Queensland evacuations urged ahead of Cyclone Yasi
Cyclone Yasi poses an "extremely serious threat", forecasters say
Australian officials have urged residents in parts of Queensland to evacuate with their loved ones before Cyclone Yasi strikes, late on Wednesday night local time (after 1200 GMT).
State Premier Anna Bligh said people should just "grab each other" and find safety before the storm hits the coast.
Officials say the category five storm is expected to be the largest to ever hit the continent.
Last month, Queensland was hit by widespread deadly flooding.
Yasi is currently 555km (344 miles) east of Cairns and 560km northeast of Townsville. It has winds of up to 295 km/h (183 mph) at its centre.
Ms Bligh warned that Queenslanders faced a "frightening time".
'Threat to life'Thousands of people have already fled their homes close to the coast and the army has flown hospital patients in the northern city of Cairns to further south to Brisbane.
Ms Bligh told all those remaining in low-lying areas, which are at threat from severe flooding, to leave swiftly before roads and airports close.
"Do not bother to pack bags. Just grab each other and get to a place of safety. Remember that people are irreplaceable," she said.
Those living further inland were meanwhile told to "bunker down" in their homes and prepare for powerful winds.
The Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) has warned that Cyclone Yasi posed an "extremely serious threat to life and property within the warning area, especially between Cairns and Townsville.
"This impact is likely to be be more life threatening that any experienced during recent generations," it warned.
More than 400,000 people live in the cyclone's expected path. The area, which includes the Great Barrier Reef, is also popular with tourists.
Cairns airport closed on Wednesday. Rail lines, mines and coal ports have also shut down.
"We're in the process of packing up boxes... the dogs and the pet snake and getting out of here," Melissa Lovejoy, from Cairns, told Australia's ABC news.
Cyclone Yasi is expected to hit the Australian coast early on Thursday
She said the family are moving to a friend's house that was further inland.
'Preparing mentally'Earlier, Ms Blight warned that the state was "facing a storm of catastrophic proportions in a highly populated area".
"We're looking at 24 hours of quite terrifying winds, torrential rain, likely loss of electricity and mobile phones. People really need to be preparing mentally if nothing else."
Senior BoM forecaster Gordon Banks said the storm had the potential to get even stronger after making landfall.
"As a strong category five we could see wind gusts in excess of 320 kilometres an hour, which is just horrific," ABC News quoted him as saying.
"If you're bunkering down in the regions, it's going to be quite frightening and it's going to go on and on for quite some time."
Analysis
After the worst floods in the state's history, Queenslanders are being told to brace for the most catastrophic storm ever to hit their shores. State Premier Anna Bligh said she did not think Australia had ever seen a storm of this intensity in an area as thickly populated.
She predicted it would be a very frightening time, with 24 hours of terrifying winds, torrential rains, and the likely loss of electricity and mobile phones. Storm surges are expected to cause widespread flooding and wind gusts are likely to rip off roofs and cause significant structural damage.
Meteorologists have upgraded Cyclone Yasi to a category five storm, the most severe level. With winds of almost 300km/h (185mph), they are warning it poses an extremely serious threat to life and property, especially around the cities of Cairns and Townsville. People in low-lying areas especially are being urged to evacuate.
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