Severe weather, including powerful gusts and torrential rain, has left over 300,000 properties without power and caused widespread flooding along Australia’s east coast, officials reported on Sunday. The extreme conditions have claimed the life of one driver and injured a dozen soldiers, as the region continues to grapple with the aftermath of Cyclone Alfred.
After days of lashing a 400-kilometre stretch of coastline as a category 2 tropical cyclone, Alfred weakened into a tropical depression before making landfall on Saturday evening. However, the storm’s remnants continued to wreak havoc as they moved inland, leaving hundreds of thousands of residents without electricity and submerging roads in parts of southeast Queensland and northeast New South Wales.
Queensland Premier David Crisafulli reported that the resort town of Hervey Bay received 23 centimetres of rain in recent hours, leading to flooded homes and emergency rescues in fast-moving waters. He noted that the weather system “continues to pack a punch” as it advances inland, adding that more than 1,000 schools closed across the state would begin reopening on Monday.
Utility companies confirmed that approximately 290,000 homes and businesses in southeast Queensland and another 16,000 in northeast New South Wales remained without power on Sunday. Queensland’s Essential Energy warned residents to prepare for extended outages, citing challenges such as rising floodwaters, swollen creek beds, fallen vegetation, and mudslides blocking access roads.
In New South Wales, emergency services reported that 14,600 people were under weather-related warnings. Deputy Commissioner Damien Johnson urged caution, stating, “In the last 24 hours, 17 incidents have occurred as a result of people driving into floodwaters. Not only is it a danger to yourself and your family, but it also endangers the volunteers and emergency workers who must rescue you.”
Tragically, a 61-year-old man lost his life after his pickup truck was swept off a bridge into a river in northern New South Wales. Despite escaping the vehicle and attempting to cling to a tree branch, he was overwhelmed by the rapid currents.
In a separate incident, 13 soldiers were injured when two army trucks overturned during a deployment to clear roads near Lismore, a flood-prone city in New South Wales. Twelve soldiers remained hospitalized on Sunday, with two in serious condition. New South Wales Premier Chris Minns expressed his wishes for their swift recovery.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese emphasized the ongoing danger posed by the severe weather. “The situation in Queensland and northern New South Wales remains very serious due to flash flooding and heavy winds,” he said. “Heavy rainfall, damaging wind gusts, and coastal surf impacts are expected to continue over the coming days.”
The Bureau of Meteorology issued severe weather warnings for a wide area of southeast Queensland, cautioning that “heavy to intense rainfall may produce dangerous and life-threatening flash flooding.” Similar warnings were issued for parts of New South Wales, as the region braces for further rainfall and potential damage. Authorities have urged residents to remain vigilant and heed all safety advisories.
