<?xml version="1.0" encoding="ISO-8859-1"?> <docID>339499</docID> <postdate>2025-03-03 10:07:22</postdate> <headline>First cyclone in 50 years to hit populated coast</headline> <body><p><img class="size-full wp-image-339500" src="https://citynews.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/cyclone-alfred-e1740956763158.jpeg" alt="" width="800" height="533" /></p> <caption>Tropical Cyclone Alfred is set to cross the Queensland coast on Thursday. Photo: BoM</caption> <p><span class="kicker-line">By<strong> Savannah Meacham</strong> and <strong>Rachael Ward</strong></span></p> <p><strong>A tropical cyclone is bearing down on parts of the Australian coast last impacted by such a storm more than 50 years ago. </strong></p> <p>Tropical Cyclone Alfred is expected to cross between the Sunshine Coast and Brisbane on Thursday as a category one or two system.</p> <p>The last tropical cyclone to cross the South East Queensland coast was Zoe in 1974.</p> <p>"It's not impossible, it is unusual, and it's important that people be ready for it," Premier David Crisafulli told ABC Radio Brisbane on Monday.</p> <p>Alfred is currently a category-two system sitting in the Coral Sea, about 465km northeast of Brisbane, and is heading southeast.</p> <p>Winds at the centre of the cyclone are 95 km/h with gusts of up to 130 km/h.</p> <p>Alfred is already impacting the coast causing waves up to 15 metres, leading to significant erosion from K'Gari Island south to the Gold Coast.</p> <p>Coastal erosion will continue over the next few days as the storm does a U-turn and sweeps west.</p> <p>South East Queensland typically sees very strong but short-lived winds from isolated thunderstorms but the Bureau of Meteorology is warning Alfred will cause long durations of damaging winds.</p> <p>"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.</p> <p>Heavy rainfall is also on the cards which may lead to dangerous and life-threatening flash flooding this week.</p> <p>A flood watch is in place for rivers from Maryborough, in Queensland's Wide Bay region, south to the NSW border.</p> <p>The bureau will be watching for major rises in the Mary, Noosa, Brisbane, Logan and Albert rivers this week.</p> <p>Premier David Crisafulli's main concern is flooding across the region home to more than three million residents.</p> <p>"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.</p> <p>"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.</p> <p>"This is an added complexity, but it's nothing that the community can't get through."</p> <p>Generators have been sent to Bay Island communities facing the tough choice of whether to evacuate, the premier said.</p> <p>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.</p> <p>The cyclone coincides with the AFL season opener in Brisbane between the Geelong Cats and Brisbane Lions on Thursday, while a day later the NRL's Dolphins and Rabbitohs are set to go head-to-head at Suncorp Stadium.</p> <p>An AFL spokesman said the league would monitor the situation over the coming days and adhere to government advice.</p> <p>SES NSW urged residents to prepare for damaging winds, large surf and heavy rainfall with major riverine and flash flooding expected from Wednesday.</p> <p>"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.</p> </body>