Qld staring down the barrel of extreme weather this summer

Queenslanders should expect up to four cyclones near the coast, fires and flooding in the coming months, the state’s disaster co-ordinator has warned.

Deputy Police Commissioner and state disaster co-ordinator Shane Chelepy

Queenslanders should expect up to four cyclones near the coast, fires and flooding in the coming months, the state’s disaster co-ordinator has warned.

Residents should prepare for the worst case scenario and have essentials such as power backups, water and food prepared, Queensland Police Deputy Commissioner and state disaster co-ordinator Shane Chelepy said.

“You need to be self-sufficient for 72 hours because emergency crews, by the time that we deal with the event and get to you, it could be up to 72 hours,” Mr Chelepy told The Courier-Mail.

“But it goes a little bit beyond that, there’s little things you can do to help you recover better.

“So things like your family heirlooms, your photos, that stuff that you can’t replace.

“Pull them in plastic tubs that you can pick up, throw them in the back of your car when you need to evacuate.”

Mr Chelepy said up to four cyclones, with one or two crossing the Queensland coast, was possible.

“What we are seeing is we’re seeing an increased ocean temperatures this year, which the bureau tells us could result in more moisture coming on shore, so more rain, a wetter season,” he said.

“We’re not really seeing the influence this year between La Nina or El Nino, that could form, but it will form as a weak system.

“The real driver this year is that warmer sea temperatures, which will bring a lot of onshore moisture for us.”

Mr Chelepy said fires were challenging because they were fast-moving and unpredictable, and could impact an entire community within a few hours.

So far the land burnt in recent fires is 153,000ha, however communities have not been impacted.

A bushfire rages near Dalby last October.

“So the fires worry me for the speed, but the flooding and cyclones, they impact so many Queenslanders and the devastation and the long lasting effect it has … if we go up around Cairns and Wujal and Cooktown up around the Daintree now, those communities are still recovering (from last season) and we’re entering into a new season,” Mr Chelepy said.

As part of preparations for disaster season, Mr Chelepy has spoken with the 77 local councils around Queensland as well as all dam operators.

He said state disaster bosses had met and discussed resource sharing including personnel.

Mr Chelepy said it was important Queenslanders were aware of their individual risks and threats based on where they lived.

“If you’re in Cairns you want to think about cyclones,” he said.

“If you’re in the southwest, you’ve got to be thinking about flooding and fires.

“You know, people think they’re going to get a BOM (Bureau of Meteorology) warning to say your street or your suburb (is at risk). They’re not going to get it.

“So you need to actually understand what your risk is so you can contextualise what you have to do.”

Mr Chelepy said it was also important Queenslanders had a plan of where to go if they were impacted by a natural disaster.

“So start thinking now if you’re going to get those cyclones coming towards you, if you’re going to get severe flood, severe storms, where will I go and when will I go?” he said.

“Because every year we see more people die in floodwaters driving cars than we do through the impact of the flood itself.

“So for Queenslanders come back to a ‘get ready’ message, know the risks that might come to you and make a plan.

“And the planning starts with what are you personally going to do if you’re going to get impacted by that event?”

Originally published as Qld staring down the barrel of extreme weather this summer