Tropical Cyclone Yasi : The Aftermath.

As I said in my previous hub read more...] 2011 has become one year to remember of forget depending on your point of view for Queenslanders. Not only has the state endured Floods the largest on record which affected most of this very large state we now face the devastating effects of a record-breaking Cyclone

Tropicla Cyclone Yasi has to say the least been a apocalyptic event for Australia. It has been the nations greatest natural disaster. At that is no mean feat. The Cyclone hit queensland which was already reeling from the worse floods on record which swept the state only a couple of weeks earlier.

In the hours leading up to Yasi onslaught authorities scrambled to pull 75,000 people out of the immediate danger zone that stretched 650km from Port Douglas to the town of Bowen, and threatened the population centres of Townsville and Cairns with tsunami-like storm surges.

I have been monitoring TC Yasi throught the nigh on ABC News 2/24 ABC Radio Queensland as well as Digital Radio & livestreaming on the Internet.

At 3 am EST Tropical Cyclone Yasi was downgraded from category five (the highest) to a category four after around 10 hours as a category five.

The Aftermath is going to be important at around 9.30 am a high tide will be in the Cairns Innisfail region tide surges are important as the seas will still be affected by the back end of TC Yasi.

The low lying towns of Tully, Cardwell and Mission Beech are expected to be the worse affected by flooding. Huge waves continue to hit coastline from Cooktown to Harvey Bay

At 5.25 a, EST Cairns Councillor reports than initial review of Cairns has fared quite well. Thousands of people have been sheltering in a local shopping centre without power or air conditioning. doors had to be opened to the elements to let air in. a woman is about to give birth but fortunately a midwife and doctors fortunately area ls sheltering in the Shopping Centre.

Cairns councillor Linda Cooper said Akiko Pruss went into labour at the evacuation centre at Redlynch State College at 2.45am (AEST).

"She's been in labour for a few hours," she said.

Ms Pruss and her husband Christian, live in Cairns, and the baby will be their second child.

An English midwife, called Carol, who is celebrating her 25th wedding anniversary on holidays here, is delivering the baby, Ms Cooper said.

The winds during the night were terrifying like a jet engine of an aircraft constantly tuned on for hours on end. After the eye passed their was an eerie quiet for around an hour . Then the back end of the Cyclone meant that thw wind changed to the opposite direction. The length the sound and the ferocity of the winds have been traumatic for everyone

The Australian Army fresh from assisting Queensland's in the aftermath of the South East Queensland Floods are now stationed at Mackay with a squadron of Black hawk helicopters ready to assist when the Cyclone passes. It seems the Army will be taking a much greater role than they did in the south eastern Queensland floods. As the local councils do not have the resources or equipment to clear the roads of debris and make them safe. Airlift of water food and other supplies will be essential to small isolated towns hit by TC Yasi. More than 4000 Australian Soldiers are now involved in the massive logistical clean up in north Queensland.

 At around 10,30 pm EST  on Thursday 3rd of February 2011 Tropical Cyclone Yasi was downgraded to a tropical low.  However a severe storm  flood warning is present for the rivers throughout Queensland.

Overnight more than 100mm  up to 200 mm of rain was recorded in Tropical coast around the regions where Tropical Cyclone Yasi landed.  Severe weather warnings persist on the Bureau of Meteorology website.

For more than a century Dunk Island has been synonymous with island holidays in Australia. Now a tropical wasteland of razed coconut palms, gutted facilities, and sand drifts, it is symbolic of the destruction wrought by Tropical Cyclone Yasi.

Four kilometres off north Queensland  adjacent ot Mission Beach between Townsville and Cairns, Dunk Island is the forgotten ground zero of the category five cyclone that struck last month.

As with the recent South Eastern Queensland Floods the Federal and State Governments were quick to act and have been great in implementing policies to ameliorate the effects right away. The Federal Social Security Department- Centrelink. Offered immediate payment of $1000 for those affected directly by the rising flood waters. As well State Governments helped out straight away by opening evacuation centres which had beds meals and counselling facilities. As well victims could receive a 170 dollar cash grant as well. In addition The Premiers Flood relief Appeal with apply to those adversely affected by Tropical Cyclone Yasi.