A cyclone warning is continuing for coastal and island communities from the Mitchell Plateau in Western Australia to Daly River mouth in the Northern Territory.

A cyclone watch also extends west to Cockatoo Island off the Kimberley coast.

Tropical cyclone George, a category 1 storm, is heading west at 15 kilometres-per-hour and is about 85 kilometres west-south-west of the Territory community of Port Keats.

The weather bureau says the western Top End can expect strong winds and heavy rain.

Gales up to 110 kilometres-an-hour are expected on the coast between the Daly River mouth and the Mitchell Plateau.

Bureau senior forecaster Graeme King says heavy rain will continue in the western Northern Territory today.

"Still having good rainfall now, as I said, strong bands wrapping around the cyclone but as George moves further away it should start to ease from tomorrow," he said.

Mr King says the cyclone will also bring strong winds to the western Top End and northern Kimberley.

"We're still getting strong monsoonal winds with gusts up to 90 kilometres-per-hour around the west coast, the western Top End and its brought residual flooding of course and there's still plenty of rain," he said.

"Similarly, to the Kimberley, we'll start to seeing gales on the coast certainly down towards south of the Daly River mouth and extending towards the Kimberley coast this afternoon."
Roads warning

Meanwhile NT police are urging residents in Darwin and the surrounding rural area to avoid driving today, as heavy rain continues to drench the city.

Darwin Watch Commander Robert Harrison says today's heavy rains are continuing to cause reduced visibility and flooding on the Territory's roads.

"People need to exercise due care if it's really raining heavily and the distance they can see is lessened, then they need to stop at the side of the road and pull up and wait for it to ease up and then continue with caution," he said.

Some roads are still closed in the Top End.

The Arnhem Highway is impassable between the Jabiru Township turn-off and the Ranger mine, and is closed between the Corroboree Park Tavern and the Kakadu Highway.

The Stuart Highway is open with traffic diverted over the higher of the two Elizabeth River bridges, about five kilometres south of the Arnhem Highway intersection.

Commander Harrison says there have been a number of road accidents over the weekend due to reduced visibility and flooding.

He says police are continuing to monitor conditions and are expecting to introduce more road closures today if heavy rains continue.

"Motorists need to be aware of other hazards such as fallen trees and branches and things of that nature," he said.

"The Stuart Highway being diverted to the higher of the two Elizabeth River bridges, about five kilometres south of the Arnhem Highway intersection, due to flooding and the amount of water we're getting at the moment."
Ghan railway

Meanwhile a helicopter will be used to assess damage to a three to five-kilometre section of the Adelaide-to-Darwin railway line, which was washed out overnight.

The washed out section is between the town of Adelaide River and Darwin.

Police says it is expected to take up to one week to repair and until works are completed freight trains and the Ghan will terminate at Katherine.

ABC.net.au

PM pledges extra funding for cyclone George victims

The Prime Minister has announced extra funding for people affected by cyclone George, which crossed the West Australian coast overnight.

He says people who have been seriously injured or whose house has been destroyed will be eligible for $1,000 per adult and $400 per child.

He says that is on top of the usual help provided by the Commonwealth under natural disaster arrangements.

The weather bureau's Neil Bennett says the Pilbara is in for more bad news with a second cyclone, Jacob, expected to hit the region late Sunday.

"Unfortunately there is another one on its way," he said.

"We have tropical cyclone Jacob which we're now expecting to start impacting the Pilbara coast, probably further to the west."

The weather bureau has described cyclone George as the most powerful system to hit Port Hedland in at least three decades.

Mr Bennett from the bureau says the area is still being lashed by strong winds.

"We're still experiencing gusts to 100-110 kilometres per hour near the coast and 165 kilometres per hour further to the south, so it is a significant system," he said.

Cyclone George has claimed the lives of two people and 28 others have been injured, most of them at a mining company camp south of Port Hedland.

