Cyclone Rusty already battering WA coast

Red alerts have been issued in WA as tropical cyclone Rusty intensifies to a category four. Source: AAP

A LATE change of course by Severe Tropical Cyclone Rusty has spared Port Hedland the full force of 230km/h winds, leaving the tiny community of Pardoo to bear the brunt of what was a category-four monster.

The eye of the massive storm began to cross the West Australian coast just before 3pm (WST) on Wednesday, more than 30 hours after the north-west coastline was placed on red alert and residents told to take shelter and stay inside.

That included the residents of the Pardoo roadhouse and the Pardoo station, about 120km east of Port Hedland, who were the first to feel the force of Rusty.

Ian Badger, manager of the Pardoo roadhouse, sent his staff to Broome earlier this week while staying to face the storm - and the damage - alone.

"I was half confident yesterday we would miss the main centre of it," Mr Badger said.

"I have got trees going over, so there is going to be a fair bit of damage.

"So we will just keep an eye on everything, and sit it out.

"I can't really do too much - it is pretty much horizontal rain."

The residents of Pardoo Station said on Facebook that the homestead had suffered some slight damage, and they were braced for more.

"We are all holed up in the homestead where the walls are so thick that if you closed the curtains you wouldn't even know it was going on!," they said.

"Have lost the roof to our car port and water damage to another building so far."

The storm was downgraded to a category three as it crossed, with Port Hedland experiencing 36 hours of gale-force winds.

Cyclone warnings remained in place from Sandfire Roadhouse to Whim Creek including Port Hedland, Marble Bar, Nullagine, Millstream, Tom Price, Telfer and Newman.

Widespread very heavy rainfall is tipped for overnight and on Thursday, and is likely to lead to major flooding in the De Grey and Fortescue catchments.

Rainfall totals of 187mm at Yarrie were recorded in the 24 hours until 9am, and a further 76mm fell from 9am to 1.30pm.

Figures from NASA satellites tracking the huge storm make for frightening reading, with the TRMM satellite, which flew directly over Rusty on Tuesday, recording an hourly average rainfall of more than 138mm near Rusty's western eye wall.

And a 3D image of Rusty's rainfall and cloud heights created at the Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland showed the tops of some of the towering thunderstorms in Rusty's eye reaching heights of over 12km.

John Newman, the regional director of the Department of Fire and Emergency Services, said it was vital people stayed indoors until local authorities confirmed the area safe.

"During a red alert there is a threat to lives and properties," Mr Newman said.

"This message seems to fall on deaf ears as we continually encounter people outdoors and on the roads causing a danger to themselves and others."

While WA braced for Rusty, the rest of Australia's weather was also being affected, with cloud from the system streaming across the continent towards Victoria.

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