Tropical Cyclone Alfred is forecast to cross the south-east Queensland coast this week, bringing with it the threat of damaging winds, storms and heavy rainfall to large areas of south-east Queensland and northern New South Wales.
The system is expected to make landfall somewhere between Maroochydore on the Sunshine Coast and Coolangatta on the Gold Coast, with the Bureau of Metereology (BOM) refusing to rule out the possibility of the cyclone intensifying to a category three.
Multiple watch and act emergency alerts have been issued for parts of the expected impact zone.
Schools
More than 660 state schools will close in Queensland on Thursday and Friday.
The state’s closures apply to schools as far north as Cooroy in the Noosa region, right down to the NSW border at Coolangatta.
One independent school and six catholic schools have also announced closures.
You can find the full list of Queensland closures here.
Schools on the North Stradbroke and Moreton Bay islands will be open for supervision only, according to Education Queensland, while facilities across the Northern Rivers in NSW closed on Wednesday.
The NSW Education Department said the state’s 122 public school closures run from Clarence Valley south of the Queensland border, to inland near the Kyogle Shire.
These closures are in place from Wednesday, March 5 to Friday, March 7.
The department expects schools to resume operation on Monday, March 10.
See a full list of closures on the NSW Education Department website.
A “period of emergency” was triggered by the federal government on Wednesday, applying to early learning centres in the state’s south-east.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said childcare facilities and families with young kids, based in any of the 15 at-risk local government areas, would be supported by the following measures:
- Services can continue to get childcare subsides,
- Facilities can waive gap fees for families, and
- Children will get unlimited allowable absences for the duration of the period of emergency.
“In plain speak, this means families won’t be out of pocket for the [weather] event,” Mr Albanese said.
Hospitals
Metro South Health and Metro North Health said all Queensland hospitals would remain open for emergency care 24/7.
The health services is working to reschedule non-urgent surgery and outpatient appointments planned for later this week, and Premier David Crisafulli confirmed elective surgeries would continue on Wednesday but would be paused on Thursday and Friday.
Mr Crisafulli said nursing homes, aged care and health services had been a “particular focus” as the government aimed to protect vulnerable Queenslanders and “get those people out of harm’s way”.
“There are evacuations of some of those low-lying nursing homes that are being planned and will be done during the course of the day,” he said.
“Our health system is geared up and ready to support those who need emergency care — generators are in place, staff have been rostered.”
No health facilities have announced closures or evacuations in northern NSW yet.
Public transport
The premier said Queensland’s final public transport services will run on Wednesday night, and locals should also brace for the possibility of major roads and bridges closing.
“So there will not be public transport on Thursday and Friday, as a minimum, but people should stay across [the latest advice],” he said.
Brisbane River ferries were suspended on Tuesday until further notice, with CityCat ferries moved to safety on dry land.
Southern Moreton Bay Island ferries have also been suspended until further notice.
Up-to-date information on ferry services can be found here.
The premier said, from midday Wednesday, a red alert would also apply to all south-east Queensland boats.
“That means no vessel will be allowed on the water without permission from the Brisbane Harbour Master,” Mr Crisafulli said.
“All boats on moorings must not leave position, between Double Island to Coolangatta.”
Queensland Rail (QR) has suspended all south-east Queensland trains following the final service on Wednesday night, with operations to resume “when it is safe to do so”.
In addition to the south-east network, QR said some long-distance services and the regional network would be impacted.
Greyhound Australia said it could cancel services between south-east Queensland and Northern NSW.
You can find up-to-date information on bus disruptions here.
Airports
Travellers are being urged to check for air travel updates ahead of the cyclone’s predicted landfall.
Gold Coast Airport is closing from 4pm (Queensland time) on Wednesday, while Brisbane Airport said it was “operating as normal and monitoring Tropical Cyclone Alfred as the weather situation develops”.
“Passengers are advised to check with your airline for any updates to flight status closer to your time of travel,” Brisbane Airport said.
Jetstar, Qantas and Virgin Australia cancelled all flights in and out of Ballina Byron Gateway Airport on Wednesday.
Airlines have released statements saying they are making it easier for people to change their travel plans, implementing flexible booking policies where possible.
Mr Crisafulli said airports and airlines were operating according to advice from the Bureau of Meteorology (BOM), “and they will communicate directly with their passengers” about schedule changes and cancellations.
Sandbags
There’s plenty of sandbagging stations operating across south-east Queensland, which are free for residents to access.
In Brisbane, sandbags are available at Darra, Lota, Morningside, Newmarket and Zillmere — but these sites are set to close at 8pm tonight.
Additional self-serve sites have been opened, with residents asked to bring their own shovel and cable ties to the Acacia Ridge, Toowong, Camp Hill, Boondall, West End, Darra and Murarrie sites.
Across the Redlands, stations are operating in Capalaba, Redland Bay, Thornlands, plus on North Stradbroke (Dunwich), Russell, Macleay and Coochiemudlo islands.
For those living in Logan, sandbags can be picked up from stations in Beenleigh, Crestmead, Jimboomba and Daisy Hill.
At Ipswich, sites in Rosewood, Raceview, Redbank Plains and Walloon are offering sandbags.
