SYDNEY: Australian authorities told 40,000 people to evacuate to higher ground on Thursday as a storm system generated by a powerful cyclone that pummelled the northeast two days ago swept down the coast with heavy rain.

Cyclone Debbie hit as a category four storm in the north of tropical Queensland state on Tuesday, smashing tourist resorts, bringing down power lines, flattening canefields and shutting down coal mines.

Driving rain fell most heavily on Thursday in hinterland and coastal areas either side of the state capital, Brisbane.

"This severe weather system that began with Cyclone Debbie and is tracking down the coast is causing havoc across our state," Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk told reporters in Brisbane.

The cyclone was downgraded to a tropical low depression on Wednesday but on Thursday was driving squalls with torrential rain across a 1,200-km (745-mile) stretch of Australia's east coast, swelling rivers, causing flash floods and prompting authorities to tell 40,000 people to evacuate.

In Lismore in the north of neighbouring New South Wales state, the State Emergency Service order 7,000 residents in low-lying areas to leave after forecasts predicted the town's worst flood in nearly 20 years.

A levee protects the rural hub in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales, home to at least 25,000 people, but most of those downtown planned to seek higher ground, Geoff Baxter, a barman at the Richmond Hotel told Reuters.

"We're clearing out the pub, mate, and closing it up. All the shops got closed, everyone's clearing up their cellars," he said.

Further north, Queensland closed more than 2,000 schools as sustained heavy rainfall brought flash floods to the Gold Coast tourist area and Mackay further north.

In the cyclone-hit zone further north still, military helicopters, ferries and planes brought hundreds of holidaymakers stranded on resort islands in the storm's path to the mainland, where tens of thousands more people were without power.

Resorts along the world-famous Great Barrier Reef and the Whitsunday coast bore the brunt of the storm with wind gusts stronger than 260 kph (160 mph).

"It's kind of chaos down here," Jon Clements, an architect awaiting evacuation from Hamilton Island, told Reuters. "I think there's probably three times the number of people they can put on aeroplanes at the moment down there."

At nearby Daydream Island, where water supplies had run low since the storm, troops brought food, fuel and water while helicopters carried sick guests to the mainland.

The resort will be closed for at least a month for repairs, management said in a statement, as tourism operators statewide reported cancelled bookings and anticipated a long-term hit to trade.

"That's the kind of collateral damage we suffer sometimes in our industry," Queensland Tourism Industry Council chief executive Daniel Gschwind told Reuters.

In the Bowen Basin, the world's single largest source of coal used to make steel, major miners Glencore and BHP said they were still assessing the extent of any disruption to shipments.

All four coal rail networks run by operator Aurizon were closed, alongside its road and rail operations from the Bowen Basin to Brisbane. Ports at Abbot Point, Hay Point and Mackay also shut, but did not report extensive damage.

Of the smaller miners, Yancoal had called force majeure on its Middlemount mine.

About 2,500 insurance claims have been filed but Queensland's top two insurers, Suncorp Group Ltd and RACQ, said it was too early to put a dollar figure on the damage.

Hundreds of hectares of sugarcane crops were flattened, but Wilmar on Thursday restarted sugar mills at Proserpine and Sarina.

One female tourist was killed in a car crash on Monday that police said was due to wild weather as Cyclone Debbie approached. Another two people were injured as the storm passed through.</s>QUEENSLAND, Australia: A 1.5-metre bull shark was found a long way from home after it was found washed up on a muddy river bank in north Queensland.



According to various media reports on Thursday (Mar 30), the shark was stranded after water surges as a result of Cyclone Debbie caused pockets of flooding in the area.

Pictures of the washed up shark went viral on social media, with the city's fire department posting a tongue-in-cheek warning to urge residents to keep away from the floodwater.

However, people who lived in the area still turned up to take pictures of the stranded shark, which was likely swept upstream from the Burdekin River.

The river, which is located in North and Far North Queensland, is home to various marine life like bull sharks, turtles and barracudas, according to news.com.au.

Australian authorities told 40,000 people to evacuate to higher ground on Thursday as Cyclone Debbie swept down the northeast coast with heavy rain.

The category four storm brushed north of Queensland state on Tuesday, bringing down power lines, flattening canefields and shutting down coal mines.</s>There are fears the aftermath of Cyclone Debbie will have killed people in major flooding overnight, as 25,000 are ordered to evacuate in NSW and 91,000 Queenslanders remain without power.

