Where is Cyclone Alfred now? Latest updates on rare Tropical Category 2 storm as it nears Australian coast - will it hit Sydney?
Cyclone Alfred, a Category 2 storm, is barrelling towards Australia’s southeastern coast.
Alfred is now about 345km east of Brisbane and 315km east of the Gold Coast, according to the Bureau of Meteorology (BoM). It is moving towards the southeast Queensland coast at 16kph.
There’s a concern that Alfred could slow down to 11kph, which could make it “worst case scenario”, Higgins Storm Chasing’s Thomas Hinterdorfer told The Courier-Mail. The storm is expected to make landfall on Thursday or Friday between north of Brisbane bringing more than half a metre of rain, flooding and destructive winds.
Queensland premier David Crisafulli has warned residents to "prepare now" as he called Cyclone Alfred an "extremely rare event". Authorities are bracing for mass power outages and severe impacts from Tropical Cyclone Alfred.
Southeast Queensland residents are already losing power, and authorities say some areas could be left without electricity for up to three days. Gold Coast residents have been warned to stay indoors after 6pm local time (8am GMT) tonight (Wednesday 5 March) as flooding and destructive winds from Tropical Cyclone Alfred begin to take hold.
Acting mayor Donna Gates warned: “This looks like the most significant event in our city in terms of destructive winds and heavy rain that we’ve seen since 1954”. Cyclone Alfred slowing down could be the worst-case scenario for southeast Queensland, experts warn.
The storm is currently moving at a speed of 16kmph, but experts fear it could slow down to 11kmph, which is significantly slower than a typical system. A slow movement could mean Alfred will have more time to intensify, feeding off warm ocean waters and low vertical wind shear, making it stronger before it reaches the coast.
Flood watches are in effect from Bundaberg to Port Macquarie, and Brisbane City Council has warned that 20,000 homes could be impacted by flooding. Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner has urged residents in flood-prone areas, including Nudgee Beach, Brighton, Windsor, Ashgrove, Morningside, and Rocklea, to consider relocating before the storm arrives.
The BoM said warning zones stretched from Double Island Point in Queensland to Yamba in NSW, including Brisbane, Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast, Byron Bay and Ballina. Waves of up to 10m have already been recorded off parts of Brisbane and the Gold Coast.