Australia Braces For 'Monster Cyclone' 

A large area of northern Australia is preparing for what could be one the of the biggest cyclones ever to hit the country.

Cyclone Yasi approaches the coast of eastern Australia

 

Cyclone Yasi is 500km wide and bearing down on the state of Queensland, which has already suffered from devastating floods in recent weeks.

The state's Premier Anna Bligh has described it as a "monster, killer storm" and she predicted deadly surges inland.

It is likely to cross the coast sometime late on Wednesday local time, and could hit anywhere along a 400-mile stretch between Cairns and Bowen.

It already is a Category 3 cyclone, and is likely to intensify to a Category 4, with gusts of wind expected to reach 160mph.

Airlines are laying on extra flights to get people out of the area, especially tourists with nowhere else to go.

But the storm is so wide that finding somewhere safe to move to will be difficult for tens of thousands of people.

The holiday resort of Hamilton Island has already been evacuated, and coal terminals in Bowen and Mackay have closed down in another blow to the state's mining industry which has already been disrupted by flooding.

Around 350,000 people live in the region, and they are being urged to make preparations on Tuesday because heavy rain and winds could begin to intensify while the eye of the storm is still a long way north.

Ms Bligh said the threat to life and property was compounded by the possibility it could trigger a tsunami-like storm surge, especially if its landfall coincided with a high tide.

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