Homes and businesses are going underwater in Lismore as floodwaters continue to rise even at low-tide, with up to three metres of water expected.

Sirens have sounded in the northern NSW town as residents are warned to head to higher ground and get on their roof if necessary after floodwater topped the levee, ABC reports.

NSW SES Deputy Commissioner Mark Morrow said some of the people who called for help overnight couldn't be reached, with 'distressing news' possibly to come.

'There could be people overnight that perished in that flood, we don't know at this stage,' he told ABC television on Friday.

'We expect this morning that as we start to go out and try to find people that made those calls overnight, there could be some very distressing news.'

Mr Morrow said metres of water would likely flood businesses and homes and the levels could exceed those seen during events in the city in 2001 and 2005.

'What that means to people listening this morning is that most of the businesses in the Lismore CBD will have up to three metres of water over the floor,' he said.

'That's up to about roof level in their house or even higher. A lot of people that are going to be displaced from their businesses or their homes.'

Residents in the flood zone caused by ex-tropical cyclone Debbie have spent the night holed up in evacuation centres, as the system tracked south past Brisbane and into northern NSW.

'About 130 flood rescues, people in cars, people trapped on roofs of houses. We'll get out there as soon as we can in daylight with aerial assets as well, helicopters and we'll try and find those people that made calls to us last night and help them this morning.'

He said about 6,000 people had left their homes.

River levels in some threatened communities were continuing to rise, even on a low tide, when they should be starting to drop.

'In some places further to the north, like Chinderah up around Tweed Heads where the water should be falling on a low tide now it's actually increasing. That's not a good sign for today.'

The wind is expected to pick up on Friday, compounding the dangers.

'We'll start to see trees coming down, potentially powerlines,' Mr Morrow said.

'That's the back-end associated with that cyclone in Queensland.

'We're far from out of this and I think the recovery efforts that are going to have to occur are going to be significant.'

He said 13 evacuation orders remained current, affecting about 25,000 people.

Authorities have lamented those ignoring advice and driving through floodwaters.

SES spokesman Brent Hunter those people were 'playing Russian roulette with their lives', Daily Telegraph reported.

Closer to the Queensland border, residents in 500 homes in the South Murwillumbah, Condong and Tumbulgum areas were also ordered to evacuate, with the Tweed River experiencing major flooding.

People in Tweed Heads South and West, Chinderah, Kingscliff, Fingal Head and Bilambil were told to leave too.

Meanwhile, Queensland Fire and Emergency Services Deputy Commissioner Mike Wassing said the state's flood emergency wasn't over, particularly for communities on the NSW border.

'Our greatest area of concern this morning for people living in the areas of Beenleigh, Waterford, Woodend and Beaudesert,' he told ABC television.

'We currently got major flood warnings for the Albert River and the Logan River.'

He described the situation as 'very serious'.

'It is very serious, it's a major flood warning. If you're in low-lying areas, safely move to high grounds.'

Swift water rescue firefighters had saved the lives of 85 people trapped in floodwaters.

Mr Wassing confirmed there had been 'a number of rescues and continue to have as we speak'.

At 1am Friday, Queensland police urged residents of Beaudesert to warn neighbours, secure belongings and move to higher ground as the Logan River rose.

Nine News reported some in Beaudesert had to seek refuge on the roof of their cars as the waters rose.

Weatherzone meteorologist Brett Dutshke told Daily Mail Australia Lismore and other areas have been hit with the most rain since the floods of 1974.

There is very little rain expected to come but emergency services are warning the danger is not over.

Destructive winds and damaging surf will continue for the rest of Friday in Queensland and northern NSW.

The southeast Queensland town of Beaudesert has been hit by record flooding as bad weather from ex-cyclone Debbie continues to batter Australia's east coast.

The Scenic Rim Council issued an emergency warning to residents in flood-prone areas overnight to move to higher ground as the Logan River continued to rise, though there is no evacuation alert in place.

The Logan River at Beaudesert was at 13.91 metres early Friday morning, equivalent to the level seen in the town's record 1991 flood and the river is not expected to peak until 7am (AEST).

Nine has reported a group of people were forced to seek refuge on the roof of their car after trying to escape floodwaters in the area overnight.

