The Bureau of Meteorology has advised Tropical Cyclone Lam is continuing to move westwards. Winds will be increasing at Nhulunbuy overnight.
A cyclone WARNING is in place from Maningrida to Cape Shield including Nhulunbuy.
A cyclone WATCH is now in place from Goulburn Island to Maningrida and Cape Shield to Port Roper, including Groote Eylandt.
Tropical Cyclone Lam is currently 230 kilometres east northeast of Nhulunbuy and 365 kilometres northeast of Alyangula. It is moving west at 11km per hour.
GALES with gusts to 110 kilometres per hour are expected to develop in coastal areas between Nhulunbuy and Cape Shield early on Wednesday, extending west to Milingimbi and Maningrida later in the day.
VERY DESTRUCTIVE winds with gusts greater than 170 kilometres per hour may develop over the Gove Peninsula on Wednesday afternoon. VERY DESTRUCTIVE winds may extend further west to Elcho Island from late Wednesday, possibly extending south to Cape Shield if the cyclone takes a more southerly track.
GALES may extend west to Goulburn Island or south to Numbulwar, including Groote Eylandt, overnight Wednesday or during Thursday, depending on the track the cyclone takes.
Coastal residents between Elcho Island and Cape Shield, including Nhulunbuy are specifically warned of a VERY DANGEROUS STORM TIDE as the cyclone centre crosses the coast. Tides will rise significantly above the normal high tide, with DAMAGING WAVES and VERY DANGEROUS FLOODING.
HEAVY RAIN is likely to cause flooding of low-lying areas in the northeast Top End from Wednesday.
For the latest Bureau of Meteorology Advice go to: www.bom.gov.au
Government offices closed
The Commissioner for Public Employment has decided to close all non-essential government offices in Nhulunbuy.
Staff who are not listed as key government employees in their agency’s cyclone plan and who do not have emergency management roles will be permitted to be absent from work tomorrow in order to commence home shelter preparations and fulfil carer responsibilities.
All NTG staff should ensure their managers have their current contact details.
Further information can be found about how to prepare can be found at www.secureNT.nt.gov.au
Schools closed
The Chief Minister has made the decision that schools in the immediate vicinity of the expected path of the cyclone are closed until further notice.
Closed schools are:
- Yirrkala School
- Yirrkala Homelands School
- Nhulunbuy High School
- Nhulunbuy Primary School
- Nhulunbuy Christian School
- Baniyala Garrangali School
Principals of all affected government schools have provided students with advisory letters to take home informing parents and carers of the closures.
Gove airport
The Gove Airport currently remains open. However as conditions change, the Gove Airport operator will continue to closely monitor the airstrip for debris, flooding and any other hazards. If the runway is deemed unsafe by the airport operator, or the operator is prevented from inspecting it due to the weather, the airport will be closed.
In the meantime, pilots are being provided with up-to-date information from the Bureau of Meteorology about the conditions and need to make decisions whether to land at Gove Airport based on their aircraft’s capability.
