Forecast

Australian Government Bureau of Meteorology
Tropical Cyclone Advice
Tropical Cyclone Warning Centre

Media: The Standard Emergency Warning Signal should NOT be used with this warning.

TOP PRIORITY FOR IMMEDIATE BROADCAST

TROPICAL CYCLONE ADVICE NUMBER 11
Issued at 05:49 AM WST on Saturday 07 February 2026

Headline:
Tropical Cyclone Mitchell (21U) is intensifying, with hazardous conditions expected for the Pilbara coast later today.

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: Coral Bay to Carnarvon, including adjacent inland areas.

Cancelled zone: None.

Details of Tropical Cyclone Mitchell 21U at 5:00 am AWST:
Intensity: Category 1, sustained winds near the centre of 85 kilometres per hour with wind gusts to 120 kilometres per hour.
Location: within 55 kilometres of 18.9 degrees South 118.8 degrees East, estimated to be 160 kilometres north of Port Hedland and 290 kilometres northeast of Karratha.
Movement: west southwest at 15 kilometres per hour.
Tropical Cyclone Mitchell (21U) lies to the north of Port Hedland and is expected to intensify further. It is forecast to reach category 2 cyclone later today.
Mitchell is moving to the west southwest and is expected to remain off the coast initially. It will most likely begin a gradual turn towards the southwest, and the Pilbara coast, from tonight, most likely making landfall over the western Pilbara coast during Sunday afternoon.
If Mitchell moves slower and remains offshore for longer, there is a slight possibility that it intensifies to a category 3 cyclone during Saturday night.

Hazards:
DESTRUCTIVE WIND GUSTS to 150 km/h may occur over the coastal parts of the Pilbara around Karratha, Dampier and Wickham from this evening, extending to Mardie tonight. Destructive winds may extend further west along the coast towards Onslow and Exmouth during Sunday as the destructive core of Mitchell approaches the coast.
GALES with DAMAGING WIND GUSTS to 120 km/h are possible along the coastal parts between De Grey and Mardie during Saturday, 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 Pilbara coast.
Tides between Wickham and Exmouth are likely to rise above the normal high tide mark on Saturday and Sunday and LARGE WAVES 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.

Cyclone advices and DFES Alerts are available by dialling 13 DFES (13 3337)

A map showing the track of the cyclone is available at:
http://www.bom.gov.au/cyclone