Iron-ore port in Australia shut down for cyclone

Australia's Port Hedland, one of the world's largest export terminals for iron ore, was shut down Wednesday as a precaution against an approaching cyclone.

The Category 1 Cyclone Heidi is tracking south towards the mineral-rich Pilbara region in Western Australia, where mining giants such as Rio Tinto and BHP operate, and is expected to make landfall early Thursday.

Port Hedland Port Authority spokesman Steed Farrell said they had activated their cyclone contingency plan in preparation for the wild weather.

"We cleared inbound traffic into the port and cleared the port of vessels that needed to get out," he said.

The cyclone is forecast to whip up winds of more than 100 kilometres (60 miles) per hour with heavy rainfall and high tides expected.

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