Southeast Queensland has been battered by heavy rain and flash-flooding as the remnants of cyclone Debbie moved through the region on Thursday.

Queensland Fire and Emergency Services Deputy Commissioner Mike Wassing said the situation remained very serious for communities near the NSW border.

'Our greatest area of concern this morning for people living in the areas of Beenleigh, Waterford, Woodend and Beaudesert,' he told ABC television.

'It is very serious, it's a major flood warning. If you're in low-lying areas, safely move to high grounds.'

Swift water rescue firefighters had saved the lives of 85 people trapped in floodwaters since Thursday.

The situation is even worse in northern NSW where authorities fear people may have died in Lismore as heavy flooding besieged the city overnight.

NSW SES Deputy Commissioner Mark Morrow said there were 130 flood rescues overnight and some people who called for help couldn't be reached and dawn could bring 'distressing news'.

Many Queensland and northern NSW schools remain closed on Friday.

The first guests have been evacuated from the Whitsunday islands resorts smashed by Cyclone Debbie but thousands remain stranded on Hamilton Island.

Daydream Island is expected to be closed for a month as further assessments of the extensive damage continue.

All guests and more than 100 staff have been evacuated from Daydream after the category four storm belted the region but many more remain stuck at other resorts.

The 3,000 people stranded on nearby Hamilton Island, which was lashed with the strongest recorded winds on Thursday at 263 km/h, face a longer wait to reach the mainland.

Twelve flights have been scheduled between Hamilton Island and Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne.

Checking in could take up to 25 minutes per passenger, a statement on the Hamilton Island website said.

'We have been advised airlines will be bringing up large volumes of staff to assist with this process,' the statement said.

The defence force delivered food, fuel and water to Daydream Island earlier on Thursday, while local ferries were organised to shuttle guests back to the mainland.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Opposition Leader Bill Shorten visited Bowen on Thursday morning, making financial aid available immediately to the Whitsunday council to start rebuilding infrastructure.

A emergency services source told AAP South Molle Island, to the northwest of Hamilton Island, had been 'totally devastated' but no one was there when Debbie struck.

Nearby Hayman Island has also suffered significant damage preventing emergency services personnel landing on Wednesday.</s>The north Queensland coast is starting to the assess widespread destruction caused by Cyclone Debbie. Airlie Beach and Bowen are some of the worst affected areas, with boats washed ashore and properties suffering signifiant structural damage. Despite being downgraded to a tropical low early Wednesday morning, heavy rains are still expected as the storm moves south-west, with a severe weather warning in place.
• Cyclone Debbie: flooding and heavy rain continue to hammer north Queensland – live updates</s>Australia's army and emergency workers headed to areas of Queensland hardest hit by Cyclone Debbie yesterday, where they found roads blocked by fallen trees and widespread damage to coastal towns. No deaths were reported after Debbie tore a trail of destruction through Australia's north-east on Tuesday as a Category Four storm, one rung below the most dangerous wind speed level.</s>Emergency officials have been warning those in the area to stay clear of going in the water out of fear there may be some more sharks in the area that got moved by the recent cyclone, dubbed Cyclone Debbie.

It had apparently been swept up in the storm that has closed schools and forced evacuations in some parts of the country.

“As you would expect, there has been some damage from debris and flood water, but we have not received reports of significant damage at this time”, the corporation’s CEO Steve Lewis said in the statement.

The shark was found about 8 miles from the coast near the town of Ayr. The Category 3 cyclone is the strongest to hit Australia since 2011.

The storm has since been downgraded, but managed to drench the city of Brisbane with a month’s worth of rain in one day.

Heavy rain is hitting virtually the entire east coast of Australia, from Townsville through to south of Sydney.

According to the spokeswoman, most businesses have heeded the state government’s advice to close by midday and while there was a lull in the weather, locals are bracing for more wild weather in the afternoon.

Australia’s Bureau of Meteorology said heavy rainfall is expected to continue for about the next 24 hours and some residents were preparing sandbags to avoid any further flood damage to their properties.

“Flash flooding is very likely so people need to be prepared”.

Malcolm Turnbull and Bill Shorten have been visiting the cyclone-ravaged communities of northern Queensland.

In the Bowen Basin, the world’s single largest source of coal used to make steel, major miners Glencore and BHP, said they were still assessing the extent of any disruption to shipments.

