DARWIN Port has reopened and is fully operational after a shutdown that lasted about two-and-a-half days in the wake of Cyclone Fina.
The port opened around lunchtime on Monday, with minimal disruption to commercial shipping or damage to port infrastructure.
Darwin Port chief executive Peter Dummett said early preparation was the key, with damages surveyed by the Royal Australian Navy’s HMAS Leeuwin.
“We were fairly fortunate in that we did not sustain too many issues within the port,” he said.
“We were well prepared when the cyclone came.”
The clean-up included removing broken moorings caused by recreational vessels.
“The cyclone struck Saturday evening, by 9am the next morning, we had a team of operational personnel on the ground assessing the status of the infrastructure both East Arm Wharf and Fort Hill Wharves,” Mr Dummett said.
On Monday morning pilot boats completed sonar runs to the berth pockets as well as the main shipping channel and Hudson Creek, one of the areas used by the coastal barge operators.
“It was critical to get them up and running as soon as possible,” Mr Dummett said.
Pilot ships confirmed no navigational hazards within the shipping channel.
Severe Tropical Cyclone Fina expected to weaken slightly but remain as a category 3 cyclone as it moved towards the northeast Kimberley coast during Monday.
Kimberley Port Authority said they cleared Wyndham Port from late afternoon on Friday 21 November, with vessels located to safer areas ahead of the approaching system.
Kimberley Ports harbour master Rohan Wadwa said port authorities had continued to inform stakeholders.
“The port is currently clear of vessels, with plans to resume vessel movements from tomorrow (Tuesday), subject to ongoing weather advisories and port condition assessments,” he said.
KPA has also maintained a Cyclone Watch alert for the Port of Yampi Sound and Derby Port since last Friday.
“Based on current forecasts indicating rapid de-intensification of the cyclone tomorrow (Tuesday), we do not anticipate any adverse impact on either the Port of Yampi Sound or Broome at this stage,” he said.
In a statement, a Pilbara Ports spokesperson said no preparations were underway based on projections as of Monday evening.