Cyclone warnings have been issued in WA from Bidyadanga south of Broome through to Port Hedland, Karratha, Onslow and Exmouth, as category 2 storm Narelle moves southwest off the state.

The Bureau of Meteorology says the storm re-formed into a cyclone this morning and will bring strong wind to the region.

“Tropical Cyclone Narelle is ... expected to continue to intensify to reach severe (category 3) intensity overnight tonight,” the bureau said in an afternoon update.

“Later Friday, Narelle will turn towards the south, likely passing close to the North West Cape as a category 4 system.

“There is the potential for a severe impact on the far western Pilbara coast late Thursday, extending south to Denham during Friday.”

The storm is presently moving at 23km/h and has sustained winds near the centre of 95km/h.

Residents between Exmouth and Denham have been warned of dangerous storm tides as Narelle moves down the Gascoyne coast.

“The main thing it has been doing is strengthening, intensifying as it has moved away from the Kimberley coast and into the Indian Ocean,” the bureau’s meteorologist Adam Hines said.

Mr Hines says current projections show the storm making a coastal crossing “probably in the very early hours of Saturday morning.

“Based on current forecasts, that coastal crossing is most likely to occur along the Gascoyne coast between Carnarvon and Kalbarri, likely somewhere around the Shark Bay and Denham area as a severe category 3 tropical cyclone.

“Beyond this, Narelle will continue to move southwards, now gradually tracking inland.

“That path would take it to the east of Perth over the Wheatbelt, the Great Southern and down towards the Esperance coastline.”

Narelle could weaken to a tropical low-pressure system by the time it gets near Perth.

“This will bring some widespread weather impacts to the west coast of the state as we head through Friday night and into the weekend,” Mr Hines said.

“While Tropical Cyclone Narelle will be up in the far northwest, we will see some rain and storms building over the Central West and moving into Perth for Friday, so we could already get quite a bit of rainfall ahead of the arrival of this system.”