Tropical cyclone Fina strikes Australia's Northern Territory, shuts airport

SYDNEY: The Australian city of Darwin's international airport remained shuttered on Sunday (Nov 23) after a tropical cyclone brought destructive winds to the Northern Territory capital overnight.

Fina, a category three cyclone, was on Sunday clocking wind gusts of up to 205kmh as it moved away from Northern Territory capital Darwin after passing the city late on Saturday as a "severe tropical cyclone", the nation's Bureau of Meteorology said.

For residents of Darwin, population of around 140,000, Fina conjured painful memories of Cyclone Tracy, which wiped out much of the city on Christmas Day 1974, killing 66 people, in what was one of Australia's worst natural disasters.

Darwin International Airport, which closed on Saturday as a precaution over Fina, said on Sunday it was "working to re-establish operations as soon as it is safe to do so".

"Strong prevailing winds and heavy rain continue," the airport said in a cyclone alert on its Facebook page.

Authorities on Sunday morning urged Darwin residents to stay clear of downed powerlines across the city. "Now is not the time to be sightseeing," emergency agency SecureNT said on its Facebook page.

Government-owned Power and Water Corporation said it was not yet able to estimate how many people were without power, with crews starting damage assessments on Sunday morning.

Several homes and infrastructure in the region had been damaged by the cyclone but no one was seriously injured, the Australian Broadcasting Corp reported.

Category three tropical cyclones, two levels below the highest danger rating, typically damage structures, crops and trees and cause power failures, according to the weather bureau.

In March, ex-tropical cyclone Alfred hit neighbouring Queensland, closing schools and leaving hundreds of thousands of people without power.