out to sea
Very few returned
Most were foundered on the rocks
Or in deep seas overturned

Australia was shocked and saddened
As the news came through
The devastated city
Must be built anew

That suffering and heartbreak
Could happen in this way
A natural disaster
Could come on on Christmas Day

Santa never made it into Darwin
Disaster struck at dawn on Christmas Day
Santa never made it into Darwin
A big wind came and blew the town away

Santa never made it into Darwin
Disaster struck at dawn on Christmas Day
Santa never made it into Darwin
A big wind came and blew the town away
A big wind came and blew the town away


(Transcribed by Mel Priddle - October 2005)