Bureau of Meteorology staff on remote Coral Sea island to be evacuated as Tropical Cyclone Jasper threatens direct hit

Bureau of Meteorology staff on an idyllic, and very remote, island are to be evacuated amid fears it could see a direct hit from Cyclone Jasper.

Four Australian meteorologists are set to be evacuated from a weather station on a remote island in the Coral Sea which is in severe danger of getting a direct hit from Tropical Cyclone Jasper.

Jasper is rapdily intensifying over the Coral Sea and is heading towards Queensland.

The storm is currently at category three and is located 1200kms north west of Cairns and 500km south west of Honiara.

It is expected to power up to a category 4 storm on Friday which can deliver winds to up to 199 km/h and gusts reaching 279 km/h. If that happens, it will become the earliest forming category 4 Australian cyclone in 18 years.

Jasper is expected to make landfall in northern Queensland early next week.

But before it reaches the coast, there are fears it could sweep over a clutch of Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) staff who live and work on a tiny island in the middle of the ocean maintaining a remote and crucial weather station.

Willis Island is a tiny island 450 kilometres from east of Cairns. Picture: SUPPLIED

Willis Island is located 450km east of Cairns on the outer edge of the Great Barrier Reef. It is the only inhabited island in Australia’s Coral Sea Island Territory.

It’s also incredibly small measuring just 500 meters long by 150 meters wide. It contains the weather station, offices and accommodation, and not much else.

Aside from scores of sea birds like terns, Willis Island has hosted generally four BOM staff continuously since 1921 to man and monitor the weather station.

The station provides an important role in tracking storms like cyclones. But it could soon become the victim of one itself.

The Bureau said it would be evacuating the four staff on the island “well before” Jasper arrives.

Aside from four humans, Willis Island hoists scores of seabirds.

The island hosts a crucial weather station that monitors storms and cyclone s- but a cyclone could score a direct hit on it this weekend.

It’s hard to predict exactly where Jasper’s track will take it, but it’s possible it could pass directly above Willis Island on the weekend.

“The safety and wellbeing of our staff members is of absolute priority,” the BOM said in a statement to the Courier Mail.

“We are monitoring the situation closely and have plans in place to evacuate staff via helicopter well before severe Tropical Cyclone Jasper presents any risk to the island.”

Willis Island previously saw a direct hit from a the ferocious Cyclone Yasi, on February 2, 2011.

Some meteorological models have Cyclone Jasper passing directly over Willis Island, marked above with a white dot, as it moves towards Queensland. Picture: Windy.

Winds of 185 km/h were recorded before the weather station’s equipment was damaged by the storm.

The cyclone was so powerful it stripped the island of vegetation and even altered its shape.

The four BOM staff on Willis Island at the time had already been evacuated. It took until the end of 2011 to get the weather station back operating.

Meteorologists have said Jasper could strengthen, weaken and then strengthen again in the coming days.

It will likely reach category 4 tomorrow, the first cyclone to do so this early in storm season since Tropical Cyclone Bertie in 2005.

The Bureau of Meteorology weather station at Willis Island about two weeks after tropical cyclone Yasi passed over in 2011.

But after a day or so it should then power down to perhaps a category 2 storm due to drier air.

However, as it gets closer to Queensland it could re-intensify.

Yet even at category 2, Jasper might still bring gusts of up to 164 km/h which could see homes damaged, trees uprooted and small craft break their moorings.

The cyclone is still far enough way that there is some uncertainty about when, where – or even if – it will make landfall over Australia.

But the BOM has said anyone living along the Queensland coast from Cooktown to Mackay, including Cairns and Townsville, should keep abreast of the prevailing conditions over the coming days.