MELBOURNE, April 10 (Xinhua) -- Severe Tropical Cyclone Maila will hit southeastern Papua New Guinea as a Category 2 storm, forecasters warned on Friday.
Australia's Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) said that Severe Tropical Cyclone Maila was located 820 km east of Port Moresby in the Solomon Sea at 10 a.m. Australian Eastern Standard Time (0000 GMT) and moving slowly west.
It said that the cyclone dropped in strength from Category 4 to Category 3 overnight, with wind gusts of up to 205 km per hour, and is expected to continue weakening.
According to BoM forecasts, the storm is expected to hit PNG's Milne Bay Province as a Category 2 cyclone in the early hours of Sunday, bringing destructive and very destructive winds to the southeastern tip of the mainland and nearby islands.
The PNG National Weather Service (NWS) on Friday morning issued an updated emergency warning for the Milne Bay Province, particularly coastal and island communities.
"Severe Tropical Cyclone Maila will cause very heavy rain and flooding, storm surge, coastal inundation, gale force winds, storm force winds and hurricane force winds," it said.
"Take immediate precautions to protect life and property."
The BoM said that the cyclone could move towards the Australian mainland early next week. ■