Record of wind above ground: 408km / hour

Scientists at the World Meteorological Organization confirmed a 408km / hour gale in the tropical storm Olivia on April 10, 1996 set a new world record for 'the highest speed gust on the ground' .

The previous record of 372km / hour was recorded in April 1934 on Mount Washington, USA.

House damaged by storms in Pannawonica - Photo: The Australian

Olivia is equivalent to a Category 5 storm when sweeping along Australia's northwest coast, injuring 10 people in the mining city of Pannawonica.

Tropical storms, tornadoes and storms are different ways of talking about the same climate phenomenon with rain like cascades and maximum sustained wind speeds can exceed 119km / hour. A tropical storm with a maximum maintenance speed of 249km / hour is said to be level 5.

In 1999, a speed storm of 511.6 km / hr recorded by radar Doppler in tornadoes in Moore, Oklahoma (USA). However, Doppler's records are not considered official.