Cyclone Niran

Severe Tropical Cyclone Niran off the coast of Queensland on 4 March

A warning was put in place for the coast of Northern Queensland; however, the warning was dropped as Niran moved eastward and away from the coast.[9] A gale warning was issued on 2 March for coastal and island communities, Cape Flattery and Innisfail, though it was cancelled when Niran moved away.[10]

In the far-north region of the state, some banana crops were wiped out by Niran in its early phase. Some farmers said they had lost nearly 100% of their banana crops. In total, over 42,000 people lost power from the storm, due to high winds. State emergency teams were sent to attend to downed poles and damaged homes, and they reported minor structural damage in the Cairns region. The Australian Banana Growers’ Council said on 2 March that it was too early to estimate damage, but stated it would be significant. In the Cassowary Coast Region, farmers were expected to be without income until September or October. Two people were rescued from floodwaters.[11]

On 5 March, farmers assessed the crop damage to range between AU$180–200 million.[12] There were fears that the prices for bananas would increase drastically again, as had occurred after Cyclone Larry in 2006 and Cyclone Yasi in 2011. They were expected to increase by 50 cents to $1 a kilo after Niran.[13] Damage to farm infrastructure was labeled "catastrophic" and "severe" by locals. In production nurseries, shade houses and tree crops were damaged. Stephen Lowe, the council chief executive of the Australian Banana Growers’ Council, estimated about 5,000 hectares of crops were affected, and 150 farms were damaged;[8][14] however, over 11,000 hectares (27,000 acres) may have been damaged, and clean-up could take upwards of a year.[13] Niran was estimated to have destroyed around one-third of Australia's banana crops.[15] The highest recorded total for rainfall was in Clump Point, which saw 276 mm (10.9 in) of rain in 24 hours.[10]

As the storm approached, New Caledonia was placed on high alert, as Niran was expected to cause severe damage in the country, especially on the main island of Grande Terre.[16][8] Authorities placed the entire island nation under a Level Two Tropical Cyclone Alert late on 5 March as the storm bore down on the country.[17] Air Calédonie moved their entire fleet of airplanes to Brisbane, Australia, in order to protect them from the storm.[18] Waves as high as 13 metres (43 ft) were also expected for the western side of New Caledonia.[16]

Niran caused extensive damage in New Caledonia during its close passage.[15] 39,000 households lost electricity in urban areas while roads quickly became impassable.[19] Winds of up to 150 km/h (95 mph) affected portions of the country in its passage, despite the strongest portion of the storm missing the coastline.[20] Two people were injured, including a child which was hit by shards of glass from a bay window.[21][22] In the capital city of Nouméa, several ships were forced aground on the coast.[21] 400 people were also housed in three evacuation centers. Another estimate placed over 69,000 total customers without power in the country.[23] Rainfall was less than anticipated, with a report of 50 mm (2.0 in) of rain falling in six hours. Vegetation and crops were damaged as well, though the true extent of the damage is unknown.[24]

High waves were also expected to affect Vanuatu, with wave heights up to 8 metres (26 ft) forecasted. Heavy rain from the cyclone was also briefly forecasted to impact Vanuatu.[16] There were no reports of damage in the country.