Source: Bureau of Meteorology

Issued at 8:54 am WST on Saturday 7 February 2026

Headline:
Tropical Cyclone Mitchell (21U), category 2 intensity forecast to reach severe category 3 cyclone as it passes just north of Karratha overnight and then along the west Pilbara coast on Sunday.

Areas Affected:
Warning zone: De Grey to Ningaloo, including Port Hedland, Karratha, Onslow, and Exmouth, and extending inland through the western Pilbara to include Pannawonica.

Watch zone: Ningaloo to Carnarvon and adjacent inland areas.

Cancelled zone: None.

Details of Tropical Cyclone Mitchell 21U at 8:00 am AWST:
Intensity: Category 2, sustained winds near the centre of 95 kilometres per hour with wind gusts to 130 kilometres per hour.
Location: within 35 kilometres of 19.0 degrees South 118.4 degrees East, estimated to be 145 kilometres north of Port Hedland and 255 kilometres northeast of Karratha.
Movement: west southwest at 16 kilometres per hour.

Tropical Cyclone Mitchell (21U) lies to the north of Port Hedland is intensifying and now forecast to reach category 3 cyclone overnight.

Mitchell is forecast to move to the southwest closer to the Pilbara coast today, and track close to the west Pilbara coast during Sunday before taking a more southerly track over land during Monday.

Hazards:
VERY DESTRUCTIVE WIND GUSTS to 170 km/h are possible over the coastal parts of the Pilbara around Karratha, Dampier and Wickham overnight, extending to Onslow during Sunday as the destructive core of Mitchell moves along the coast.

DESTRUCTIVE WIND GUSTS to 150 km/h are forecast around Karratha, Dampier and Wickham from as early as this evening, extending to west towards Onslow Sunday and possibly Exmouth Sunday night.

GALES with DAMAGING WIND GUSTS to 120 km/h are possible along the coastal parts between De Grey and Dampier during Saturday afternoon, extending west to Onslow and Exmouth and through inland parts of the western Pilbara, including Pannawonica, from early Sunday morning.

Widespread moderate to locally HEAVY RAINFALL which may lead to FLASH FLOODING is possible from later today with this risk persisting through the weekend for the central and west Pilbara coast extending to the west Gascoyne region on Monday.

ABNORMALLY HIGH TIDES could cause SERIOUS FLOODING in the Karratha region early Sunday morning, and then in the Onslow region on the Sunday afternoon.

Elsewhere on the west Pilbara coast including Exmouth, tides are likely to rise above the normal high tide mark on Saturday and Sunday which may produce FLOODING of low-lying coastal areas.

Recommended Action:
Ensure you know what to do in a cyclone. For the latest DFES community alerts and warnings visit www.emergency.wa.gov.au or download the Emergency WA app.



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