Wind, surf warnings as TC Gabrielle tipped to get stronger

Tropical Cyclone Gabrielle has hit category two, and is expected to reach category three on Friday, meteorologists warn.

• Watch: Car washed away in wild Sydney storm

Tropical Cyclone Gabrielle has developed into a category-two system, the weather bureau has announced.

Gabrielle was 530km northeast of Mackay on Thursday afternoon, moving south at 15km/h.

It was expected to reach category-three intensity by Friday, with the Queensland coast bracing for large sea swells and dangerous winds.

The cyclone warning comes as much of the state looks set to cop thunderstorms.

The Bureau of Meteorology confirmed on Wednesday that Gabrielle had formed as a Category 1 system in the Coral Sea, as it released updated tracking information revealing the anticipated path.

The cyclone is expected to produce strong winds and big swells off the coast of Mackay, Townsville and the Capricornia region in coming days.

The cyclone was 610km northeast of Mackay moving at speeds of 13km/h just before 10am on Wednesday.

Gabrielle is expected to turn southeast later today, remaining well offshore the Queensland coast but is likely to pass very close to Norfolk Island on Saturday or early Sunday morning.

The Bureau of Meteorology’s Danny Teece-Johnson said the cyclone is expected to intensify into a Category 2 on Friday.

“Exposed eastern coastal areas will experience large waves and freshly strong winds particularly today and tomorrow,” Mr Teece-Johnson said.

Mr Teece-Johnson said the Gold Coast and Brisbane would see more hazardous surf and winds of between 35-45km/h from Friday.

Earlier meteorologist Brooke Pagel said it was possible Cyclone Gabrielle could become a severe tropical cyclone.

“She’s playing very nicely at the moment and with all our modelling it’s pretty easy to track,” Ms Pagel said.

“It could potentially become a Category 3 cyclone, but at the moment it’s still too soon to tell.”

Meanwhile, thunderstorm activity is expected to continue around the state on Thursday, with most of the rain moving north as a monsoon trough turns, although it is possible that the South East could also get some wild weather.

“Anywhere from west of Goondiwindi could see around 5-10mm of rain today,” Mr Teece-Johnson said.

“The South East will be generally be pretty dry and warm, and that trend will continue in the next few days particularly on Sunday when there will be a return of that heat,” Mr Teece-Johnson said.

Temperatures around the South East are expected to reach 29C today, below average for this time of year.

“

⚠️🌊 Hazardous Surf Warning issued for beaches south of Seventeen Seventy, including the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast due to swell from TC Gabrielle. Check https://t.co/bj6DuH20Vc for details. Follow @lifesavingqld advice re beach closures and always #swimbetweentheflags. pic.twitter.com/0fb3Z9L8fs

— Bureau of Meteorology, Queensland (@BOM_Qld) February 8, 2023

Lifeguards on the Gold and Sunshine coasts are preparing to close beaches if the cyclone whips up a huge swell as expected, despite a weekend heatwave forecast.

Gold Coast chief lifeguard Chris Maynard said there was still uncertainty about the cyclone track and likely coastal impacts “but there’s definitely going to be a swell event of some type”.

“There’s a solid swell forecast for Friday into Saturday and we will be monitoring the situation closely to see if we need to close some or all beaches,” he said.

Mr Maynard warned the forecast big swell would be for experienced surfers only to tackle.

Shark nets are likely to be pulled up in the coming days to prevent them being dragged out to sea.

Contingency plans have been put in place for a major surf carnival scheduled for the Gold Coast this weekend, featuring some of Australia’s top ironmen and ironwomen.

The Shaw and Partners Shannon Eckstein Ironman Classic has been set down for Northcliffe near Surfers Paradise but back-up locations including Currumbin Estuary are on standby as the swell builds.

Ms Pagel said hazardous surf was expected along the southeast coast, with seas reaching about 1-1.5m and swells of between 2-3m. The looming storm on Wednesday morning forced Carnival cruise ship Luminosa to change direction.

The Luminosa was expected to reach New Caledonia on Wednesday but was instead forced to head to Brisbane.

In a letter to ship guests, Carnival Luminosa Captain Carmelo Marino said they had to deviate from the course to remain at a safe distance from the low.