In the face of the worsening conditions, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk was urging people to stay home wherever possible.

He said more than 40,000 sandbags had already been distributed from five council depots.

Passengers booked on Virgin flights to or from Brisbane, Bundaberg, Gladstone, Sunshine Coast and Rockhampton in Queensland could also be delayed by the wet weather.</s>All schools in the southeast corner of Queensland will be closed on Thursday due to wild weather driven by ex-cyclone Debbie.

The government said the wild weather meant schools would be closed for the day, with the worst of the high winds and very heavy rain expected on Thursday.

As of 9am AEST the Queensland Education Department had closed 101 state schools, 23 independent schools and 160 childcare and care centres across the state.

From Friday the system is forecast to move offshore, but Police Commissioner Ian Stewart has warned of very dangerous conditions until then.

Deputy Premier Jackie Trad said the closures were about protecting people's lives.

'The state Disaster Management Committee has made the decision to close all schools in southeast Queensland between Agnes Waters and the to the New South Wales border and out west to Nanango,' she said.

'We've made this decision based on updated forecasts from the Bureau of Meteorology.'

She said any students who'd already been dropped at school would be cared for, but she urged parents to pick them up as soon as possible.

Ms Trad said people should not underestimate the dangers the weather posed.

She also warned of the potential for public transport closures later in the day.

She said peak hour this afternoon would be a 'nightmare' and appealed to employers to stagger finishing times to spare the road network from chaos.

'We do know that rainfall currently being experienced in some parts of southeast Queensland is in excess of the 250mm that was predicted yesterday. So we know that flash flooding is a real live issue throughout the southeast Queensland corner,' she said.

Police Commissioner Ian Stewart said the schools closure was 'an unprecedented late call'.

'This weather event, which is significant, is causing us to make calls very, very early.'

The Bureau of Meteorology said flash flooding was likely, but it was a difficult thing to model.

'What we know is that we are anticipating the heavy falls in a short duration of time,' senior meteorologist Matt Bass said.

'We've already seen some of those this morning, particularly in the Gold Coast hinterland and really short intensity rainfall is the concern. And that will lead to the flash flooding so it is just a risk with those heavy falls across the southeast of Queensland today.'

There's no concerns about the capacity of local dams to cope with the deluge at this stage, the police commissioner said.

The premier is on her way back from the northern cyclone strike zone to Brisbane for emergency meetings about the weather crisis.

The closures are constantly updating and parents and carers are advised to check the website for more information.</s>Aerial footage shows the extent of serious damage to north Queensland and parts of the Whitsunday Islands by cyclone Debbie on Thursday. Roofs were blown off buildings, roads flooded and boats washed up on the shoreline. Cyclone Debbie slammed into the coast of Queensland state on Tuesday</s>As Cyclone Debbie is downgraded to a tropical low and continues to move slowly down the Queensland east coast, the first pictures emerge of the devastation left behind in Shute Harbour, Bowen and Hamilton Island. Damage reports were still sketchy on Wednesday morning with power and communications down across much of the region.
• Cyclone Debbie: flooding and heavy rain continue to hammer north Queensland – live updates</s>Cyclone Debbie made landfall about 900km north-west of Brisbane as s Category Four storm.

SYDNEY: Howling winds, heavy rain and huge waves pounded Australia's north-east yesterday, damaging homes, wrecking jetties and cutting power to thousands of people as Tropical Cyclone Debbie tore through Queensland state's far north.

Wind gusts stronger than 260 kmh were recorded at tourist resorts along the world-famous Great Barrier Reef as the powerful storm made landfall as a Category Four, one rung below the most dangerous wind speed level.

It was later downgraded to a Category Three storm.

Forecasters said strong winds could persist for as long as 10 hours, although it would then weaken rapidly and was expected to be downgraded to Category One before dawn today.

Police said one man was badly hurt when a wall collapsed at Proserpine, about 900km north-west of Queensland's capital Brisbane.

However, the weather was still too bad to assess damage fully or mount an emergency response. "We will also receive more reports of injuries, if not deaths. We need to be prepared for that," said Queensland Police Commissioner Ian Stewart.

Cyclone Debbie made landfall at Airlie Beach, north of Proserpine, shortly after midday local time, knocking out telephone services.
Authorities shut down the city of Brisbane and South East Queensland as remnants of Cyclone Debbie move south.