With warnings of gusts expected to exceed 300km/h, tens of thousands of Queenslanders are rushing to stock up on food and preparing to bunker down in sturdy shelters.
Monster cyclone Yasi is rapidly approaching the north-east coast with furious winds, rains and surging seas on a scale unseen there in generations.
After whipping across Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, the storm is expected to smash the mainland later today (Wednesday). The storm front is more than 500km wide and Yasi is so strong, it could reach far inland before it significantly loses power.
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“It’s such a big storm – it’s a monster, killer storm,” Queensland Premier Anna Bligh said. “This impact is likely to be more life threatening than any experienced during recent generations.”
“Do not bother to pack bags. Just grab each other and get to a place of safety. Remember that people are irreplaceable,” she told citizens in the expected zone of devastation.
The Sydney Morning Herald reports that fears and anxiety about the approaching cyclone have whipped up a social media storm. Hundreds have taken to Facebook and Twitter, plus other social media platforms, either to vent their frustrations with Mother Nature or to help update people on the category five cyclone. Many people have moved or are in the process of moving into shelters and are using social media to update friends and share information.