Properties have been damaged and large trees uprooted by an ex-tropical cyclone still wreaking havoc in Western Australia, with record rainfall triggering significant flooding from which people are being evacuated by helicopter.
Tropical Cyclone Zelia made landfall in the north-west of Western Australia on Friday and was quickly weakened as it crossed the coast east of Port Hedland.
Surrounding areas suffered property damage when winds of up to 120km/h struck, but the strongest parts of the system – which was at category four when it made landfall – hit remote areas, according to Angus Hines, a senior meteorologist at the Bureau of Meteorology.
“In many places, especially around Port Hedland, it is fortunate that the winds were not even stronger which certainly could have been the case if the tropical cyclone had taken a different path,” he said.
A record 500mm of rain fell in just three days in parts of the Pilbara, with 278mm recorded at Upper North Pole in just 18 hours. The small town of Telfer, about 400km south of Broome, copped 93mm in one hour.
“This is exceptionally rare for that location and that part of the world,” Hines said.
“The rain has caused significant flooding and widespread road closures across the Pilbara region”.
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The state’s premier, Roger Cook, said there were no reports of injury or loss of life.
“Some of our pastoral stations have been hit hard,” he said on Saturday, adding that two remote Aboriginal communities in the Pilbara were at significant risk of flooding.
The Department of Fire and Emergency Services’ commissioner, Darren Klemm, said helicopters had been deployed to relocate 63 people from Warralong, with 15 people already arriving in Port Hedland as water levels continue to rise.
“An assessment was made to prioritise people with medical requirements, women and children, the elderly and people with mobility issues in the first instance,” he said.
A spokesperson told reporters it would be “days if not weeks with this flooding event”.
Port Hedland’s SES deputy manager, Barry Harrison, had earlier told ABC News Breakfast that the region “really dodged a bullet” when the cyclone moved east, taking destructive winds away from the regional centre, despite earlier fears it would take a direct hit.
“[There has been] literally hundreds and hundreds of trees that have been uprooted,” he said.
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“We are very, very lucky. [The ex-tropical cyclone] is still dancing around out there and dropping a lot of rain as she goes.”
Port Hedland is one of the world’s largest iron ore export points, with any lengthy cyclone-enforced port closure potentially disrupting global supply. Ships and trains were cleared from ports in the area in preparation for Zelia but mining groups said it was too early to tell what impact it would have on supply as the north-west recovered.
Cook said emergency services had responded to 60 calls for assistance, and safety inspections were under way at Port Hedland.
“This system was big and unpredictable and the outcome could have been a lot worse,” the premier said.
“The system has dumped an enormous amount of rain on the Pilbara and will lead to ongoing flooding in the coming days driving in flood waters is incredibly dangerous. It can be life-threatening.”
A severe weather warning remains for the parts of Pilbara, Gascoyne, North Interior and South Interior districts, with flood watches and flood warnings across the region.
“Rainfall totals of up to 120mm are expected in the coming 24 hours, which is a lot for this typically quite dry region,” Hines said. “We may still see river rises in the coming 24 hours.”
More than 10,000 sandbags have been handed out in the Pilbara to help people prepare their properties for flooding, the Dfes said.
Zelia approached the Western Australian coast with winds of up to 290km/h, initially sparking fears in Port Hedland of Cyclone Ilsa’s deadly impact in 2023 when eight people died.
The Australian defence force will assist with the recovery after the wild weather closed roads, schools, shops and ports, with about 200 people fleeing to evacuation centres.