Along the Gold Coast, sandbag stations are operating in Bilinga, Burleigh Heads, Pimpama, Carrara and Tugun, though opening hours for some sites were limited to midday on Wednesday.
However, due to record-breaking demand, you’ll likely have to wait in line at some of these depots.
An “unprecedented” number of sandbags have been distributed across Brisbane, with Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner saying more than 400,000 had been collected or filled since last Friday.
“This is more than double the number of sandbags taken during the 2022 flood event,” he said on Wednesday afternoon.
On Wednesday morning, Logan Mayor Jon Raven said he was grateful to local landscaping yards for donating extra sand.
He told ABC Brisbane local radio the council was trying to extend its final sand delivery of the day, so those at work could still collect sandbags after hours.
In hopes of easing the strain, the prime minister announced an additional 250,000 sandbags would be provided to the Queensland government.
Further north, there’s a number of sandbagging stations operating across Moreton Bay and the Sunshine Coast, including Bribie Island and Caloundra.
Meanwhile, south of the border, parts of New South Wales are also battling sandbag shortages.
Murwillumbah SES has already gone through 3,000 bags on Wednesday and is likely to run out of stock for the second time, while the Ballina station has also used up all of its sandbags.
NSW SES is suggesting locals think outside the box and bring old pillowcases, rubbish bags or woven bags to use at the sandbank.
They are also calling for more volunteers to help fill sandbags on the Tweed Coast.
Evacuation centres
Brisbane City Council (BCC) is expected to open evacuation centres through Wednesday, with a refuge centre to be run from the Ekka showgrounds.
“The temporary refuge shelter will open at the RNA showgrounds, Bowen Hills from 7am Thursday and will accept residents until 12pm Thursday [before being] locked down,” BCC said on Wednesday afternoon.
Further north, council is using Noosa Leisure Centre on Wallace Drive “as a place of refuge for residents and visitors who have no other place to go” during the cyclone — local government said it would operate “24/7 until no longer required”, and caged or on-leash pets are welcome too.
An evacuation centre at Nambour Showground is also operating on the Sunshine Coast.
Logan Council has established refuge centres — where impacted locals can charge phones and grab a tea or coffee, but not find a bed — at Caddies Community Centre in Jimboomba and the Bethania Community Centre.
An evacuation centre will also open at 7am on Thursday, based at the Logan Metro Sports facility in Crestmead.
On the Gold Coast, an evacuation centre is operating at Runaway Bay’s indoor sports centre — from 5pm Wednesday, two more will be opened at the Burleigh Waters and Nerang community centres.
In NSW, the following SES evacuation centres will open as of 4pm Wednesday, according the NSW Premier Chris Minns.
- Terranorra Public School — 650 Terranora Rd, Terranora
- Tyalgum Hall — Coolman St, Tyalgum
- Mullumbimby RSL — 58 Dalley St, Mullumbimby
- Kingscliff TAFE — 806 Cudgen Road, Kingscliff
- Murwillumbah TAFE — 146 Murwillumbah Street, Murwillumbah
- Ocean Shores Country Club —113A Orana Road, Ocean Shores
- Coraki Pubic School — 48-52 Adams Street, Coraki
- Kyogle Memorial Hall — Stratheden Street, Kyogle
- Southern Cross University — Military Road, East Lismore
- Evans Head RSL — 11-13 McDonald Place, Evans Head
- Burringbar Sports Club — Fourth Ave, Burringbar
- Uki Hall — 1462 Kyogle Rd, Uki
Mr Crisafulli said doorknocking was underway, advising Queenslanders to follow advice from authorities — from securing backyard items, to fortifying your home and evacuating when required.
He said there’s “now hours, rather than days” to prepare for the cyclone crossing the coast, “but you’ve still got time to plan”.
The premier said 68 evacuations from South Stradbroke Island happened overnight with more underway.
Burleigh Heads Church of Christ has opened its doors to homeless Gold Coaster, with the local pastor predicting about 30 people will sleep in the auditorium over the coming nights.
Mr Crisafulli said work would continue to connect those sleeping rough to support, offering accommodation options.
In NSW multiple evacuation centres will open in Tweed Heads, Byron, and the Northern Rivers on Wednesday afternoon.
Cyclone prep
There’s plenty you can do to maximise your safety during a cyclone.
These include securing loose outdoor items and your windows, fuelling up your car, bracing for power outages, knowing how to turn off your utilities and ensuring a clean water supply.
It’s also important to never use a power generator inside because it produces dangerous levels of carbon monoxide that can prove fatal.
If your electricity is cut during these kinds of weather events, it’s important to avoid fallen powerlines, but the premier assured Queenslanders that crews were on stand-by ahead of the cyclone making landfall.
Mr Crisafulli said 1,000 Ergon Energy crews were ready and waiting, with storm debris to be cleared with support from private contractors, to ensure the “huge” job of reconnecting Queensland happens smoothly through the recovery process.
Anyone with solar panels should shut their systems down to ensure safety through the weather event, according to manufacturer instructions found on the inverter or main switchboard.
You can find our full cyclone prep checklist here.
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