(Bloomberg) -- A huge clean-up operation is under way in the Australian state of Queensland after a powerful cyclone swept through the region, tearing roofs off buildings, downing trees and forcing tourists to bunker down at luxury island resorts.
The Whitsunday Islands in the heart of the Great Barrier Reef suffered “substantial damage” when Cyclone Debbie swept through yesterday, and roads have been cut off around coastal towns, state Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk told ABC television Wednesday. Andrew Willcox, a regional mayor, told the broadcaster the town of Bowen looks “like a war zone.”
Related: 7 ways to mitigate risk for businesses before the next natural disaster
|Flooding expected
Severe weather warnings remain in place even after Debbie was downgraded to a tropical low overnight as it moved inland, with damaging wind and heavy rain expected to cause flooding, according to the Bureau of Meteorology. The storm halted at least 20 percent of coal output from the biggest producing basin in Queensland, with BHP Billiton Ltd. and Glencore Plc suspending operations.
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