Cyclone Ita in Australia

Cyclone Ita made landfall on the north coast of Australia on the evening of 11 April 2014. The storm brought powerful winds and heavy rain.

Ita was classified as a Category 5 Severe Tropical Cyclone, which is on the higher end of the Saffir-Simpson scale, while it was approaching Australia. But the Australian Bureau of Meteorology downgraded the classification to Category 4 when it made landfall, and the storm further weakened as it moved inland. The storm made landfall at Cape Flattery, in the state of Queensland.

The Solomon Islands faced Cyclone Ita late last week, and the then-Category 1 storm caused flooding and killed an estimated 21 people. There were concerns that the storm would cause a great deal of damage in Australia, but no casualties were reported. Thousands of people took shelter or evacuated their homes to avoid the storm, however, and property damage from the cyclone's strong winds occurred.