A red alert has been issued for people living or travelling in parts of Western Australia’s north west as Tropical Cyclone Olwyn descends.
The tropical cyclone has intensified to a category three with destructive winds and a significant storm surge predicted. Olwyn is about 40 kilometres southwest of Exmouth and moving south with destructive winds.
The ABC reports that a red alert has been issued for people in or near coastal communities from Mardie to Minilya, including Onslow, Nanutarra, Exmouth and Coral Bay.
A yellow alert covers coastal communities from Minilya to Overlander Roadhouse, including Cape Cuvier, Carnvarvon, Wooramel and Denham.
A blue alert has been issued for communities between Mardie and Pannawonica and from Overlander Roadhouse to Geraldton.
The three-stage cyclone alert system ranges from blue, where residents are advised to get ready for a cyclone, to yellow, which advises communities to take action and get ready to shelter, then to red, which is for when residents are advised to immediately take shelter.
The Bureau of Meteorology says very destructive winds with gusts exceeding 165 kilometres per hour may develop near the west Pilbara coast this morning.
“We’re also expecting rainfall in the range of 200 to 300 millimetres through the Onslow coastal area then further south into the Ashburton and Gascoyne rivers,” said the bureau’s, Mike Bergin.
Meanwhile, across in the east, Tropical Cyclone Nathan has changed track as a category two system and is now heading very slowly off the far north Queensland coast.
The Bureau of Meteorology expects Nathan to continue on its U-turn and head east well away from the Queensland coast.
However it is warning that gales were likely between Lockhart River and Cape Melville and could be felt further south at Cooktown during this afternoon, depending on the track the cyclone takes.
The ABC says the cyclone had already dumped more than 200 millimetres of rain in some far northern areas since yesterday but there were no reports of major damage.
