Cyclone battered communities brace for more wild weather
Amber Swift  |  by www.abc.net.au. All rights reserved. 15.03 | 22:18
Cyclone battered communities brace for more wild weather

The battered communities in Western Australia's Pilbara are preparing for another night of wild weather following the passage of cyclone George.
Cyclone George was last estimated at 85 kilometres north-west of Newman.
The Bureau of Meteorology is warning of destructive winds up to 130 kilometres per hour, but cyclone George is weakening as it moves further inland.


Gale force winds of up to 110 kilometres per hour over central and eastern Plibara may also move into north-east Gascoyne and into northern Goldfields on Saturday.
Rainfall of up to 100 millimetres is also expected along the cyclone's path.
Meanwhile another cyclone is predicted to hit the Pilbara coast on Sunday night.


Cyclone Jacob is 1,100 kilometres north-west of Karratha and is rated a category three storm, one below cyclone George.

Evacuations

Sixty people from the Wodgina mine site were able to drive north to Port Hedland where they are being housed in an evacuation centre.
Close to the mine site is the Fortescue Metals Group railway camp where one woman was killed on Thursday night and 26 people were injured.


The injured were airlifted to Port Hedland and a further 200 people at the railway camp are expected to be evacuated later on Saturday.
Another 600 mining workers in the region are stranded along with a small group from Indee station where one man was killed.
Some Port Hedland residents are still without power and water.


They have not had a chance to repair damaged roofs and are facing another night of strong winds and heavy rain.
Cheryl Greenough from Fire and Emergency Services Authority (FESA) says it is considering calls to bring in the Army Reserve.
"Certainly we're looking at other emergency support," she said.


A decision on what kind of support could be made soon.
The Department for Community Development has opened its Disaster Response hotline for people in the Port Hedland area who have been affected by the cyclone.
The Department says some residents may be eligible for emergency financial assistance to help with accommodation, food, essential clothing and personal items.


The number is 1800-032-965.

Investigation sought

A union representing thousands of workers in Western Australia's north is demanding an investigation into why about 200 people were left at a construction site during the category four cyclone.
One person was killed and 26 people injured when cyclone George ripped through the Fortescue Metals Group railway camp in the Pilbara late on Thursday night.


The workers were sheltering in structures known as dongers when 275-kilometre an hour winds ripped the roofs off some and blew others over.
Paul Asplin from the Australian Workers Union (AWU) says it is ridiculous the workers were not evacuated before the cyclone hit and he wants an investigation to find out why.
"The bottom line is the YMCA building that has been used many, many times in terms of cyclones and whatever, that was never utilised and I'm very disappointed that the town of Port Hedland and others - in particular the two mining companies - hadn't utilised their resources in terms of where these people could have been taken to," he said.

Read more on by www.abc.net.au. All rights reserved.
Keywords: Port Hedland, Metals Group, Western Australia, Fortescue Metals, Fortescue Metals Group
Related news
Post comments
Name
Place
4 + 4 =
Comments