Hundreds of thousands of people are out of power in Queensland, but flood warnings remain throughout New South Wales after Ekkukrone Alfred left a destructive trajectory along Australia’s eastern coast.
As of Sunday, around 316,540 properties in Queensland had no electricity, and the Gold Coast was hit hardest, with over 112,000 customers affected.
The fierce winds and heavy rains of the storm have uprooted the trees and damaged power lines, complicating repair efforts. Energy Distributor Energex said its crews are making tireless efforts to restore power, but widespread damage can cause power to not resume for several days in some areas.
“The situation in Queensland and northern New South Wales remains very serious due to flash loading and strong winds,” Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Sunday.
“We expect heavy rain, gusts of wind damage and the impact of coastal waves will continue for the next few days,” Albanese said in Canberra in a statement aired by the Australian Broadcasting Company.
As heavy rain continued to pose flash flood risks, the Weather Service issued new flood alerts in parts of southeast Queensland and northeastern New South Wales.
Areas such as Brisbane, Ipswich, Sunshine Coast and Gimpie were particularly struck.
The risk of gusts of winds has largely subsided, but while the remains of the storm have moved inland, the state has also been able to gusts of 90kmph (60mph), the department said on its website.
“Now it’s weakly low now as it continues to move further inland through southeast Queensland and brings about heavy rain,” said Dean Narramore, a meteorologist at the department.
Emergency services are growing thinly and deal with numerous incidents across affected areas. In northern New South Wales, a 61-year-old man was found dead after being swept into a flood near Dorigo.
A fleet of Australian defence vehicles along the way was involved in the crash, in order to help with flood relief at Lismore, and several staff members were injured. Emergency services provide multiple rescues, mostly involving individuals trying to drive in flooded areas.
The harsh weather has caused significant disruption in transportation and public services. Brisbane Airport reopened on Sunday, but warned travelers about potential delays due to ongoing weather conditions. Public transport services have been affected, and train services and bus operations will resume, but are restricted in certain areas.
According to state Prime Minister David Crisafulli, the decision on reopening of around 1,000 Queensland schools that were closed due to the storm, based on the safety assessments, states.
“If we make it safe, the school will resume with the exception of the Gold Coast. There is a lot of damage left there. Power losses and transportation issues.”
He added:
