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People in northeastern Australia are bracing for their second tropical cyclone in as many months as heavy rain and wind batter the region.
The Bureau of Meteorology issued a cyclone watch for parts of the Northern Territory on Friday morning, saying there would be a ‘high’ chance of tropical low 09U developing into a cyclone.
The warning comes just a month after ex-tropical cyclone Lincoln crossed the NT coast in the southern Gulf of Carpentaria as a Category 1, bringing strong winds, heavy rainfall and minor to moderate flooding.
NT Incident Controller Superintendent Daniel Shean said the operations center had been preparing for the latest event since Monday.
“Communities across the Top End have sufficient food supplies, critical goods and essential services to last through this weather event,” he said.
A tropical low is expected to develop into a tropical #cyclone Saturday morning
‘It has moved quickly and local controllers in each of the communities have been engaged.’
The police in the local communities have warned the residents about the upcoming threat.
The weather system is near the east coast of the NT, with a northerly monsoon moving towards the Gulf of Carpentaria.
The guard zone includes the Alyangula community on Groote Eylandt across to the Queensland border, including Borroloola but not including Ngukkur.
It is expected to reach Category 2 intensity with winds between 126 and 164 km/h.
Parts of the top end are already experiencing heavy rainfall which is likely to increase over the weekend.
The heaviest falls are expected in coastal and island areas on Saturday before reaching further inland into the Carpentaria district on Sunday.
The weather event will then weaken and is likely to move west through the NT as a tropical low, bringing strong winds and rain.
The BOM has also issued dangerous surf warnings along the Arafura Sea, with gale-force winds likely to bring waves of up to 4.5 metres.
The strong surf could lead to coastal erosion and damage in parts of the northern Arnhem district on Friday.
Residents of Galiwinku and Cape Wessel have been warned to stay away from coastal areas as the cyclone forms over the region.