OMEN
03-19-2006, 09:44 PM
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Battered ... wind and rain hammers Lamberts Beach in Mackay.
CYCLONE Larry, the worst storm to hit far north Queensland in decades, is expected to cross the coast within hours, bringing devastating wind gusts, surging seas and torrential rain.
Thousands of residents have already fled low-lying areas in the state's far north as Larry bears down on the coast around Innisfail, north of Townsville.
More than 500 residents were evacuated from Townsville's northern suburbs overnight, while mandatory evacuations have been enforced in numerous low-lying seafront areas, including in the Johnstone and Cardwell shires, expected to bear the brunt of the cyclone and its 4m storm surge.
The Bureau of Meteorology says Larry, a category-four storm, is tipped to hit the Queensland coast between 7am and 9am (AEST), bringing winds of up to 280km/h – making it more powerful than Cyclone Tracy, which struck Darwin in 1974.
"The sea will be significantly above normal tide, and there'll be damaging waves and flooding in low-lying areas, extending inland," a bureau spokesman said.
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Larry was about 90km east of Innisfail and moving west at about 25km/h, he said.
The Townsville Thuringowa Disaster Co-ordination Centre says the extreme weather conditions could pose a threat to human life, and urged residents not to leave their homes.
"There's a real risk of loss of life," the centre's executive officer, Gavin Lyons, said today.
"We'd suggest to residents that they stay indoors, more than anything."
Mr Lyons said most of the 500 people evacuated from northern Townsville overnight had chosen to stay with relatives, with 88 others seeking shelter in community halls.
Larry was the most severe cyclone to hit far north Queensland in decades, he said.
"It's on the verge of a category-five storm," Mr Lyone said.
"It's certainly at the top end of the scale – you don't see too many of them at that level."
Queensland Premier Peter Beattie has declared the region a natural disaster zone.
News.AU
Battered ... wind and rain hammers Lamberts Beach in Mackay.
CYCLONE Larry, the worst storm to hit far north Queensland in decades, is expected to cross the coast within hours, bringing devastating wind gusts, surging seas and torrential rain.
Thousands of residents have already fled low-lying areas in the state's far north as Larry bears down on the coast around Innisfail, north of Townsville.
More than 500 residents were evacuated from Townsville's northern suburbs overnight, while mandatory evacuations have been enforced in numerous low-lying seafront areas, including in the Johnstone and Cardwell shires, expected to bear the brunt of the cyclone and its 4m storm surge.
The Bureau of Meteorology says Larry, a category-four storm, is tipped to hit the Queensland coast between 7am and 9am (AEST), bringing winds of up to 280km/h – making it more powerful than Cyclone Tracy, which struck Darwin in 1974.
"The sea will be significantly above normal tide, and there'll be damaging waves and flooding in low-lying areas, extending inland," a bureau spokesman said.
Advertisement:
Larry was about 90km east of Innisfail and moving west at about 25km/h, he said.
The Townsville Thuringowa Disaster Co-ordination Centre says the extreme weather conditions could pose a threat to human life, and urged residents not to leave their homes.
"There's a real risk of loss of life," the centre's executive officer, Gavin Lyons, said today.
"We'd suggest to residents that they stay indoors, more than anything."
Mr Lyons said most of the 500 people evacuated from northern Townsville overnight had chosen to stay with relatives, with 88 others seeking shelter in community halls.
Larry was the most severe cyclone to hit far north Queensland in decades, he said.
"It's on the verge of a category-five storm," Mr Lyone said.
"It's certainly at the top end of the scale – you don't see too many of them at that level."
Queensland Premier Peter Beattie has declared the region a natural disaster zone.
News.AU