Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Tropical cyclone Ului heads towards Australia ( bbc)

Tropical cyclone Ului heads towards Australia


AdvertisementHaving battered the Solomon Islands earlier this week, Ului is now heading towards Australia as a powerful tropical cyclone.

It is expected to weaken significantly over cooler water before slamming into the Queensland coast with sustained wind speeds of around 70 mph (113 km/h).

Residents and tourists have been evacuated from islands on the Great Barrier Reef in preparation for the cyclone.

Meanwhile, reports emerging from isolated parts of Fiji suggest that widespread damage has been caused by Cyclone Tomas.

The storm brought winds of up to 120 mph (193 km/h), which destroyed homes, uprooted trees and downed power lines. Only one person is believed to have died.

The full extent of the damage his yet to be determined but a state of emergency has been declared by Fijian authorities.

Tomas is now moving out to sea and is expected to gradually weaken over the next days.