The tornado ripped through Mugga Hill and Firgrove just after 5pm on August 24 and caused damage to more than a dozen houses.

The Lappas were amongst the worst affected, as the roof was ripped off their house and their shed destroyed.

Even 12 months later life hasn’t returned to normal. It was only in April, eight months after the tornado, that they were able to move back into their Debeaufort Drive home.

Not only did it need a new roof, but almost all windows had been smashed and it needed repainting and new carpets laid.

“There is still so much that has to be done. The house is almost complete but we weren’t able to move back into it until April,” Robyn said.

“We still don’t have a shed, we had the car replaced but there is still a lot of landscaping to do.”

Despite the disruption it has caused to the lives of Robyn, her husband and children Keeley and Mitchell, she said they still considered themselves lucky.

“We were lucky that nobody was hurt. Everything that was damaged can be replaced,” Robyn said.

“We have been extremely lucky that our insurance agency has been good to us and Crowfoot Constructions have been wonderful.”

Robyn and her daughter were in the house when the tornado hit and Robyn’s parents were in their caravan at the back of the house, but incredibly they escaped without any damage.

“I lost my house but their caravan was fine. It had moved 63 millimetres while everything was going on,” she said.

They too were lucky though. A box trailer went through the front of the house, while a water tank was skewered by a trampoline pole.

​Robyn said she still gets paranoid concerned when strong winds come up or it becomes stormy but said the community support still amazed her.

“We didn’t cook a meal for about two weeks afterwards. We had people coming and bringing meals and offering to help clean up. “It was quite amazing. The Green Army came from Dunedoo to help out in the neighbourhood. 

“We also had the Governor-General pay us a visit and that was bright spot in what was a very tough week.”