An emergency medical team from Perth, including surgeons, doctors and critical care nurses has flown into Port Hedland to deal with the injured.

Port Hedland Hospital's emergency department was damaged in the cyclone, but the out-patient area is now treating casualties.

Dr Andy Robertson from the Health Department says some patients will also be flown back to Perth.

"We are working closely with the Royal Flying Doctor Service, they already have a number of aircraft in the area a number of crews ready to go," he said.

One of those killed and most of the injured were taking cover in shelters called dongers at the Fortescue Metal Group railway camp.

The other fatality occurred at Indee Station, where it is believed a man could have died of natural causes.

Assistant Police Commissioner Graeme Lienert says cyclone fatalities are rare.

"This is just one of these tragedies where the cyclone has sustained its intensity, it's one of those unpredictable things," he said.

Police also say most residents of the area have now been accounted for.

A hotline has been set up for people in the Pilbara region to register their circumstances and people to find out about family members.

Anyone with concerns should contact the Red Cross on 1800 810 710.

All other people inquiries should be directed to FESA on (03) 9323 9823.

abc.net.au

Alert as cyclone aims at WA coast
March 11, 2007 06:33am

JACOB is unlikely to pack the same punch as George, but Pilbara residents were battening down the hatches last night in preparation for another walloping.

The Bureau of Metereology has warned that although Jacob has weakened to a Category 2 cyclone, it will cross the Pilbara coast with wind gusts between 110km/h and 150km/h developing.

The Bureau's warning applies to the north of WA's coast, from Coral Bay to Pardoo, as well as inland to Paraburdoo and Marble Bar.

At 3am WDT Jacob was 440km west northwest of Karratha and and moving at 20km/h, heading southeast to the Pilbara coast.

Bureau of Meteorology spokesman Geoff Goddard said cyclone Jacob was expected to generate gusts about half as strong as cyclone George, but warned that winds could be be fierce enough to cause severe damage.

"In winter time, when people complain about strong winds, that's usually about 100km/h," he said. "This will be a mean wind and cause some damage for sure."

Cyclone George, with gusts up to 270km/h, was classified as category four, but yesterday afternoon had become a low-pressure system.

Mining camp death toll

Questions are being asked about the safety of Fortescue Metal Group's mining accommodation after the death of a woman cleaner and injuries to many more.

Some of the wounded remained in a serious condition in Perth hospitals last night.

Workers yesterday told how they watched as their cabins were ripped apart, while their mates were inside, and later how they were forced to sleep in the mud with just wet blankets covering them, as emergency services tried to reach the remote location.

When supervisors of the RV1 mine site realised workers were speaking to The Sunday Times, they ordered them to stop.

But some workers continued to speak out in the hope safety for mine-site workers would be improved.

Worksafe WA Commissioner Nina Lyhne said employers had an obligation to provide safe accommodation for staff.

"Our investigation will look at the entire sequence of events that took place and what procedures were laid in preparation for the cyclone," she said.

"We will be talking to witnesses to find out what happened."

Opposition Leader Paul Omodei said the FMG camp should have been evacuated before cyclone George hit.

"I understand the dongas are built to withstand cyclone-strength winds," Mr Omodei said. "My concern is that given the strength of the cyclone, the people responsible should have removed those people from a safety perspective."

Just 15km from the devastation of FMG's RV1 camp, and 110km from Port Hedland, 112 people at another camp amazingly survived the terror "without a scratch".

Such was its ferocity that it was almost classified as a category five - the strongest of all.

Cyclone Jacob had been off the Pilbara coast for days before it swung around and headed northwest, straight for Karratha.

At 3pm yesterday, it was 770km west of the mining town.

"It was tracking dead west, south of Christmas Island, and all of a sudden did a big U-turn and started heading back," Mr Goddard said. "It's evil."

Mr Goddard said this time of the year traditionally was cyclone weather because of warm Indian Ocean waters.

"There is every chance we'll get more cyclones," he said.

With The Sunday Times, AAP