Cyclone damage to The Reef.

I just found this on the ABC News website. Confirms what I suspected at the beginning of Cyclone Yasi - not as bad as I thought, but bad enough.

Authorities say hundreds of kilometres of the Great Barrier Reef hit by Cyclone Yasi will take up to 10 years to recover.
It is still too early for the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority to send divers out to do a full assessment, but coral from the reef has been washing up on nearby shores.
The damage is expected to be similar to that of Cyclone Larry five years ago.
The authority's chief executive, Russell Reichelt, says all the progress the reef has made since then will now be destroyed.
"We can expect to see smashed coral beds, movements of coral boulders, sand and rubble moved around," he said.
"If there's any sand islands there and importantly sea grass beds, when they get disturbed - which they do by cyclones - then animals like dugong get affected."
Mr Reichelt says cyclones are not as damaging to reefs as the effects of climate change. But he says Yasi will have still caused major destruction.
"Coral will begin regenerating immediately and be visibly restored in five to 10 years, but it changes the shape of the reef for very long periods - islands can be formed, boulders can be thrown up," he said.