Cyclone could become superstorm
TONGA has declared a state of emergency as the Pacific island kingdom braces for a direct hit by a powerful cyclone that is threatening to become a Category Five superstorm.
Severe Tropical Cyclone Gita has already created havoc in neighbouring Samoa and is gathering pace as it approaches Tonga.
Acting Prime Minister Semisi Sika issued a nationwide alert, saying he was “satisfied that an emergency is happening or is about to happen.”
The Fiji Meteorological Service predicted Gita will become a Category Five storm — the top of the scale — before reaching Tonga at 7pm Monday night (5pm AEDT).
It is already packing gusts of 275km/h as it sits off the east coast of the country’s most populous island, Tongatapu.
Tonga’s Fua’amotu Weather Forecasting Centre warned residents could expect “very destructive hurricane force winds”.
Severe Tropical Cyclone #Gita in the South Pacific on #Himawari8 imagery pic.twitter.com/F8qrDOuFF5
— Stu Ostro (@StuOstro) February 11, 2018
Apia fl…
Read the full article at: http://www.news.com.au/technology/environment/tonga-declares-state-of-emergency-as-cyclone-gita-threatens-to-become-category-5-superstorm/news-story/c876b0ec92931f1ff3875e101414c96e
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