SYSTEM LIKELY TO HIT AS CYCLONE

BOM warns residents to take precautions

NORTH Queensland residents are being warned to finish cyclone preparations as a weather system in the Coral Sea looks set to bear it’s fury down on the region.

The Bureau of Meteorology is predicting the tropical low will form into a cyclone on Sunday before crossing the coast between Cairns and Townsville.

Supermarkets are already stocking up on canned food and other essentials in preparation for a buying frenzy.

The Townsville Disaster Management Group have been meeting to make preparations. A cruise ship scheduled to dock in the city on Monday night is also on watch for a cyclone.

Bureau of Meteorology forecaster Mario Torrisi said all models were showing the weather system tracking towards the Queensland coast.

“The coastal crossing location and intensity are still very uncertain but we think it’s likely to cross the coast somewhere between Cairns and Mackay but more likely between Cairns and Townsville,” he said. “We’re swaying towards the Monday period for the crossing but we’ll monitor it closely over the next couple of days.”

While there is a greater than 50 per cent chance of the cyclone forming on Sunday, it could intensify as early as today. The bureau rates a 20 to 50 per cent chance of the cyclone forming tomorrow.

Yesterday, the system was southeast of the Papua New Guinea mainland and was expected to drift south before turning west towards the tropical Queensland coast.

Cruise ship the Azamara Journey is scheduled to dock at the Port of Townsville on Monday at 6pm carrying 1000 passengers from North America, the United Kingdom and New Zealand.

Port of Townsville manager of corporate affairs Sharon Hoops said the port was “in cyclone prep”.

“We’ll remain under the guidance of the harbour master,” she said.

Local Disaster Management Group deputy chair Councillor Kurt Rehbeinein said a disaster management nt plan was on standby.

“The TLDMG meets s regularly to ensure its members embers are trained in the latest t disaster management skillsls and practices, so that when a cyclone does hit, we can hit it the ground running,” he said. id.

“The threat of a cycyclone is not unusual for or North Queensland at this time of year and itt reminds us of how im- portant it is for us as individuals and community to be prepared.”

Cr Rehbein said if f the cyclone did hit it Townsville, the councilcil would help to restore serervices, conduct post- impact pact damage assessments and prioritise resources for r local recovery operations.

Mr Torrisi said the looming cyclone could bring with it heavy rainfall.

“If it crosses somewhere ewhere north of Townsville thenen certainly that would suggest est the potential is there to get some decent rainfall totals in the Townsville region,” he said.

“It’s very dependant on where the system crosses the coast, its intensity and the size of the system.”

“The heaviest rainfall is usually on the southern flank... but sometimes we get decent falls north of the system if we have a monsoonal trough leaning into it.”

Disaster management support officer acting Senior Ser-

geant Brenton Webb said now was the time to finalise preparations.

“We’re encouraging people to clean up their yards and check their cyclone kits because the better prepared you are the quicker you recover from inci incidents like cyclone,” he said.

“If it’s flooded forget it because we’ve had a number of incidents recently where people have chosen to ignore the warning and the result have been rescue incidents.”