Port Hedland is the world's biggest export point for iron ore and is used by BHP Group, Fortescue and billionaire Gina Rinehart's Hancock Prospecting. Photo: AFP
People in the path of Severe Tropical Cyclone Ilsa have been ordered to take shelter immediately after it intensified into a powerful category five system ahead of its final charge towards Western Australia's northern coastline.
Cyclone Ilsa which has been upgraded to the highest level, a category five system, is located 180km north of Port Hedland with sustained winds near its centre of 205km/h and gusts to 285km/h.
The last category five cyclone to make landfall in West Australia was Cyclone Laurence in 2009 which crossed the coast along the same stretch of Eighty Mile Beach where Ilsa is expected to land.
The Bureau of Meteorology's Todd Smith said an automated weather station at Rowley Shoals, an island 260km west of Broome, had already recorded wind gusts up to 235km/h.
"So we know that this system is really packing a punch," he said.
Smith said there was now "high confidence" the system would track to the south-east, and cross the coast near Pardoo Roadhouse later on Thursday evening.
"Category five cyclones are incredibly dangerous, with wind gusts in excess of 250km/h," he said.
"That's going to cause a heap of damage to trees, vegetation, if there were any caravans around they would be destroyed.
"Any houses that aren't built to code are going to suffer extensive damage from that kind of wind strength."
Preparing for red alert
The mining town of Port Hedland is Australia's biggest bulk export port and home to about 16,000 people.
The entire town is now bounded by a red alert warning, while all vessels from the port were ordered to be cleared from the harbour yesterday.
Port Hedland is the world's biggest export point for iron ore and is used by BHP Group, Fortescue and billionaire Gina Rinehart's Hancock Prospecting. Rio Tinto exports out of Port of Dampier, which lies to the west of Port Hedland.
The weather bureau said Port Hedland may be spared by "the very destructive core of Ilsa" but winds with gusts of up to 155km/h could still lash the mining town.
It will be the strongest system to hit the country's far northwest region since Cyclone Christine crossed the coast in December 2013, weather bureau forecaster Jessica Lingard said.
BHP in an emailed response said it was closely tracking the cyclone but its mining and rail operations were continuing.
A yellow alert, which orders residents to be ready to shelter from a cyclone, has been issued for several remote towns. The alert covered Port Hedland, where the majority of the 15,000 residents are employees of mining companies.
-Reuters / ABC