Cyclone Yasi causes ruin, but no deaths in Australia (VIDEO)

Cyclone Yasi, one of the most violent storms to hit Australia in a century, has left thousands homeless, wiped out agricultural crops and further disrupted mining in Queensland state, but no deaths have been reported yet.

The Category 5 storm, with winds at times stronger than those recorded during Hurricane Katrina, was strong enough to tear apart houses and lift yachts from their moorings and leave them resting on dry land.

Queensland emergency services crews along Australia's northeastern coast have begun surveying the damage.

Officials say the coastal communities of Cardwell, Tully and Mission Beach bore the full brunt of Yasi, which made landfall early Thursday carrying winds as high as 180 miles per hour.

The "killer, monster" storm tore the tops off hundreds of homes and buildings in the most affected areas, and downed trees and power lines, leaving nearly 200,000 residents without electricity.  It also caused significant damage to Queensland's crucial sugar and banana crops.

Anna Bligh, Queensland premier, said the destruction from the cyclone was severe but not catastrophic. While no deaths or serious injuries had yet been recorded, two men were still missing.

More than 400,000 people live in the storm's path. The stretch, popular with tourists, includes the Great Barrier Reef.

The regional capital of Cairns, gateway to the reef, escaped the worst of the storm and suffered little infrastructure damage.

Before Yasi's arrival, Queensland was already beginning a recovery effort estimated to cost at least $5 billion and preparing for slower growth because of months of devastating flooding. The floods in the nation’s eastern states, particularly Queensland, killed at least 35 people and destroyed crops and shut down the mining industry.

The National Farmers’ Federation said the bulk of the banana crop in Innisfail and Tully, accounting for close to 85 percent of the state’s $400 million industry, had been wiped out, according to the FT.

Ahead of the cyclone hitting land, concerns about the storm had helped push sugar prices to a 30-year high in New York. Australia is the world’s third-largest sugar exporter and the majority of this comes from Queensland.

The Australian dollar fell from almost a one-month high as Cyclone Yasi reached the country's coastline, trading at $1.0068 as of 11:45 a.m. in New York, down from $1.0111 Tuesday when it touched $1.0149, the highest level since Jan. 4.

Cyclone Yasi was weakening as it moved across the Queensland outback region Thursday. It is expected to reach the mining town of Mount Isa on Friday.