Cyclone Jasper crosses Australia’s east coast as category 2 storm with 87 mph winds

By ROD McGUIRK
Associated Press

CANBERRA, Austrtalia (AP) — Tropical Cyclone Jasper has crossed Australia’s northeast coast as a category 2 storm, lashing the sparsely populated region with winds of up to 87 miles an hour. Queensland state Deputy Premier Steven Miles says Jasper intensified from a category 1 storm on a 5-tier scale before it became the first cyclone of the current season to hit Australia late Wednesday. The cyclone crossed near the Aboriginal community of Wujal Wujal north of the city of Cairns. Wujal Wujal has a population of 300 but it is not immediately clear how many residents had evacuated. There were no immediate reports of injury and damage has yet to be assessed.