Cyclone blue alert for Pilbara coast as Ex-TC Lincoln set to redevelop off North West coast

West Pilbara residents are being warned to prepare for heavy winds and rain over the coming days as ex-tropical cyclone Lincoln heads west off the Kimberley coast and is set to re-develop.

A blue alert is active from Roebourne to Ningaloo, including Karratha, Dampier, Onslow and Exmouth, with residents in those areas warned to prepare for cyclonic weather and organise an emergency kit including first aid kit, torch portable radio, food and water.

The system is predicted to track west-southwest and slowly develop, likely reaching tropical cyclone intensity on Friday.

It’s then predicted to turn to the southwest towards the west Pilbara coast while developing further.

On Saturday the system is most likely to cross the far west Pilbara or upper Gascoyne coast and weaken as it moves inland on Sunday.

Speaking ahead of this weekend’s stormy weather, DFES Commissioner Darren Klemm stated additional resources are being put in place in the northwest to ensure community safety.

“We’ve deployed additional personnel vehicles and equipment to Carnarvon, Exmouth, Karratha and Geraldton for a rapid response to cyclone impacts and flooding after a crisis,” Mr Klemm said.

“This includes the ease of management team personnel, urban search and rescue personnel and State Emergency Service volunteers teams, which are leaving for the Pilbara tomorrow morning.

Mr Klemm also highlighted the possibility of road closures along WA’s Northwest coastal highway ahead of likely flash flooding.

“Some communities may become isolated and so we are prepared to undertake resupply missions if required,” he said.

“The best advice we can give people at the moment, given the changing nature of the Cyclones, is to make sure they’re keeping up to date with the warnings that DFES are putting out.”

Bureau of Meteorology State manager James Ashley said the cyclone is expected to bring a period of “dangerous winds and heavy rainfall” to WA’s northwest.

“At the moment we’re expecting this system to be a category two ... but a category three cyclone is not out of the question,” Mr Ashley said.

“We can expect gusts at the core of the cyclone to be around 125 to 150km/h... and see 24-hour rainfall to total 100 to 200mm.”

Despite some intense rainfall over the coming days, the cyclone is said to be moving at a “steady pace”, putting it on track to avoid severe flooding.

“The good news for flooding is that the system seems to be moving at a pretty steady pace, so it’s not going to stall and dump massive amounts [of rain] on any one location,” Mr Ashley added.

Following a spate of record-breaking heatwaves and a tropical low that hammered the region in January, Mr Klemm said it has been a “particularly challenging” period for the Pilbara.

“(The Pilbara) has not had the rainfall that they would normally have had at this point in the year and so they’ve had a really extended bushfire season,” Mr Klemm said.

“And now of course they are going to deal with this cyclone, so it is particularly challenging for them.”