# Four million Queenslanders warned they could be in ‘firing line’ when cyclone heads towards coast

Tropical Cyclone Alfred will “likely” turn towards major population centres in south-east  this week, with authorities warning more than 4 million people from Bundaberg to the Gold Coast that their communities could be “in the firing line”.

The  premier, David Crisafulli, said on Sunday the system could cause serious and potentially dangerous coastal erosion, flash flooding and strong winds.

On Sunday, some beaches along the Queensland coast recorded 14-metre waves, as Alfred lingers off the coast and moves slowly to the south-east.

The Bureau of Meteorology said it was “likely” the system would begin to turn westward on Tuesday, potentially reaching the coastline on Thursday.

It remained uncertain where Alfred would cross land – potentially anywhere along a 450km stretch of coastline between Bundaberg and the  border. Most Queenslanders – more than 4 million people – live in the south-east corner of the state.

Crisafulli said authorities were issuing warnings on Sunday due to the large populations in the areas that could be impacted.

“This is a large system and presents a big challenge for a large part of the Queensland coastline,” he said.

“Given the size of that population, we thought it would be important for us to move to that precautionary and preparation phase. Some coastal areas are potentially in the firing line.”

While tracking maps are frequently changed – particularly over the longer term – the Bureau of Meteorology’s  system showed Alfred weakening and moving slowly away from the coast in the coming days before heading back towards Brisbane.

Matthew Callopy, a senior forecaster from the bureau, said Alfred could potentially make landfall as a category two system. That could bring destructive winds, coastal inundation, flash flooding and heavy to intense rainfall, including rain totals from 300mm to 600mm over multiple days.

“The range of possible tracks for  are from Bundaberg right down to the Gold Coast,” Callopy said.

“The heaviest rainfall is likely to be concentrated at the southern edge of the system … wherever it crosses the coast.”



The BoM’s MetEye model showing the potential track of Tropical Cyclone Alfred this week. Illustration: Bureau Of Meteorology

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