Radio National Breakfast Severe Tropical Cyclone Narelle bears down on WA
Mar 26, 2026
Matt Nicola, Mayor of Exmouth, gives first-hand accounts as Severe Tropical Cyclone Narelle nears. He describes a sleepless night and why he moved into his concrete shop for safety. The conversation covers power outages, likely roof and infrastructure damage, community preparations and memories of Cyclone Vance. Listeners hear about shifting winds and the town facing hours of severe weather.
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Narelle Reformed At Sea And Intensified
- Cyclone Narelle regained strength after crossing north Australia and is moving down the WA coast with very high gusts.
- It picked up power at sea and is packing gusts around 260 km/h as it approaches Exmouth about 1,000 km north of Perth.
Mayor Slept In Shop Because House Felt Unsafe
- Exmouth Mayor Matt Nicola spent the night in his concrete shop because he didn't trust his old house to withstand the cyclone.
- He described the shop shuddering and shaking and said he had no faith in his very old boarded-up house.
Hundreds Left Without Power Before Dawn
- More than 700 Exmouth properties were without power in the early hours, with outages likely to continue through dark hours as the cyclone arrives.
- Horizon Power reported the count and residents faced darkness hours before sunrise while the storm approached.