Tropical Storm Alma, the first cyclone of the Americas hurricane season, slammed into Nicaragua's Pacific coast on Thursday, its winds toppling trees and ripping roofs off flimsy homes. Torrential rain fell in this colonial western city as Alma whipped up sustained winds near 65 mph (100 kph) and even higher gusts. Power poles were flattened and the former capital of Nicaragua -- home to around 150,000 people -- was without electricity and telephone services, witnesses said.

Tornado survivors got down to the grim business of cleaning up what little was left of their communities after storms smashed through the American plains and south, killing at least 22 people in three states.

Oil and gas producer Woodside Petroleum said first-quarter output fell 4% from a year earlier due to the impact of cyclones, maintenance of some fields and the sale of assets. Quarterly output of 17.2 million barrels of oil equivalent (boe) also fell 4% on the previous quarter.