A major port on Australia’s west coast used by Rio Tinto Group to export iron-ore has started clearing ships from the harbor ahead of a cyclone that’s expected to form early Friday.
All port anchorages are expected to be cleared at Dampier at 6 p.m. local time, according to a statement late Wednesday from Pilbara Ports Authority. The west coast of Australia is the nation’s key region for the export and production of iron ore, and also includes a number of oil and gas operations.
A tropical low is currently offshore the Kimberley coast and the system will likely reach cyclone intensity overnight, according to a notice from Australia’s Bureau of Meteorology. The storm originally made landfall last week in the far north as Cyclone Lincoln before weakening and tracking west.
The storm will most likely cross the far west Pilbara or upper Gascoyne coast on Saturday and weaken as it moves inland on Sunday, according to the bureau. The cyclone could make landfall near Carnarvon, a key region for growing bananas in Western Australia.
Australia’s cyclone season typically runs from November to April. Late last year, Cyclone Jasper damaged sugar crops and inundated homes in Queensland.