Is Cyclone Alfred over? Where is it heading to now - and what has happened to iconic Surfer’s Paradise beach

The ex-tropical cyclone crossed Bribie Island, delivering category 1 cyclonic wind gusts of up to 104km/h in Redcliffe and 95km/h in Toowoomba, according to the Bureau of Meteorology (BOM). A category 1 cyclone has wind gusts of between 63 and 88km/h.

Emergency services in Hervey Bay have carried out multiple rescues today (Monday 10 March) after hundreds of millimetres of rain smashed the region in a matter of hours, in one of its worst weather emergencies on record. Heavy rainfall will intensify as the system makes its way further west before heading south over the NSW border.

More than 320,000 homes across South East Queensland and 16,000 across northern NSW remain without power, and flash flooding has hit Hervey Bay hard and parts of Brisbane. An emergency alert has been issued for Currumbin, Currumbin Valley, Tallebudgera, Tallebudgera Valley and Elanora due to major flooding.

The City of Gold Coast warned on Sunday evening: “We advise people in Currumbin, Currumbin Valley, Tallebudgera, Tallebudgera Valley and Elanora to take action now. Go inside and up high. Do not try to drive.

“Roads are now likely to be flooded. If you are near floodwater, you may need to get up as high as you can to survive.”

Major flooding is occurring along the Richmond River at Coraki and Bungawalbyn, according to the BOM. it said: “Inflows from the upper Richmond River combined with inflows from the Wilsons River have resulted in river level rises in the lower Richmond catchment.

“The main flood peak along the Richmond River is now approaching Coraki, where major flooding continues. Major flooding is also occurring downstream at Bungawalbyn, where river levels are expected to peak early Monday morning.” Senior forecaster Matthew Bass told ABC Radio that the Gold Coast and Brisbane have experienced a “rapid ramp-up in rainfall in the last hour” and warned people to avoid any low-lying areas and to remain indoors.

One of the most iconic beaches in Australia, located in the Gold Coast, has been destroyed by the Cyclone. Waves as high as “three or four-storey buildings” crashed into the coast for days on end, gouging millions of cubic metres of sand from about 500 kilometres of coastline. The photos before Alfred hit the coast compared what currently stands is like another world, with erosion so extreme.

The Gold Coast iconic strip of sand is known as Main Beach — which attracts more than 11 million visitors each year. Experts say the destruction Alfred caused could take years to recover. University of the Sunshine Coast’s Dr Javier Leon told Yahoo News: “In some cases, it might take years for dunes to come back to pre-cyclone conditions.” Aussie fitness influencer Olivia May shared a before and after picture of the iconic beach which shows the disturbing picture of how much the beach has changed after Cyclone Alfred.