Australia Weather News

Residents are waking up to assess the damage from Tropical Cyclone Luana in Western Australia's Kimberley region. 

Luana originally hit the Dampier Peninsular, more than 2,000km north of Perth, about 2pm yesterday as a category two.

The cyclone weakened to a category one as it continued south-east last night.

Rain to continue

Luana is expected to weaken below tropical cyclone strength this morning as it tracks further inland.

However, heavy rainfall is expected to continue for Derby and southern parts of the Dampier Peninsula.

The downpour is forecast to extend to areas further inland as the system moves south today.

In Derby, power was set to be restored by 3:30am today after more than 350 Horizon customers experienced outages last night.

'Bit of an anticlimax'

Beagle Bay CEO, Henry Augustine said Luana did not have nearly as much impact as ex-Tropical Cyclone Hayley, which crossed over the new year period.

"People were much more worried the second time round but it was a lot less stronger than Hayley," Mr Augustine said.

"I was expecting something like Hayley but it was a bit quieter, there was a bit of breeze and lots of rain.

"I was sort of panicking but it was a bit of an anticlimax, I suppose."

The two cyclones in a row had been a big "wake-up call" for the community, according to Mr Augustine.

He said a lot more people evacuated this time around, choosing to seek shelter elsewhere.

"After going through a bit of a scare like that, you've got to be wary. You don't know what's happening. It's unpredictable."

Howling winds

On the western side of the Dampier Peninsula, residents reported wild weather with "howling winds".

Roma Peurtollano, a resident of the remote community of Chile Creek, sheltered at home with her dog, who was also frightened.

"It was quite scary going through it all," she said.

"It was howling, the force of the wind was just crazy."

Ms Peurtollano said she had not gone outside yet to see what kind of damage there was.

She said Tropical Cyclone Luana felt stronger than Cyclone Hayley, which passed through in December.

Monitor conditions

A warning zone is in place for coastal areas in the south of King Sound, including Derby.

A separate severe weather warning is in place for adjacent areas in the Kimberley.

Emergency services are advising residents to monitor conditions, take care on roads, and not drive through any floodwaters.

Roads closed

Cape Leveque Road, the main road up the peninsula from Broome, remains closed from McGuigan Road.

The Gibb River Road between Kimbolton Road and Pentecost River is also closed.

Visit Emergency WA, call DFES on 133 337, download the Emergency WA app, or listen to ABC Kimberley to stay up to date.