As Cyclone Yasi loomed frighteningly large on weather radars in the days before the category five storm hit the east coast, it appeared inevitable that Port Douglas and the entire Douglas region would bear the brunt of the system.

That was two years ago, and as history now shows, Yasi veered south in the final hours before making landfall, sparing our region the worst of its fury.

In the aftermath, many people believed the community was, and is, desperately ill-prepared to deal with a cyclone of Yasi's magnitude, however, the event did trigger the construction of the Port Douglas cyclone shelter which was completed in December 2012, along with nine other shelters throughout Far North Queensland.

Pictured below: An empty Port Douglas Marina was an eerie sight as Cyclone Yasi approached.

We spoke with a number of locals who gave their account of the time just prior to Yasi reaching land. Watch the video above to see what they had to say and tell us your experiences below.

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