BRISBANE, Australia — Torrential rains battered Australia’s east coast, although the area managed to evade the damaging winds from its first tropical cyclone in over five decades, authorities reported on Saturday. The severe weather conditions have resulted in one confirmed fatality, with several other individuals sustaining injuries.
Initially, Tropical Cyclone Alfred was projected to be the first storm to make landfall near Brisbane, the bustling capital of Queensland, since 1974. However, by Saturday, the cyclone had diminished to a tropical low, characterized by sustained winds falling below 63 kph (39 mph).
The remnants of the cyclone made landfall approximately 55 kilometers (34 miles) north of Brisbane late on Saturday, with expectations to continue moving westward across the interior, bringing intense rainfall, according to the Bureau of Meteorology’s announcement.
“The significant danger at present stems from the localized heavy and potentially intense rainfall, which could cause both flash and riverine flooding,” stated bureau manager Matt Collopy.
While cyclones frequently occur in Queensland’s northern tropical regions, they are an uncommon phenomenon in the temperate and densely populated southeastern corner that borders New South Wales.
Authorities confirmed a 61-year-old man as the first casualty following the severe weather. The individual had been missing in a flooded river near Dorrigo, New South Wales, and his body was retrieved on Saturday.
In Tregeagle, New South Wales, a pair of military trucks involved in emergency response efforts overturned on Saturday, injuring 13 defense personnel, shared Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Sunday. One truck left the roadway, rolling several times into a field, while another tipped on its side while maneuvering to avoid a collision.
Among the 32 Brisbane-based military personnel in these vehicles, six suffered serious injuries, according to the Prime Minister. Those injured were transported to hospitals with expectations of recovery, conveyed Defense Minister Richard Marles.
Additionally, minor injuries were reported for a woman in Gold Coast, Queensland, where an apartment building’s roof was torn off on Friday. Twenty-one residents had to be evacuated from the facility, police noted.
Further west, a couple in Gold Coast endured minor injuries after a tree crashed through their bedroom ceiling during high winds and rain occurring on Thursday night, officials indicated.
Premier David Crisafulli of Queensland stated that the tempest had resulted in outages across 330,000 homes and businesses since Thursday, marking the largest blackout caused by a natural disaster in the state’s history. Meanwhile, New South Wales experienced outages affecting up to 45,000 properties on Saturday. However, officials noted that power had been restored to tens of thousands by the end of the day.
Sustained heavy rainfall also led to river flooding across Queensland and New South Wales, according to the meteorology bureau. Among 36 flood rescues recently conducted by emergency services in northern New South Wales, the recovered man stands as the sole fatality, with most rescues involving vehicles attempting to traverse floodwaters, police mentioned.
