WATCH ABOVE: Australia braces for powerful cyclone
TORONTO – Tropical Cyclone Ita made landfall in Australia Friday morning as a powerful Category 4 storm.
The storm struck Cape Flattery around 9 a.m. local time. Strong surges and powerful winds slammed into the region as the Australian Bureau of Meteorology continued to issue warnings and watches for several towns along the coast.
WATCH: Satellite shows approach of Ita
Winds of 230 km/h were reported, downing trees, damaging homes, and knocking out power in some areas.
Ita is west of popular tourist destination Cairns, but it will continue to move south over the next 24 hours.
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As of Friday night local time, the storm had been downgraded to a Category 3 with winds close to 170 km/h.
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