Cyclone Narelle: Emergency chiefs warn storm still packing a punch and to stay inside if near the eye

Exmouth has been “severely impacted” and authorities are warning the danger is not over as monster cyclone Narelle moves south.

Wind gusts of 200km/h were recorded at Learmonth airport, 33km south of town, as the eye of the storm passed, and 200mm of rain has drenched the area in six hours.

Department of Fire and Emergency Services commissioner Darren Klemm said Narelle was the most powerful storm system to hit the town since cyclone Vance in 1999.

The town was without power on Friday afternoon.

“We’ve had 25 calls for assistance from across the Pilbara,” Mr Klemm said.

“Most reports in Exmouth are for roof damage at this time and the majority in in the Midwest-Gascoyne are for water ingress.

“We haven’t had any reports of injuries.

“The eye of the cyclone has passed now but the town is still being impacted and is likely to stay at emergency warning until the middle of this afternoon.”

Premier Roger Cook urged everyone to heed the warnings.

“We know everyone in the north-west are made of tough stuff but our thoughts are with you all,” he said.

An evacuation centre in Exmouth had to be evacuated after the roof peeled off.

Dozens of people who were sheltering there sought safety at a nearby church.

A watch and act alert remains in place for Karratha, which authorities conceded caused concern among locals — surprised they weren’t locked down.

“Last time we had an event there were people that were unhappy that it was an emergency warning and not a watch and act and then we’ve got the reverse this time,” Mr Klemm said.

“We’re happy to look at it, understanding that there has been this change from the old warning system to the new Australia warning system.

“We’re in about a second or third season of that so there’s always going to be some teething issues.”

Evacuation centres have also been set up in Shark Bay and Carnarvon as Narelle heads south with category 4 cyclone expected to weaken between Coral Bay and Cape Cuvier.

“It is likely to still be a category three system as it moves just inland from Carnarvon and inland from Shark Bay further south,” the Bureau of Meterology’s James Ashby said.

“Geraldton may still see damaging winds tonight and into the early hours of Saturday.”

Heavy rain in Perth is expected to ease by Saturday afternoon.

“We’re dealing with a particularly complex and difficult cyclone, which is incredibly large,” Mr Klemm said.

“There is a big team working on making sure we get these warnings and the timing of them as accurate as we possibly can.”