Australia Weather News

Fruit and vegetable producers in Western Australia's Gascoyne are estimated to have suffered losses above $25 million from Tropical Cyclone Narelle.

The category three system last month tore through the Gascoyne town of Carnarvon, 890 kilometres north of Perth, which produces fresh food for domestic and export markets valued at almost $1.5 billion a year.

A clearer picture of the extent of the damage has begun to emerge nearly one month after the event, with early results from a grower impact survey. 

Carnarvon Growers Association (CGA) president Phil Frzop said the initial infrastructure damage and crop losses from Cyclone Narelle were "huge".

He expected the $25 million damage bill would rise in the coming months.

"It's going to have a big impact across the board through employment, and some growers probably might not even be able to continue," Mr Frzop said. 

Damage widespread

Grower Tam Chinnery was expecting to harvest her crop of oranges shortly after Narelle passed, but the cyclone "smashed" her orchard with wind gusts of up to 133km/h.

"A lot of the fruit just dropped on the ground, and we'd already lost a bit of fruit from the previous cyclone," she said.

"What didn't drop on the ground was just absolutely bruised, scratched [or] pummelled."

Ms Chinnery said her farm was able to salvage some oranges and send them to Perth for juicing, but the poor fruit quality meant a significant price cut.

"No-one wants to buy an orange that's got big bruises and scars all over it," she said.

"It's costing us a lot of money to send it down on the odd hope that someone's going to buy it and use it for juice."

Ms Chinnery said damaging winds from Narelle "sandblasted" her ground crops.

The flooding that came a few days after Cyclone Narelle's strong winds marked the fourth natural disaster to hit the region this year, after Cyclone Mitchell in February and a heatwave in January.

Farms in some areas along the Gascoyne River also suffered crop damage from the flooding.

Calls for more financial assistance

State government grants of up to $5,000 were made available to small businesses and primary producers impacted by Cyclone Narelle.

Mr Frzop said that amount "wouldn't do much" to help local farmers.

"If you have a look at Queensland and areas like that, when they flooded last year, they were given about $70,000 per farm," he said.

"The region just wants to be supported and recognised for what it actually is because we seem to get left behind in the mineral boom.

"You can't eat iron ore."

WA Agriculture Minister Jackie Jarvis, who visited the town this week, has not responded to multiple ABC interview requests.