Queensland and NT prepare for storms from tropical cyclones Lam and Marcia
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Version 0 of 1. Residents of the Northern Territory and Queensland have been warned to prepare for the approach of two tropical cyclones. The community of Warruwi on Goulburn Island will be evacuated as tropical cyclone Lam changes course and heads towards the coast. The Northern Territory Emergency Service will move at least 350 people to Darwin. Related: For the Yolngu, cyclone Lam is part of the ancient rhythm of Arnhem Land The storm is still a Category 3, with sustained winds near the centre of 140k/ph and gusts reaching 195 k/ph. It is travelling at 9km/h, up from 6km/h earlier Thursday morning. It is expected to have intensified to a Category 4 before it crosses the coast at about 7am on Friday morning, west of Elcho Island. Residents there have not yet been advised to go to public shelters unless they feel their home is not safe. The Bureau of Meteorology’s Adam Morgan said his advice to those in affected areas was to “batten down the hatches”. “We’re certainly at that point,” he told ABC Radio. He said the storm system was likely to maintain cyclone intensity for around 24 hours. “We’ve still got it as a category two cyclone at 6pm tomorrow night and by that time it should have moved a couple of hundred kilometres inland. It will still be affecting those coastal areas and inland areas all around the northeast of the Top End.” The bureau said the cyclone was forecast to decrease to category 1, the lowest level, at 6am (central standard time) on Saturday Very destructive winds with gusts of over 170km/h are forecast to continue over the Wessel islands, and are expected to extend on to the mainland coast between Milingimbi and Gapuwiyak late on Thursday. If the cyclone takes a more southward track, destructive winds may extend further east towards Nhulunbuy late Thursday and into early Friday. Coastal residents between Milingimbi and Nhulunbuy are being warned of a “very dangerous storm tide” as the cyclone centre approaches the coast on Thursday night and into Friday. Heavy rain could also cause flooding across the northeast Top End on Thursday and Friday. Police have warned people to stay away from waterways, to avoid driving into water of an unknown depth, to stay away from fallen powerlines, and to create their own sandbags out of whatever material is at hand to stave off rising waters. Meanwhile, Queenslanders are bracing for damaging winds, heavy rain and high tides as tropical cyclone Marcia tracks closer to the state’s coastline. The cyclone was over the Coral Sea, about 650km north of Bundaberg, on Thursday morning and is expected to continue strengthening as it tracks south-west towards Queensland’s east coast throughout the day. It is then likely to develop into a category 2 storm by the time it hits the Capricorn coast early on Friday. The Bureau of Meteorology is forecasting heavy rain and damaging winds between Double Island Point and Brisbane, extending down to the state’s southern border later on Thursday and Friday. Flash flooding is also possible with some 300mm likely to fall in the next 24 hours while wind gusts could reach 90km/hr in some areas, forecasters say. Tide levels could also complicate the stormy conditions, with abnormally high tides predicted for Thursday and Friday. Coastal residents between St Lawrence and Double Island Point are specifically warned of the dangerous storm tide as the cyclone crosses the coast. |