Tropical Low 11U
09:00, Saturday 18 January 2025 (AWST)
As at 05:00 on Saturday, 18 January 2025, the Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) advises Tropical Low 11U is located northeast of Port Hedland.
The system has a high chance of developing into a tropical cyclone on Sunday as it moves in a general west or west-southwest direction parallel north of the Pilbara coast.
The system is expected to continue to intensify during Sunday, and by Monday, 11U is expected to have intensified into a Category 3 cyclone. By this time the cyclone is expected to be located well to the west of Exmouth and continuing to southwest, away from the coast.
Pilbara Ports has closed the Port of Port Hedland as at 09:00 on Saturday, 18 January 2025.
All port inner anchorages are to leave by 18:00.
All recreational vessel owners must safely secure their vessels for cyclonic conditions.
For the latest cyclone warnings visit www.bom.gov.au/cyclone
Pilbara Ports created the recreational vessel safety awareness campaign as part of a proactive approach to reduce the number of recreational vessel-related incidents at the Port of Port Hedland.
A safety exclusion zone is in place around port facilities. Only commercial vessels conducting business with the port are permitted access to the exclusion zone.
Unauthorised vessels will be asked to leave and/or will be escorted away. Repeat offenders will be reported to the Office of Transport Security and could face a possible infringement and/or prosecution.
The Port of Port Hedland is the world's largest bulk export port. It is located approximately 1,650km north of Perth in the East Pilbara region.
While there's room for recreational vessels to share the port waters with large ships, there are a few simple things recreational skippers must do to maintain passeneger safety and avoid interupting port operations.