Latest update: 2 February 12:30pm

Some of you have been emailing and asking about us in relation to Cyclone Yasi off the coast of Queensland.

At the moment it is due to hit our area on Wednesday night between 10-12pm. (Tuesday in America.) It’s currently classified as a category 5 cyclone, meaning that extremely high winds are expected, potential power outages, flooding, etc. unless it dissipates or is redirected. At the moment Yasi’s center is predicted to hit Innisfail/Cardwell the worst (a few hours drive north of us), which means that Townsville will still be effected but not as severely as other places. The storm has moved south over the last few hours, which is not good for us, but as it stands we are still not located in the “worst” area projected.

Some low-lying parts of Townsville and the area are being asked to evacuate, however we are not being asked to evacuate at this point and officials are saying that our area should be safe. As you know with weather, anything can happen/change, so we continue to pray that the cyclone’s power will be diffused… and we pray for our neighbors a few hours away from us that will get hit harder.

Please know that every year we are faced with the threat of cyclones in this season and we are well-informed about how to best prepare. They are saying this is the worst one in Australian history, so it is serious. However, often there are warnings put out and then the storms dissipate or downgrade before reaching us inland. Of course that’s what we’re praying for!

We have prepared the best we can – purchasing batteries, candles, canned food, propane bottles, and diapers, as well as bottling water, cleaning up yards, taping up windows, gathering important documents so they are easy to grab if evacuation is necessary, etc. We have all of our valuables ready to go in case of an emergency.

It’s important in times of cyclone threat like this to not panic, but to prepare calmly and purposefully... and most of all to pray. Would you please pray with us that Cyclone Yasi would not cause more loss of life and property on the heels of Cyclone Larry which did so much damage in southern Queensland a few weeks ago. (Yasi is currently set to be worse – stronger winds and wider area.) Thanks for your prayers!

Please note: We will continue to update as long as we have power, but it would take a miracle for us to retain power over the next several days at the rate we’re going. 🙂