A tropical cyclone is bearing down on parts of the Australian coast last impacted by such a storm more than 50 years ago.
is expected to cross between the Sunshine Coast and Brisbane on Thursday as a category one or two system.
The last tropical cyclone to cross the South East Queensland coast was Zoe in 1974.
“It’s not impossible, it is unusual, and it’s important that people be ready for it,” Queensland Premier David Crisafulli told ABC Radio Brisbane on Monday.
Alfred is currently a category-two system sitting in the Coral Sea, about 465km north-east of Brisbane, and is heading south-east.
Intense winds forecast with high tidal swells
Winds at the centre of the cyclone are 95 km/h with gusts of up to 130 km/h.
Alfred is already causing waves up to 15m high on the coast, leading to significant erosion from K’Gari Island south to the Gold Coast.
Coastal erosion will continue over the next few days as the storm does a U-turn and sweeps west.
South East Queensland typically experiences very strong but short-lived winds from isolated thunderstorms but the Bureau of Meteorology is warning Alfred will bring long periods of damaging winds.
“We will start to see these very strong, damaging to locally destructive winds over quite a long period of time, which can cause trees to come down, as well as property damage,” meteorologist Jonathan How said.
Heavy rainfall is also on the cards which may lead to dangerous and life-threatening flash flooding this week.
A flood watch is in place for rivers from Maryborough, in Queensland’s Wide Bay region, south to the NSW border.
The bureau will be watching for major rises in the Mary, Noosa, Brisbane, Logan and Albert rivers this week.
Crisafulli’s main concern is flooding across a region which is home to more than three million people.
“When you’re talking about falls of a few hundred millimetres or more in a short period of time in already soaked catchments, that will be a challenge,” he said.
“I’ve got every faith that people will get through. I’ve seen how well the South East has handled flooding events in recent years.
“This is an added complexity, but it’s nothing that the community can’t get through.”
AFL monitoring storm before Thursday season opener
Generators have been sent to Bay Island communities facing the tough choice of whether to evacuate, the premier said.
He urged all South East Queenslanders to be prepared by compiling important documents, having tinned food and water and tying down any loose items outside.
The cyclone coincides with the AFL season opener in Brisbane between the Geelong Cats and Brisbane Lions on Thursday night, while the NRL’s Dolphins and Rabbitohs are scheduled to play in Brisbane on Friday night.
An AFL spokesperson said the league would monitor the situation over the coming days and adhere to government advice.
SES NSW urged residents to prepare for damaging winds, large surf and heavy rainfall with major river rises and flash flooding expected from Wednesday.
“We are asking the community to take steps now to ensure that if you are asked to evacuate you have a plan for yourselves, your families and your pets and know where you will go,” NSW SES Assistant Commissioner Dean Storey said on Sunday.
