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Politics : The Environmentalist Thread -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Ron who wrote (6021)	3/19/2006 10:27:54 PM
From: Skywatcher	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 36917

Massive cyclone hits Australia SYDNEY, Australia (CNN) -- Tropical Cyclone Larry has slammed Monday into the northeastern coast of Australia with gusts up to 300 kilometers per hour (185 mph), authorities in the Australian state of Queensland report. The eye of the category five storm passed over the beach resort of Innisfail, in the Australian state of Queensland, about 7:30 a.m. (8:30 p.m. Sunday GMT), and was soon downgraded to a still-powerful category four, according to Australia's Bureau of Meteorology. Top sustained winds at landfall were at 190 km/h (120 mph), but gusts up to 300 km/h were reported, Craig Burke, a forecaster at the airport in Cairns, about 90 kilometers (55 miles) north of Innisfail. "There's all sort of roof and structural damage across the township of Innisfail and the surrounding area," Burke said. Widespread power outages were reported as well, he said. A Queensland state police spokeswoman at Innisfail told the Associated Press three people had been reported injured so far in the storm, including a woman who was struck by flying glass and two others who were hurt after falling down. Innisfail is a beach town of about 13,000 residents and a popular departure point for boaters and divers seeking to explore the Great Barrier Reef. The sounds of metal and lumber being torn from structures could be heard above the winds as the cyclone passed, journalist Phil Willmington told CNN. "There's just devastation everywhere in this coastal community," he said. A motel proprietor told Australia's Sky News TV that residents of Innisfail ventured out as the calm of the eye of the storm passed over the town. She said the town looked as if a bomb had hit it with trees uprooted and tin and roofing material scattered everywhere. Townsfolk then retreated back indoors as the winds and rains returned. Larry is the most powerful storm on record to hit the Australian state of Queensland, according to Australian forecasters. It was last reported moving inland at 25 km/h, and Australian forecasters said it posed a "very serious threat" to life and property. The storm struck land near low tide at Innisfail, resulting in a storm surge of just 20 centimeters (8 inches), Burke said. But he said communities to the south could face higher tidal surges as the storm nears, perhaps as high as 4 meters (13 feet). The swath of destructive winds stretched from the coastal towns of Ingham, to the south of Innisfail, and Port Douglas, to the north, the Meteorology Bureau reported. National flag carrier Qantas canceled a scheduled morning flight to Cairns and another to Townsville -- the two largest cities in the cyclone's path, AP reported. Cairns has a population of 125,000 while Townsville is home to 160,000 people. Queensland state Premier Peter Beattie declared a disaster situation, giving local governments the power to enforce mandatory evacuations. Beattie said Larry was the worst storm to hit northeastern Australia in recent memory. "We are very concerned about it, it's the worst cyclone we've had in decades," Beattie told the Nine television network Monday. "We're very concerned about what sort of damage will do, some of the buildings won't withstand a category five cyclone, a lot of the houses won't, we expect it will be quite extensive damage." Authorities ordered residents living south of Cairns to flee their homes if they lived close to the coast. "There have been mandatory evacuations of coastal shires south of Cairns ... and emergency shelters set up for people who feel at risk with nowhere to go," a Cairns City Council Disaster Coordination Center spokesman told Australian Associated Press. "It's most likely thousands of people are evacuating to avoid the high tide," he added. Copyright 2006 CNN. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Associated Press contributed to this report.