Locals in north-western WA are anxiously waiting for a severe tropical cyclone to impact the coast, producing wind gusts that can destroy “anything in its path”.

Tropical Cyclone Zelia is expected to cross Western Australia’s Pilbara coast near Port Hedland about 3pm local time (6pm AEDT) on Friday as a category five system, producing winds up to 300km/h.

Port Hedland local Tracey Heimberger was keeping her fingers crossed her house “holds together” after opting to sit out the storm with her partner at home.

“I’m a bit scared actually. It’s going to be a hell of a storm,” she said on Friday.

“It’s started getting really gusty already. Hopefully our house holds together.

“We’ve done all preparations we can. We’ve even put our passports in Ziploc bags.”

Zelia’s predicted path. Source: Joint Typhoon Warning Centre

Heimberger was also concerned for the safety of other locals, saying many homes in the town weren’t designed to withstand a category five cyclone.

“Especially people living in our outlying communities. I really hope they’ve got to town,” she said.

The Bureau of Meteorology said there had already been wind gusts of 120km/h near Port Hedland, as rainfall totals slowly increased.

In the past 24 hours, there had been 90 millimetres at Wallal Downs after downpours of several 100 millimetres in a matter of days.

A “shelter indoors now” alert has been issued for the area from the Pardoo Roadhouse to Whim Creek and west to Marble Bar.

“It is too late to leave,” the Bureau of Meteorology said.

Other towns – including Karratha, Dampier, Tom Price, and Eighty Mile Beach – have been warned to prepare to take shelter.

Shops, schools, roads, airports and ports in WA’s north-west have closed in preparation for the dangerous system.

Winds up to 150km/h are expected to hit coastal areas, while 300km/h gusts are forecast for the region the cyclone was expected to cross, east of Port Hedland.

“These are extremely destructive winds. Winds so powerful it can take out trees, power lines and entire houses and really destroy anything in its path,” meteorologist Angus Hines said on Friday.

Up to 500 millimetres of rain is expected to inundate the region with a significant storm tide also forecast. The combination may lead to coastal road and home flooding.

Flash flooding has already begun to inundate roads with reports a road train was washed off a Marble Bar bridge.

Experts are extremely concerned about the cyclone’s impact on north-west WA, particularly iron ore hub Port Hedland.

“Even buildings and infrastructure built to the highest cyclone rating standards will receive some structural damage from the predicted extreme winds in the core of the cyclone,” Professor Steven Turton from Central Queensland University said.

Turton said offshore sea temperatures were feeding the cyclone, which may cause significant damage to the remote area.

“Despite the small size of the system, its slow forward motion will mean prolonged extreme winds and intense rainfall around the core as it approaches and crosses the coastline,” he said.

There are evacuation centres at Karratha and South Hedland.

Meanwhile, north Queensland is recovering from its own flooding disaster, with power restored to 30,000 homes, after a fortnight of record falls that caused two deaths and hundreds of evacuations.

The federal government has announced $84.8 million to 18 local government areas in northern and western Queensland for major infrastructure and flood mitigation upgrades.

-AAP