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The weather bureau on Friday warned that Tropical Cyclone Iggy would continue to pound the Indian Ocean coast, affecting areas in Java and Bali for at least the next three days.

Saiful Hadi, a spokesman for the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) in Kupang, said the worst-hit areas in East Nusa Tenggara were the waters off Rote and Sumba islands as well as the Timor Sea, where the cyclone was giving rise to winds of up to 36 kilometers per hour and waves as high as 6 meters.

“Operators of shipping services and fishermen are to remain alert because the bad weather carries a high risk of causing a sea mishap,” Saiful said.

He called on inter-island ferry operators, including state-run ASDP, to temporarily halt their services because of the unfriendly weather.

Saiful said that the high waves were pounding the coast from Bengkulu in the west to Timor in the east. He said they were also roiling the South China Sea and the Arafuru Sea.

Iggy has already left widespread destruction on its path, including a few islands in Jakarta Bay.

On the resort island of Bali, the famed Kuta beach in the south remained closed due to high waves and strong winds.

“For the time being, tourists are prohibited from swimming at Kuta Beach until the weather becomes better,” said Ketut Ipel, the coordinator of the Badung district Sea Tourism Lifeguards.

He said that early in the morning, tourists were still able to swim but that the prohibition was put in place at 9 a.m. After the swimming ban was announced, all safe swimming signs were removed from the beach and replaced by danger flags.

However, he said surfers were still allowed to surf and would be monitored carefully.

The weather has also forced the closing of the Padang Bai ferry port, where ferries depart for Lombok island. The ferry port of Gilimanuk in the west, where Java-bound ferries dock, has been closed several times in the past few days as a precaution.

Relief vessels reached Kelapa and Harapan islands in Jakarta Bay on Friday. The high waves had delayed their departure until 7:30 a.m. that day.

The two islands were hit the worst by strong winds on Thursday. Close to 500 houses were damaged and 2,300 people displaced.

Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, a spokesman of the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB), said he forecast the bad weather to continue until sometime in March.

What had hit the islands, he said, was not a cyclone, but rather small whirlwinds that only lasted for a few intense minutes.

“We cannot predict a precise time when it will happen,” he said.

He said that such whirlwinds could be anticipated by the presence of cumulonimbus clouds, which are grey and clearly defined.

He advised that if they suddenly turn dark and fluffy and tree branches begin to tremble fast, a whirlwind could be imminent.

“If you see those signs, people should be on alert and avoid being under a tree, since they could be felled by a whirlwind,” he said.