Chaotic scenes as Alfred nears land
Chaotic scenes have erupted north of Brisbane as residents directly in the firing line of Tropical Cyclone Alfred scramble to organise supplies and brace for the system's 'destructive' wind gusts and heavy rainfall.
The Bureau of Meteorology has warned Alfred could intensify to a category three cyclone before crossing the coast of Queensland by Friday – most likely between Maroochydore and Coolangatta.
Currently, the system is 345m east of Brisbane and 315km east of Gold Coast – moving west at 16kmh per hour.
A large warning zone is in place for millions of Aussies extending from Double Island Point in Queensland to Grafton in NSW, including Brisbane, Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast, Byron Bay and Ballina.
In the Moreton Bay region, north of Brisbane, dozens of residents are collecting sandbags in preparation for flash flooding when Alfred crosses.
'Pumicestone, Redcliffe and the Dohles Rocks communities are areas of concern, along with all coastal and low-lying areas, including areas near rivers,' Queensland Police said in a statement on Tuesday.
'Police and SES volunteers will be door knocking the suburbs of Bongaree, Donnybrook, Toorbul, Meldale, Godwin Beach, Beachmere, Clontarf, Griffin, Scarborough over the next two days advising residents of the predicted impact to the area and what options are available. 'They will also be providing advice to residents who wish to stay, to ensure they have prepared their properties and have their emergency kits ready.'
Multiple grocery stores across the Redcliffe area have been stripped bare of items like bottled water and bread.
At one Woolworths store in Kippa Ring, staff have advised shoppers: 'We have a limit of 2 packs of water per person. Thank you for your understanding.'
At Bunnings Warehouse in Rothwell, residents flocked in droves to collect survival items like spare batteries and torches.
The Moreton Bay Regional Council has set up multiple sandbag collection points in the suburbs of Arana Hills, Beachmere, Bongaree, Caboolture, Dayboro, Deception Bay, Elimbah, Margate, Narangba, Petrie, Toorbul and Woodford.
On Wednesday, dozens of residents lined Jull St as trucks dumped sand over the day.
Matt Ranken, from Clontarf-based business Kamaco Blinds, said he was collecting bags to safeguard the business' factory ahead of the cyclone's crossing.
Mr Ranken said he wasn't too concerned about flooding due to the business being out of a major flood zone in Clontarf, but said he was concerned about the winds to come.
Tara McBride, from Deception Bay, was filling up sandbags with her family to help out elderly residents in her suburb.
'It's for the neighbourhood, we have a lot of older people around us who can't get to the depot,' she said.
Ms McBride revealed she previously lost her rental home in the devastating 2022 southeast Queensland floods, saying she was taking a freak weather event like Alfred 'seriously'.
Nearly 20,000 Brisbane properties could be affected by storm surges or flooding when Alfred crosses the coast.
Brisbane Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner warned a '2022 flood situation' could be on the way due to high rainfall total predictions.
'Although a slim chance, but there is a chance that we could get up to 700mm (of rainfall) across three days,' Mr Schrinner told ABC Radio.
Public transport across Queensland is due to cease across the impact zones from Thursday as Queensland Premier David Crisafulli warned people to be aware of major bridges and highways closing.
A red alert for marine vessels – meaning not boat will be allowed on the water without permission from the Brisbane harbourmaster – is currently in place
'All boats must not leave position between Double Island (Point) to Coolangatta from midday today,' Mr Crisafulli said.
Schools have also been closed.
In their latest update, the Bureau of Meteorology has forecasted gales with damaging wind gusts reaching up to 120kmh are expected to develop along the southeast Queensland and northeastern New South Wales coastal and island communities between Double Island Point and Grafton.
These gusts will persist over Thursday and Friday.
'Destructive wind gusts of up to 155kmh may develop about coastal and island locations near and to the south of the track, possibly as far south as about Cape Byron, from Thursday afternoon as Alfred's destructive core approaches and crosses the coast,' the bureau's latest advice states.
A dangerous storm tide and 'abnormally high tides' is also likely to affect the warning zone.
Heavy to locally intense rainfall will affect southeast Queensland and northeastern NSW from Thursday.
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