Cyclone Alfred projected to cross the Queensland coast on Saturday

ABC NEWS (Australia)

Millions of people have been instructed to stay indoors as Cyclone Alfred is expected to move over the Queensland coast in the morning hours.

Transcript

00:00It's a threat not seen here in a generation. Ferocious winds ripping massive trees from

00:09their roots on the Gold Coast. The consequences, devastating, with homes crushed by falling

00:15branches. Tens of thousands are without power and fearing what's still to come.

00:21I'm not looking forward to tonight because we've got like windows all around.

00:26Scott Maxwell was lucky to escape uninjured when a huge tree fell on his Corumban home.

00:32I woke up at 2 o'clock this morning with a loud thud and the whole house shook.

00:37The savage conditions taking even experienced hands off guard.

00:42I'm used to cyclones. I come from Magnetic Island, North Queensland, so KBV 5. I wasn't

00:48worried about KBV 2. It's a bit of a...

00:53The Gold Coast's famous beaches, unrecognisable. Massive swells are gouging chunks out of the

00:59coastline, leaving a jagged wall of sand with a breathtaking drop.

01:05We're all quiet. We're just, I think we're all in awe of what's happening right now.

01:09Unbelievable what nature can do.

01:11Structures now left exposed to the elements and some hinterland roads are starting to

01:16go under.

01:19This lot will need a shower before they bunker down, potentially for a while.

01:24It's possible that we're going to ask people to shelter for 24 to 36 hours.

01:29One of the nation's most built up regions is at the mercy of tropical cyclone Alfred.

01:35The storm's slow progress allowing for final walks and preparations in Brisbane this morning.

01:41After an agonising wait, most just want to see the back of it.

01:45Now we're breathing deeply because the pause is, just adds a little bit more pressure.

01:51We've both not been through anything like this before.

01:54The power's probably the main concern.

01:56City life has ground to a halt. The streets are mostly empty.

02:00Humans rally in times of crisis and people really, really have.

02:06Potential projectiles have been corralled. Families are ready.

02:10It's like you're waiting for a meal to come to the table and you're just sitting there

02:13waiting.

02:14As tropical cyclone Alfred moves across the Moreton Bay Islands overnight, it's expected

02:18to weaken from a Category 2 to a Category 1 system before crossing the mainland tomorrow

02:24morning.

02:25This will mean that destructive winds are unlikely for Brisbane itself, but damaging

02:30wind gusts to 120 kilometres per hour are expected.

02:34While Alfred's slow pace has given South East Queensland time to prepare, it comes with

02:40a sting in the tail.

02:42Authorities say it could take the tropical cyclone anywhere between six to nine hours

02:46to cross the coast. In the process, it could dump life-threatening and dangerous flooding

02:52rains on low-lying areas.

02:55Rainfall totals for the event could reach 800 millimetres in some areas.

03:01In this case, it is really large and slow moving and that does represent the prospect

03:06of some significant rainfall.

03:08It could potentially exceed the levels we saw in the 2022 flood and so if that is not

03:13a reason to take this seriously, I don't know what is.

03:16Authorities expect to release water from the region's main dams in the coming days.

03:22Islands just off the coast are already being pounded.

03:25It's coming now, you can feel it, it's in the air.

03:28It'll be a sleepless night for many with more to come as the expected flood disaster unfolds.

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