Australian cyclone upgraded as winds lash coast

A major cyclone powering towards Australia's resources-rich northwest coast was upgraded to a category four storm Wednesday as strong winds and heavy rains lashed the region.

Severe tropical cyclone Rusty intensified as it edged towards Australia's Pilbara coast, gathering speed and force across a 370-kilometre (230 mile) front and whipping up six-metre (20-foot) waves.

Category four is just one notch short of the top category.

Australia's Bureau of Meteorology expects Rusty to make landfall east of Port Hedland, about 1,300 kilometres (800 miles) north of Perth, on Wednesday evening, bringing destructive winds and flooding downpours.

"We could see some gusts getting up to nearly 250kph," forecaster Neil Bennett told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

"Some rainfall totals may be as much as 600 millimetres (24 inches) in a 24-hour period."

The bureau has forecast the equivalent of Perth's entire winter rainfall in a period of just three days.

Australia's major iron ore export ports have been shut for several days anticipating Rusty's approach and hundreds of people have been forced to evacuate their homes in the sparsely populated but cyclone-prone area.

Global iron ore giants including BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto and Fortescue Metals Group have all shut down or scaled back operations due to the storm.