Australians are preparing for a “very rare” cyclone to sweep across the east coast near Brisbane, the country’s third most populated city.
Residents are being told to brace themselves for the “significant risks” Cyclone Alfred poses, which will be the first to hit Southeast Queensland and northern New South Wales for 51 years.
But what is a cyclone, what kind of threat does it pose and what is being done about it?
What is a cyclone?
A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm that begins over tropical oceans, which can vary in speed, size, and intensity.
A storm begins being referred to as a cyclone once it reaches maximum sustained winds of 74mph or higher.
A cyclone is the same phenomenon as a typhoon or hurricane, but they are referred to differently depending on where they occur.
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The term cyclone is used when the storms occur in the South Pacific and Indian Ocean. They are referred to as typhoons when they appear in the Northwest Pacific and as a hurricane when they appear in the North Atlantic, central North Pacific and eastern North Pacific.
What kind of threat is Cyclone Alfred?
The cyclone was over the Pacific Ocean 250 miles east of Brisbane and tracking west on Wednesday, with sustained winds near the centre of 59mph and gusts up to 81mph.
It is expected to cross the coast between the Queensland state capital Brisbane and the tourist city of Gold Coast to the south late on Thursday or early Friday.
Meteorologists have warned that destructive wind gusts of up to 96mph could develop from Thursday afternoon and tropical cyclone Alfred is expected to land as a rare category-two storm early on Friday morning near Brisbane, Queensland’s capital.
Total rainfall could be as much as 80cm (31.5ins) in some regions – more than the average total for March, Australia’s Bureau of Meteorology said.
It has warned life-threatening flooding is expected as a consequence.
“Large swells and powerful waves have been observed along the Queensland coast for several days now with severe coastal erosion and inundation happening,” Bureau of Meteorology manager Matt Collopy says.
“This will continue and likely get worse as the system approaches and makes landfall.
“The wave, wind, rainfall and particularly the storm surge present significant risks.”
What is being done about it?
Cyclone Alfred weather warnings stretch cover more than 500km (311 miles) across the coast in the states of Queensland and New South Wales, impacting millions of people.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has stressed the importance of preparatory work ahead of the cyclone’s arrival.
He said heavy-lift helicopters have been deployed and offered to “provide whatever resources are required” for the state governments.
The federal government says it is providing the Queensland government with 250,000 sandbags in addition to 80,000 the military has already delivered, and some residents have been seen stacking them to protect low-lying properties.
Authorities have urged residents in flood-prone suburbs to evacuate by Thursday morning at the latest, with some already reported to have done so.
Some schools in affected areas had already closed on Wednesday, with more to shut on Thursday.
On Thursday and Friday, all schools in affected areas will be closed, hospitals will not carry out non-urgent surgeries and public transport will not run, Queensland Premier David Crisafulli said.
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Speaking on Wednesday, Mr Crisafulli said boats moored in the region would not be allowed to move without the permission of the Brisbane harbour master from Wednesday afternoon due to the cyclone danger.
“This is a very rare event for southeast Queensland, I acknowledge that, but I’m asking Queenslanders to take it seriously and I want you to know that we are taking it seriously,” he said.
“If you are in a storm tide zone or you’re in an area where you know there is riverine flooding, you really need to consider and think about your evacuation plan now,” he added.
A number of flights in the affected regions have been cancelled, and operators have warned more are likely over the coming days.
Sports events have also been called off – most notably the Australian WPGA Championship and two Australian Football League matches in Queensland.
On Monday, an adventurer had to be rescued by a warship in the Coral Sea around 460 miles east of the Queensland coast after getting caught up in the cyclone’s 50mph winds.
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Lithuanian rower Aurimas Mockus, 44, was in the final stages of his 7,500-mile voyage across the Pacific Ocean from the US to Australia, which he started in an enclosed boat in October, when he became stranded for three days before being rescued.
A brief history of cyclones
Cyclones are common in Queensland’s tropical north but are rare in the state’s temperate and densely populated southeast corner that borders New South Wales state.
The last cyclone to hit Southeast Queensland and northern New South Wales was Cyclone Zoe in March 1974.
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It crossed the coast at the southern end of the Gold Coast on the New South Wales border and caused extensive flooding.
The last time a cyclone threatened Brisbane was in 1990, but the system tracked south just before reaching the city.
More than 1,900 disasters have been attributed to tropical cyclones worldwide since 1970, according to the World Meteorological Organisation, resulting in more than 790,000 deaths and $1.4trn-worth of damages.
