Manner of Speaking
Joined: 09 Jan 2003
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 Posted: Mon Apr 24, 2006 12:24 am Post subject: Australia: Cyclone Monica About to Make Landfall |
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Warning: Monica's a monster
By Jano Gibson and Dylan Welch
April 24, 2006 - 4:53PM
As Cyclone Monica bears down on Darwin, the weather bureau has issued a stark warning: "It's as strong as any cyclone we've seen in the Australian region." The category five storm, which has wind gusts up to 350 kmh at its core, was 70 kilometres off the coast of Millingimbi in the Northern Territory at 1600 AEDT. "[From] the analysis we've been doing, [Cyclone Monica] is as strong as any cyclone we've seen in the Australian region,'' said supervising meteorologist Andrew Tupper at Darwin's Bureau of Meteorology.
He said the cyclone was expected to make landfall tonight somewhere between Maningrida and Croker Island - about 350 kilometres from Darwin - before slowly tracking its way towards the Territory's capital. If the weather bureau's predictions prove correct, Darwin will feel Monica's full force by tomorrow afternoon - but the bureau can't say exactly how strong it will be by then. "Even if it hits Darwin, we don't expect it to be quite that strong. [It will be] anything between a category three to five,'' he said.
The cyclone has forced the cancellation of Darwin's Anzac Day march and services. Darwin RSL manager Mussy Shaw today said the decision was made to protect both marchers and military equipment. "We made the decision because we didn't want to damage some of the old war equipment we use in the march and obviously we need to protect the people as well," he said.
Mr Shaw said the decision was not made lightly. "It's Australia's biggest day and we have to cancel it, so people are very upset," Mr Shaw said.
Darwin residents have been urged to secure their homes and stock up on essential supplies. Garry Brown, control centre operator at Darwin's largest commercial port, East Arm Wharf, said: "We're preparing for large swell. We're quite exposed here. "All the vessels above 30 tonnes have been asked to exit the harbour area.
"Small vessels like fishing trawlers, they can get safe harbour [but] we had a large oil tanker, that's been taken off the side of East Arm. It's out in the middle of the harbour now.'' He said the dock itself had been almost completely cleared.
"The only thing we've got left is about 200, 300 brand new cars, which they're in a hurry to get of the wharf. "They'll go to some sort of holding area in the middle of the city. "Apparently they're not insured while they're on our premises, so they've been picking up as many cars as they can to get them off.''
Mr Brown remembers hiding under his kitchen table as a five-year-old while Cyclone Tracy devastated Darwin. He said back then a fishing boat crashed through one of his home's walls - and he thinks Monica could be just as bad. "I think we will cop it, I don't want to say it, but I think we're going to get a fair amount of wind.'' He also said he was worried about his wife and children at the family home in the Darwin suburb of Humpty Doo.
"They reckon the eye of the hurricane is going to maybe go across where my place is ... I don't want to think about it at the moment." He will head back there as soon as the wharf had been secured, and planned to stay there with his family tomorrow. "It's a fairly solid brick home, so we'll be stuck in there hoping for the best.''
http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/warning-cyclone-monicas-a-monster/2006/04/24/1145730845424.html |
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