As it happened: Strong winds batter Brisbane; major flooding possible for Lismore after ex-Cyclone Alfred makes landfall

We’re bringing an end to our Sunday live coverage of ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred, which continues to bring flash flooding to South East Queensland and northern NSW. You can continue to follow our live coverage on Monday. Here’s a recap of what’s been happening:

• Brisbane continued to experience strong winds and flash flooding throughout the day after Alfred made landfall on Saturday night; a shelter in place warning was issued for some Gold Coast residents late on Sunday.
• Lismore residents began to return to their homes after evacuation orders were lifted; emergency warnings were issued for residents near the Clarence River in Grafton after water levels more than doubled in 24 hours.
• The remnants of the ex-tropical cyclone are expected to bring another day of heavy rain to Northern NSW after moving westward through Queensland; more than 241,500 homes remain without electricity across South East Queensland, and 12,500 without in NSW.
• In Queensland, major flood warnings remain in place for the Bremer River and Warrell Creek, and the Logan Albert River basin. In NSW, major flood warnings remain for the Clarence River at Grafton, the Bellinger River and the Richmond River at Coraki and Bungawalbin.
• Across both states, hundreds of schools will be closed on Monday – a full list of NSW school is available here, and here for Queensland. Some public transport services are set to resume across flood-affected areas.
• A 61-year-old man who died after being swept into floodwaters in northern NSW on Friday has been identified as 61-year-old Tom Cook.
• Thirteen people who were injured in a crash involving two Australian Defence Force vehicles near Lismore are expected to make a full recovery. Two soldiers remain in a serious condition.

Thank you for joining us. We will return with more rolling updates early Monday morning – come across and join us here.

Insurance customers have already lodged 3000 claims over two days as ex-tropical cyclone Alfred wreaks havoc on homes and businesses.

Insurance Council of Australia chief executive officer Andrew Hall said it was too early to estimate the total insurance bill.

“However insurers have received around 3000 claims in the past two days and expect many more thousands of claims as residents return to their homes and understand the full extent of the damage,” Mr Hall said in a statement.

An “insurance catastrophe” has been declared for southeast Queensland and northern New South Wales, triggering priority treatment for affected policyholders and triaging to ensure those hardest hit receive urgent assistance.

“We encourage impacted policyholders to contact their insurer to begin the claims process,” Mr Hall said.

Insured losses of $2 billion were pencilled in by S&P Global Ratings late last week but fears of a category two system making landfall did not come to pass, with Alfred downgraded to a tropical low before hitting the coast between Brisbane and Maroochydore on Saturday night.

Despite the downgrade, Alfred has caused power outages, flooding and falling debris and more rainfall and wild weather is expected.

Riverine flooding in low lying parts of Lismore on Saturday.Credit: Nick Moir

Ex-tropical cyclone Jasper that hit north Queensland in December 2023 cost $409 million in total, from 10,500 claims.

Cyclone Tracey, which devastated much of Darwin back in 1974, was the costliest cyclone in Australian history, with insured losses of $7.3 billion when normalised to 2023 values.

It was still too early to predict if insurance premiums would rise following the extreme weather event but the council said the increasing frequency and severity of natural disasters was leading to higher costs for customers.

Alfred was moving as a tropical low from Queensland’s Bribie Island across the coast and inland towards the state’s southwest on Sunday.

Forecasters expected the heavy rain and destructive gusts to continue until Monday.

AAP

All NSW public schools that were closed on Friday will remain closed tomorrow, the government said.

A full list of closed schools in NSW is available at the NSW Department of Education website here.

A number of schools in Lismore will remain closed. Credit: Danielle Smith

The Education Department will provide an update on Monday to advise school communities on any remaining school closures for Tuesday.

For Queensland students, the government has created an online tracker listing the state, independent and Catholic school closures. That can be found here.

Here’s a quick summary of Queensland Premier David Crisafulli’s press conference earlier this afternoon.

In it, he talks about the next steps for Queenslanders affected by Alfred.

Some public transport services are set to resume across northern NSW and South East Queensland tomorrow even as ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred continues to bring major flood warnings to other areas.

