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Australia has begun evacuating thousands of people from its northeastern coast ahead of a cyclone that could rival Hurricane Katrina in its destructive power. Cyclone Yasi has been upgraded to a Category 4 storm. Forecasters say it is likely to further strengthen and could generate winds of up to 175 mph before it hits land on Wednesday morning. An official warning has been issued saying it poses a "serious threat" to communities in north Queensland. More than 400,000 people live in Yasi's predicted path, which includes the towns of Cairns, Townsville and Mackay. The region, which takes in Australia's Great...

A monster Cyclone (named Cyclone Yasi) is currently heading towards the State of Queensland in Australia. Queensland is only just recovering from recent flooding across most of this huge State. This monster cyclone is similar in size and scope to Hurricane Katrina, and there are very grave fears for what might may happen when this huge System makes landfall, on early Thursday morning, in an area south of Cairns. Some areas are expecting huge sea surges, and there will be rainfall associated with the Cyclone in the vicinity of 40 inches, which will cause major flooding. Some of the imagery...