Weather Shuts Down Sydney

Strong winds and high seas forced authorities to close Sydney's port to passenger and cargo ships on Saturday. Winds of up to 59 mph lashed the coast of New South Wales state, bringing down power lines and unroofing a handful of homes. A Sydney Ports spokeswoman said swells of between 22 to 33 feet and wind gusts up to 35 knots inside Sydney Harbour forced the port's closure until at least Sunday. Australian Broadcasting Corp radio said the P&O passenger liner Pacific Sky, with about 1,500 passengers on board, was one of four ships forced to ride out the storm off Sydney. Police rescued four people from a 33-m (108-ft.) motor cruiser which sank in heavy swells and winds of up to 50 knots off Sydney late on Friday after it hit a submerged object. About 20 people received minor cuts and bruises on Friday night when a large wave hit a ferry carrying passengers to the popular beach suburb of Manly. - (Reuters)