Carnarvon and Shark Bay were among the locations affected as ex-tropical cyclone Mitchell crossed the Western Australian coast as a weakened system on Monday night. While communities across the Gascoyne and Pilbara regions reported no serious structural damage, growers in affected areas have indicated crop losses following strong winds and rainfall.
© Shire of Carnarvon
As clean-up activities begin along the Gascoyne and Pilbara coasts, some producers reported damage to crops caused by high wind exposure. Carnarvon recorded some of the strongest wind gusts in the Mid West–Gascoyne region, with speeds reaching 107 kilometres per hour. The highest gust recorded in the broader region on Monday was 169 kilometres per hour on Legendre Island.
Rainfall was also unevenly distributed. Shark Bay reported one of the highest totals in the region, with 103.6 millimetres recorded during the event.
The system weakened before landfall, limiting impacts to infrastructure. However, growers noted that wind and rain intensity varied by location, influencing the extent of crop impact across production areas.
Source: Midwest Times
