Sunshine Coast hit by wild winds and rain

Police have warned drivers to keep out of the flood waters as the first of our major roads has been cut by heavy overnight rain.

A small car cars drives through flood waters on Chevallum Road this morning. Gale force winds and more than 75mm of rain overnight have caused some minor flooding on the Coast. Photo: Jason Dougherty

Police have warned drivers to keep out of the flood waters as the first of our major roads has been cut by heavy overnight rain.

Police Inspector Tony Lewis said the Yandina to Bli Bli Road had been cut by water and police were urging drivers to keep away.

Insp. Lewis said if the rain continued throughout today and tonight, the Coast could be in for another round of flooding and road closures given the large amount of rainfall.

"We are cautioning drivers about driving through the flood water,'' he told thedaily.com.au this afternoon.

He said drivers caught recklessly driving through water, causing damage to other properties could be charged with dangerous driving or even wilful damage.

The Sunshine Coast has been hit by gale force winds and bucketed by more than 75mm of rain overnight.

The weather bureau this morning issued a dangerous surf warning, saying a large high east of Tasmania and a trough off the tropical east coast had combined to produce a strong pressure gradient over the Southeast Queensland Coast.

"This is generating gale force winds and a gale warning is current for coastal waters between Sandy Cape and Coolangatta,'' the bureau said.

"Large waves have developed overnight particularly north of the Gold Coast.

"The State Emergency Service advises that people in the affected area should stay clear of the water in the open ocean as large waves and rip currents develop.''

Official figures show Cape Moreton recorded wind gusts of 80km/h, Redcliffe 63km/h, Double Island Point 63km/h, Tewantin 38, while Maroochydore had winds of 32km/h.

Coast police urged drivers to slow down and double the distance between them and the car in front of them due to the rain and low visibility.

"If another car jumps in between, just back off again and keep a safe distance,'' Inspector Tony Lewis said.

"Plan your trips to take a little longer. With a little planning the right attitude and vigilance you can avoid road crashes in the wet!!''

The bureau is predicting more moderate falls on the Sunshine Coast with moderate to fresh SE winds, strong near the Coast.

We can expect more rain tomorrow, Friday with the weather likely to ease on Saturday. Maximums are unlikely to get past 20 degrees.

One caller to Coast radio station 92.7FM reported 156mm of rain in Marcoola since 10am yesterday. You can email your figures to [e-mail].

In the 24 hours to 9am this morning, officials figures show:

76mm in Tanawha, near Buderim, 77mm at Cooroy, 65mm at Pomona

Caloundra's Sugarbag Road 56mm, Parreara Weir at Kawana 60mm

Mountain Creek 54mm, Landsborough 43mm, Dunethin Rock, near Yandina 71mm

Eumundi 63mm, Nambour 53mm, Palmwoods 48mm, Maroochydore 65mm

Tewantin 47mm, Noosa Heads 48mm, Rainbow Beach 21, Maleny

Maleny 64mm, Baroon Pocket Dam 49mm and Cooran 41mm.

Go to the BOM rainfall site for the full list of Coast rainfall figures.

Check out the wild weather at Sunshine Beach

Originally published as Sunshine Coast hit by wild winds and rain