The twin storms, dubbed the ''cyclone sandwich'' by locals, struck early Friday, about 2,500 kilometers (1,500 miles) apart. Cyclone Lam hit a sparsely populated stretch of the Northern Territory, while the more powerful and potentially dangerous Cyclone Marcia began crossing over small coastal towns along the eastern coast of Queensland state a few hours later, packing wind gusts up to 285 kilometers (180 miles) an hour.
''Over the next few hours, many thousands of Queenslanders are going to go through a harrowing and terrifying experience,'' Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said. ''This is a severe cyclone. I want everyone to take all the precautions that they possibly can take.''
About 30,000 people living in the Queensland town of Yeppoon and surrounding areas were expected to experience the worst of the storm. More than 100 schools were closed and nearly 900 residents in low-lying areas were told to evacuate their homes.
No immediate damage had been reported, but officials pleaded with hardened Queensland residents _ no stranger to violent cyclones _ to take the storm seriously. A cyclone of similar strength, Yasi, hit the state in 2011, destroying scores of homes but causing no deaths.
''This is going to be a calamity, there's absolutely no doubt about that,'' Queensland Police Commissioner Ian Stewart said.
The Bureau of Meteorology warned that Marcia had a ''very destructive core,'' had intensified rapidly and was likely to cause flooding.
In the Northern Territory, Cyclone Lam struck a remote stretch of coast, tearing up trees and downing power lines, but causing no major damage as it weakened and moved further inland. No injuries had been reported.
AP
timesofindia.indiatimes.com
20/2/15
Αυστραλία: Τις βορειοανατολικές ακτές θα χτυπήσει ο κυκλώνας Μάρσια...
ReplyDeleteΥπάλληλοι των υπηρεσιών έκτακτης ανάγκης της Αυστραλίας εξέδωσαν σήμερα προειδοποιήσεις καθώς ο κυκλώνας Μάρσια πλησιάζει το βορειοανατολικό τμήμα της χώρας.
Οι αρχές προειδοποίησαν τους κατοίκους ότι πρόκειται να σημειωθούν έντονες βροχοπτώσεις και πλημμύρες, θυελλώδεις άνεμοι αλλά και τεράστια κύματα.
Οι υπηρεσίες έκτακτης ανάγκης έχουν ήδη προχωρήσει στην εκκένωση τουλάχιστον 1.000 κατοικιών που βρίσκονται στην πορεία του κυκλώνα.
Ωστόσο, πολλοί κάτοικοι δεν κατάφεραν να κάνουν έγκαιρα τις απαραίτητες ετοιμασίες ώστε να εκκενώσουν τις κατοικίες τους και αυτούς ο αρχές συμβούλευσαν να προστατευτούν στο ασφαλέστερο μέρος των σπιτιών τους.
«Κατά τη διάρκεια των επόμενων 24 ωρών, οι κάτοικοι της πολιτείας Κουίνσλαντ πρόκειται να υποστούν μια οδυνηρή και τρομακτική εμπειρία», δήλωσε σε συνέντευξη Τύπου η πρωθυπουργός της πολιτείας αυτής, Αναστασία Παλατσούκ. «Μας απασχολεί ιδιαίτερα η ασφάλεια των ανθρώπων».
Ο κυκλώνας Μάρσια αναβαθμίστηκε το βράδυ της Πέμπτης στην κατηγορία 5, την υψηλότερη βαθμίδα. Πρόκειται να διασχίσει τις βορειοανατολικές ακτές του Κουίνσλαντ μέσα στις επόμενες ώρες, με ανέμο
http://www.ethnos.gr/article.asp?catid=22769&subid=2&pubid=64143677
20/2/15
Australia storms: Cyclones hit Queensland and Northern Territory...
ReplyDeleteTwo major storms have slammed into Australia, bringing winds that have knocked out power to homes and forced evacuations in coastal areas.
Tropical Cyclone Marcia hit the Queensland coast between St Lawrence and Yeppoon.
Arriving as a Category Five storm, it has now been downgraded to a Three but forecasters are warning of heavy rain and abnormally high tides.
Separately, Tropical Cyclone Lam hit the Northern Territory.
Lam, which arrived as a Category Four, struck Elcho Island and is moving south-west. Local residents said roofs had been torn off from a number of houses and trees uprooted.
There have been no reports of injuries there, and the storm was later downgraded to Category Two as it continued moving inland...............http://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-31544694
20/2/15
Verwüstungen durch "Marcia" und "Lam" ....Wirbelstürme wüten in Australien ...
ReplyDeleteUmgestürzte Bäume, zerstörte Häuser und geschlossene Schulen: Über den Norden Australiens sind die Wirbelstürme "Marcia" und "Lam" hinweggezogen. Zwei so starke Zyklone binnen 24 Stunden habe es noch nicht gegeben, sagte ein Meteorologe.
Zwei schwere Wirbelstürme haben in Australien eine Spur der Verwüstung hinterlassen. Der Zyklon "Marcia" zog über den nordöstlichen Bundesstaat Queensland. Kurz zuvor hatte Sturm "Lam" den Bundesstaat Northern Territory erreicht. Die Behörden warnten vor Sturmfluten und Hochwasser. In Queensland blieben sicherheitshalber zahlreiche Schulen und Kindertagesstätten geschlossen. Die Behörden richteten in mehreren Orten Aufnahmezentren ein.
Nach Angaben der Wetterbehörde hatte "Marcia" die höchste Kategorie fünf und "Lam" die Kategorie vier. Zwei so schwere Wirbelstürme binnen 24 Stunden habe es in Australien bislang nicht gegeben, sagte der Meteorologe Adam Morgan. Sie beschädigten Häuser, entwurzelten Bäume und rissen Stromleitungen herunter. Tausende Menschen waren ohne Strom. Die Polizei sperrte vorsorglich eine Autobahn, mindestens 26 Flüge wurden abgesagt.........................http://www.tagesschau.de/ausland/wirbelsturm-australien-101.html
20/2/15
Australia prepares for floods in aftermath of major cyclones...
ReplyDeleteAustralia braced on Saturday for heavy rains and floods after weather authorities downgraded two cyclones that lashed its north and northeast, damaging homes and snapping power links, but there were no reports of casualties.
Troops were on standby to help with clean-up efforts in the northeastern state of Queensland after heavy rains and winds in excess of 200 kph (125 mph) brought by Cyclone Marcia on Friday.
Weather authorities warned of destructive winds, heavy rains and abnormally high tides as rivers swelled, but officials said the storm's impact had been weaker than expected....................http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/02/21/us-australia-cyclone-idUSKBN0LP05X20150221?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews
21/2/15
Cyclone Marcia Leaves 1,500 Homes Damaged, Thousands Without Electricity...
ReplyDeleteCategory 5 cyclone Marcia rampaged through the Australian state of Queensland leaving at least 1,500 houses and 1,500 power lines severely damaged. Around 100 houses in the cities of Yeppoon and Rockhampton are in critical condition......................http://sputniknews.com/asia/20150222/1018589263.html#ixzz3SSo5gE2s
22/2/15