Territorians in path of Tropical Cyclone Narelle told to take cover in bathrooms as storm intensifies | Tropical Cyclone Narelle
An emergency warning has been issued and thousands of people are bracing for Tropical Cyclone Narelle before it reaches the Northern Territory, where winds of up to 120 mph are expected.
NT fire and emergency services commissioner Andrew Wharton said the highest level warning was issued at midday on Saturday and extended from Nhulunbuy to Port MacArthur, including Borroloola, Numbulwar, Alyangula and Gapuwiyak.
Residents have been warned that travel is too dangerous.
“If you are sheltering in place, move to the smallest, strongest, most sheltered room in your home, such as a bathroom or toilet,” Wharton said.
“Rooms with fewer or smaller windows are better, but not ones with larger windows.”
“We implore you, wherever this hurricane impacts, please do not go out and enter the storm. It is dangerous.”
Cyclone to hit NT at 3am
The Bureau of Meteorology has warned more than 10,000 residents from Nhulunbuy to Port McArthur, including Borroloola, Numbulwar, Alyangula and Gapuwiyak, that Narelle will strengthen as it approaches.
Narelle was downgraded from a category 4 to a 2 as it crossed the Gulf of Carpentaria after reaching Cape York on Friday, but was expected to reach the eastern Top End as a category 3 late on Saturday.
As of 12.30am NT time, the BoM maintained its forecast that Narelle would make landfall around 3am. It was moving westwards in the Gulf of Carpentaria at around 20km/h before crossing the Eastern Top End.
While very destructive winds of up to 195 km per hour are expected in some regions until Sunday, heavy rains may cause sudden floods. Rainfall is expected to be between 150mm and 200mm per day as the system passes, although up to 300mm was possible.
Rainfall is expected to peak on Sunday and Monday, causing major flooding in the Katherine River, Daly River, Waterhouse and Adelaide River basins.
Evacuations to Darwin
The defense force evacuated almost 150 people from the Numbulwar community on the coast of the Gulf of Carpentaria; Hundreds more will be flown away as Narelle approaches.
Federal Emergency Management Minister Kirsty McBain said on Saturday morning that the Ministry of Defense had deployed an air liaison officer to the Northern Territory emergency operations centre.
He also said the National Intensive Care and Trauma Center is sending a team to Katherine for health assessment and clinical resources, including a field hospital if needed.
In Darwin, nearly 500 people from Numbulwar made Nightcliff High School’s gym their new home ahead of the cyclone that affected their community.
The Australian government’s disaster recovery payment has been activated for areas such as Chinchilla in the Western Downs, central Bundaberg, east, north and south. In the NT this will be extended to the Daly River, Victoria Daly and Lansdowne at Roper Bay.
Payments will be available from 2pm on Tuesday and residents are advised to check the Services Australia website.
“Additional assessments will be conducted as soon as possible for areas impacted by Tropical Cyclone Narelle,” McBain said.
Katherine will remain under water until Monday
In Katherine, 4,000 sandbags containing 110 tonnes of sand were sent to the community to prepare for rising rivers and possible flooding.
“We are expecting moderate to major flood levels in Katherine on Monday,” NT premier Lia Finocchiaro said.
“It is clear that the community is still reeling from last week’s flooding and are now in full preparation mode, preparing themselves, their families and their businesses for what may happen.
“Everyone has been evacuated along with Numbulwar, which is great news.”
Katherine mayor Joanna Holden told AAP that the town’s population of 10,000 was taking the predictions seriously and preparations were underway, with sandbagging teams set to operate from Thursday.
Many properties with flooded water have been cleaned, but other cleanup efforts have been put on hold in case the buildings flood again.
The mayor was concerned that volunteers who had been helping out for two weeks following the latest flood earlier this month were exhausted.
“Having to go back again and potentially clean up the same places and see the same destruction is taking its toll,” he said.
Matthew Ryan, chief executive of the Northern Land Council in the NT, said he had concerns about the quality of care at evacuation centres.
“There are reports that the food and bedding is not good enough,” he told the ABC.
“There are some people [who] We were sleeping without a mattress, which was terrible… Instead of being reactive, we should have been more prepared now. “They start from scratch every time.”
‘Today is a blessing’ for Queensland
The clean-up in northern Queensland began on Saturday. Officials said no rescues were needed or casualties, but the damage was mostly structural or downed trees.
“There are some important observation points for those living on the Cape York peninsula today, and the first of these is the rivers that are still raging, flowing much higher than normal, spilling over banks and roads,” said Angus Hines, the bureau’s senior meteorologist.
“This is likely isolating communities in Queensland’s far north and making it difficult to get out and assess damage, reach remote locations and replenish supplies.”
As of Saturday morning, approximately 1,100 people were without power in Cape York.
Waves exceeding 5 meters were reported off the coast of Weipa, but the rain did not continue on Saturday morning, Queensland premier David Crisafulli told a news conference in Cooktown.
“Today is a blessing for us and we certainly welcome the lack of prolonged rain,” he said.
He said Narelle “walked a tightrope perfectly” between the Coen and the Lockhart River before diving south of Aurukun and reaching the west side of Cape York.
“Having the larger population centers right in between was a real blessing.”
He said there are still some power and telecommunications issues, along with downed trees, and the possibility of higher tides and waves.
He said an unidentified ship was found in Princess Charlotte Bay and authorities were keen to find it.
Crisafulli said three emergency helicopters will be in the air Saturday and will assess damage in 16 communities, focusing on roads.
A decision on whether schools in the area will reopen will be made at 5pm (AEST) on Sunday.
The Queensland government will provide 10 storm capsules to help recover the NT from Narelle. The pods contained equipment that could aid recovery and were set to depart from Townsville on Saturday.
On reports that the evacuation center in Coen was overcrowded, Crisafulli said the advice was for people to prepare and stay home if possible, but acknowledged that the government could always do better in preparing for such events.
Narelle is expected to move towards the Indian Ocean over the North Kimberley from Tuesday.
