According to the latest storm news, Super Typhoon Narelle is operating off the coast of Northern Queensland (Australia), about 350 km northeast of the town of Cooktown.
According to the latest storm forecast from the Australian Bureau of Meteorology (BOM), this is a very dangerous Category 5 storm formed in the Coral Sea, with sustained winds near the center reaching 205 km/h, gusting up to 285 km/h.
The storm is moving rapidly westward at a speed of about 26 km/h, expected to make landfall on Cape York Peninsula on Friday morning, the area between the Lockhart River community and Cape Melville.
Before officially making landfall, the storm may weaken slightly to level 4 but remain at a very dangerous level. Coen town is also on the path of the storm.
Usually, storms formed in the Coral Sea have unpredictable trajectories due to the impact of complex variable wind currents. However, Hurricane Narelle is moving quite clearly west - a rare thing, making forecasting more accurate.
BOM warns that the Princess Charlotte Bay area may record higher than normal sea levels, causing dangerous coastal flooding when the storm makes landfall. People and tourists in coastal areas are advised to closely monitor storm forecasts and proactively evacuate when necessary.
This area was once hit by the historic storm Cyclone Mahina in 1899 - one of the most damaging storms in Australia.
After passing Cape York, Hurricane Narelle is expected to weaken rapidly to Category 2, before moving to the warm waters of the Gulf of Carpentaria early Saturday morning and is likely to strengthen again as it moves towards Northern Territory.
Narelle is a small-scale but very strong storm. The area of extremely strong winds only extends about 50 km around the storm's center, while the radius of strong winds can cause damage stretching about 75 - 130 km. This characteristic makes the storm possible to strengthen rapidly but also weaken rapidly when entering the mainland.
In the context of super typhoon Narelle diễn biến phức tạp, tourists planning to go to northeastern Australia, especially the Queensland and Cape York areas, need to closely monitor storm forecasts, weather forecasts, limit movement to coastal areas and comply with local government instructions.
