Bribie Island spared from ‘real life nightmare’ after ex-TC Alfred weakened

After TC Alfred was downgraded to a tropical low after making slow progress in its run to Queensland, low lying Sunshine Coast residents say they have “dodged a bullet”.

Pumicestone Passage Catchment Management Body (PPCMB) spokeswoman Jen Kettleton-Butler and Member for Caloundra Kendall Morton on Bribie Island. Photo: PPCMB

Residents living in low-lying areas of the Sunshine Coast across from the second breakthrough on Bribie Island have “dodged a bullet” after Tropical Cyclone Alfred was downgraded to a tropical low.

There were fears that residents of Caloundra and Golden Beach could have been in the firing line of inundation as Alfred made landfall, following the latest breakthrough on the northern tip of Bribie Island on Thursday.

However, with Alfred downgrading to a tropical low after making slow progress in its run to Queensland, residents of the coastal communities have been spared the worst with cafes across Caloundra abuzz with customers on Saturday morning.

Alfred is yet to hit the coast and while it is still stalling up near Bribie Island and is expected to move west and cross the mainland coast between Maroochydore and Caboolture later today.

Pumicestone Passage Catchment Management Body spokeswoman Jen Kettleton-Butler discusses the Bribie Island breakthrough.

Pumicestone Passage Catchment Management Body spokeswoman Jen Kettleton-Butler said residents of Caloundra and Golden Beach had “dodged a bullet”.

“Alfred has roared past the side of Bribie Island and it was pretty hairy up there off of the island for a while,” Ms Kettleton-Butler said.

“But then it just fizzled out and became an east coast low and to be perfectly honest, we’re lucky.

“We’re very lucky because we dodged a bullet.”

Last week, Ms Kettleton-Butler had described the impending cyclone as a “real-life nightmare”.

Ms Kettleton-Butler said Alfred lost steam when it crossed over the islands of Moreton Bay.

“As it stumbled into Moreton Bay and lost its power it took a mortal blow because of that path,” she said.

“We’re lucky, we’re incredibly lucky.”

While the northern tip of Bribie Island was smashed by waves earlier in the week, Ms Kettleton-Butler pleaded with authorities to shore up what remains of the island barrier.

“It’s had an absolute hammering and we’re lucky that the cyclone winds spun the way they did, which was essentially offshore,” she said.

“We were staring into the pit of oblivion, and we’re just lucky, we’ve got a second chance to have a really good, long, hard look at ourselves.

“We now understand the risk, I know that the council understands it, I know that the state government understands it now, and hopefully we can look at a coastal engineering solution that will take us from being the most vulnerable coastal community in Australia to the most protected.”