In Brisbane, where public transport began operating again this morning before drivers were stood down before midday following flash flooding, some bus services will run on a reduced timetable on Monday. All bus services in the Gold Coast have been cancelled. Buses in Logan and Redlands will run according to a Saturday timetable.

In northern NSW, communities in Mid North Coast in towns including Coffs Harbour, Kempsey and Port Macquarie will see a return of some services, while NSW TrainLink will recommence limited coach operations through to Grafton.

But in the Northern Rivers areas such as Tweed, Grafton, Yamba, Kyogle, Ballina and Byron will have over 1000 school services cancelled, as well as 109 regular routes.

Travellers in both states have been advised to continue to check the relevant transport apps.

Queensland police are ramping up patrols after a 26-year-old man allegedly broke into a car in a flooded car park on the Gold Coast and stole items.

More than 110 extra police from north Queensland will join officers in Brisbane and on the Gold Coast under anti-looting Operation Xray Secure.

Deputy Commissioner Cheryl Scanlon said police were committed to keeping Queenslanders safe throughout the extreme weather.

“Whether it’s responding to calls for assistance, disrupting opportunistic thieves targeting innocent Queenslanders’ properties or providing a helping hand where it’s needed most,” she said.

Police block a road due to flooding in Greenslopes in Brisbane on Sunday.Credit: Getty Images

The NSW government has confirmed it will consider delaying the start of NAPLAN tests for schools in areas affected by ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred.

The NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA) will work with affected schools to start NAPLAN testing later if needed, to be determined on a case-by-case basis.

The NAPLAN testing window takes place across nine school days, and is scheduled to take place from Wednesday, March 12 to Monday, March 24. NESA and the Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority (QCAA) will provide advice to schools as they become operational.

The NSW Education Department will provide an update on Monday to advise school communities on any remaining school closures for Tuesday. You can find the full list of the 255 schools in NSW that will be closed on Monday here.

Education Minister Prue Car said in a statement on Sunday night that while there were no reports so far of major damages to schools in affected areas, it did not mean it was safe for staff and students to travel to and from schools on Monday.

“As the full impact of ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred continues to unfold and clean-up efforts begin to get under way, our priority is ensuring the safety of students and staff,” she said.

Brisbane has continued to experience some of the worst flash flooding today as the remnants of ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred have lingered over the city.

Homes in Tingalpa in Brisbane’s south side flooded, and water rose in garages at Nundah on the north side, after 100 millimetres of rain – almost the average monthly rainfall for December – was dumped over the city within two hours this morning.

A resident walks on a flooded street in Newmarket in Brisbane on Sunday.Credit: Getty Images

Heavy rain caused flash flooding in parts of Brisbane today, inundating homes on Boundary Street and Wynnum Road in Tingalpa, swamping cars in Newmarket and Stones Corner, and inundating garages in Nundah.

More than 100 roads were closed, with low-lying areas in Windsor some of the first to go under. The Coles at Morningside on the city’s south side was evacuated after its car park flooded.

Woolloongabba, Coorparoo, Carina, Carindale, Richlands, Oxley and Greenslopes have also been affected.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Treasurer Jim Chalmers during a visit to the Logan disaster management centre.Credit: Getty Images

Gold Coast council has issued an emergency warning for major flooding for several suburbs, advising some residents it is too late to evacuate.

Residents in Currumbin, Currumbin Valley, Tallebudgera, Tallebudgera Valley and Elanora have been advised to take action now, by going inside and getting up high. People have been told not to try to drive.

Earlier, City of Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate warned the council was preparing for the largest disaster recovery in its history.

Queensland Education Minister John-Paul Langbroek has offered cyclone-affected schools the option of pushing back NAPLAN tests a week.

“Schools will communicate directly with their communities to outline their decision concerning NAPLAN,” Langbroek said on Sunday night.

More than 1000 state, Catholic and independent schools were closed across South East Queensland as Cyclone Alfred approached.

As of 5pm on Sunday, 237 of 661 state schools were due to reopen on Monday, with mandatory closures across only the Gold Coast Council area due to ongoing severe weather.

Safety assessments have been done for the Moreton Bay, Brisbane, Redlands, Ipswich, Logan and Scenic Rim regions, allowing some schools to advise of their reopening, while the majority of schools in the Sunshine Coast, Noosa and Darling Downs areas will reopen.