Australia Weather News

Communities in Far North Queensland are getting back to business as ex-Tropical Cyclone Narelle heads along the northern coast of Western Australia.

The weather system first made landfall as a severe category four cyclone on the east coast of the Cape York Peninsula on Friday morning, before dropping to category two as it moved west past Weipa.

The cyclone intensified as it passed over the Gulf on Saturday night, becoming a category three storm when it reached the Northern Territory yesterday morning.

It was then downgraded to a tropical low as it travelled north towards Katherine last night.

It is now expected to bring strong winds and major rainfall to Western Australia.

Back to business

Peter Abbott operates overnight reef expeditions and snorkelling tours for the Entrada Travel Group in Cairns.

The business was forced to shut its doors for two days as the ex-tropical cyclone crossed the state, but has since started holding trips on the reef.

If visitors held any concerns about swimming in the ocean after a natural disaster, Mr Abbott said there was nothing to fear.

"In many ways it's the best time to come because after those big storms come through, the seas are generally flat and for us it's a great time to be out on the reef," he said.

Mr Abbott encourages people to visit the Far North region and support local businesses ahead of the Easter holidays.

"It's really important for us to keep those tourism numbers coming along … to help us recover from some of the damage and disruptions that the storms have caused us," he said.

"I've got to keep my staff employed, I've got to keep all my creditors paid."

Federal MP for Leichhardt Matt Smith,whose electorate covers Queensland's northern tip, said communities were showing resilience in the face of the natural disaster.

"People were looking after their friends and their family and their neighbours … that's a big part of the Far North Queensland identity, and it's shone through over the last few days," he said.

But there are now calls for the government to fund the construction of a disaster shelter to protect residents from future weather events.

"These are people who deserve to be safe, and a cyclone shelter is a big part of that," Mr Smith said.

Power restored, students return to the classroom

More than 2,000 homes were left without power when the tropical cyclone travelled through the Far North.

But Ergon Energy restored power to several towns, including parts of Aurukun and Lockhart River, over the weekend.

Just under 300 sites remained without power across all of northern Queensland this morning.

The NBN said internet access had been restored in affected areas, but its staff would remain on stand-by in case the situation changed.

All state schools have also reopened.

Rainfall predicted to ease this week

While the weather conditions across Queensland are expected to ease, Shane Kennedy from the Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) said some areas would experience storms over the next few days.

"We could see some isolated moderate rainfall between 20 to 60 millimetres across Cape York, most likely confined just to the Torres Strait and potentially just north of Weipa," he said.

A Flood Watch warning is still in place for the Cape York and the North Tropical Coast, with moderate flooding likely for several catchments, including the Lockhart and Daintree Rivers.

Mr Kennedy said as the waters moved south, the towns of Jundah and Windorah in central-west Queensland could experience some flooding.

"We could see some major flooding there over the next few days and then expect we'll have those slow peaks continue to move downstream," he said.

Weather conditions are also expected to ease from Townsville down to Rockhampton, with minor rainfall to ease by mid-week.

An offshore low generating large waves and strong winds is likely to batter parts of the state's south coast, stretching from K'gari (Fraser Island) down to the Gold Coast and into northern New South Wales tomorrow.

Mr Kennedy said while Queensland would have a brief reprieve from the torrential weather, the bureau was still on alert.

"It's possible to see another low-pressure system or two develop near the Far North in about a week's time or potentially early in April," he said.

While the system is unlikely to develop into another tropical cyclone, it could bring strong winds and large waves to the coast.