10.50am – SUPPLY CHAINS ABLE TO RE-STOCK AROUND THE CLOCK
by Lucy Waldron
As many residents stock up in preparation for TC Alfred, the Queensland Government is hoping to keep the shelves stocked.
Southern Downs Regional Council is amongst the 21 councils where the state government has unlocked 24-hour re-supply for essential businesses.
An unprecedented emergency planning declaration to support food, medicines and essential supplies getting into stores and onto shelves has been signed off by the Deputy Premier and Minister for State Development, Infrastructure and Planning Jarrod Bleijie.
Deputy Premier Bleijie said this declaration was necessary to ensure essential businesses can restock supplies 24-hours a day.
“I’ve briefed the Queensland Disaster Management Committee of this emergency planning declaration, which will begin at 12.01am, Wednesday 5 March,” Mr Bleijie said.
“This is a rare event and it’s the first time an emergency declaration has been announced before a natural disaster has hit Queensland. “The emergency declaration will enable these businesses to restock 24/7. “This includes shops, health care services, chemists, warehouses, transport depots and hardware supply businesses. “Our primary goal is to supercharge the food and essential supply chains that are set to be affected by Cyclone Alfred. “By temporarily lifting these restrictions, it will enable supermarkets to have more supply hit the shelves faster and empower supermarkets to continue to do all they can to meet the demand.
“I have written to the Mayors advising of these changes as we work with the councils to ensure Queenslanders are prepared and remain aware of the latest warnings and information.”
The declaration will remain in place until 19 March 2025 unless revoked prior or extended.
______________________________________
10.33am – SEVERE WEATHER WARNING ISSUED FOR SEQ AND PARTS OF SOUTHERN DOWNS
by Jeremy Cook
The Bureau of Meteorology has issued a severe weather warning for parts of the Southern Downs region as Tropic Cyclone Alfred closes in on south east Queensland.
The BoM warned of “locally intense rainfall” and “damaging to destructive winds” across the warning zone which included the southeast coast and parts of the Southern Downs east of Warwick.
Winds averaging between 60 to 65 km/h with peak gusts of up to 120 km/h will likely develop southeast Queensland coastal fringes and island communities on Wednesday before extending further north and over inland parts from later in the evening or early Thursday, the BoM warned.
As of Tuesday morning, Tropical Cyclone Alfred was located 425 kilometres east of Brisbane and 390 kilometres east of the Gold Coast, moving at 11 kilometres per hour.
TC Alfred is currently a category 2 cyclone. BoM forecasts showed TC Alfred would likely maintain that intensity as it approaches the southeast Queensland coast on Thursday.
The weather system is expected to cross the coast most likely somewhere between Maroochydoore and Coolangatta early Friday morning, before de-intensifying into a tropical low.
_______________________________________
10.20am – MEDICAL AND HEALTHCARE PREPARATIONS
by Lucy Waldron
Residents are being urged by Darling Downs Health to take precautions to safeguard their health and wellbeing as TC Alfred prepares to make landfall.
Darling Downs Health Service Chief Executive Annette Scott PSM said the predicted heavy rainfall and high winds has the potential to impact power supply.
“Being well prepared is the best way to stay safe during severe weather events,” Ms Scott said.
Southern Downs residents should:
Ensure prescriptions for essential medications are up-to-date.
Prepare an emergency kit with all medical and health supplies required to last at least seven days. This may include first-aid items, essential medication, prescriptions, hand sanitiser, infant supplies, sanitary products, thermometers, batteries and chargers for medical devices, and face masks.
Plan for potential power outages by ensuring medical devices are charged and batteries are available to maintain power.
If medication requires refrigeration, identify alternative storage methods that are available, such as cold bags.
“Our hospitals and health facilities, including emergency departments, continue to operate as normal, and there are no changes to planned care at this time,” Ms Scott said.
For more information, visit health.qld.gov.au/public-health/disaster/public-health-advice/get-ready
_______________________________________
10am – COUNCIL OPENS TWO ADDITIONAL SANDBAG SITES
By Jeremy Cook
Southern Downs Regional Council has opened two additional sandbagging locations at council depots in Killarney and Allora ahead of Tropical Cyclone Alfred.
Residents can collect free empty sandbags and sand from the depots from 9am Wednesday 5 March.
The council has said other future locations “may be considered if and when required”.
“Please be advised that the free sandbags will be empty and you will need to be prepared to fill them yourself,” a post to the council’s Facebook page said.
Empty sandbags and sand can also be collected from SES stations in Warwick and Stanthorpe.
Southern Downs sandbagging locations:
Allora – Council Depot, 45 Forest Plain Road
Killarney – Council Depot, 72 Condamine River Road
Stanthorpe – SES headquarters at corner of Mackenzie Street and New England Highway
Warwick – SES headquarters at 4 Alice Street
_______________________
To learn about cyclones, visit getready.qld.gov.au/getting-ready/understand-your-risk/types-disasters/cyclone-and-storm-surge
To learn about emergency kits visit www.getready.qld.gov.au/emergencykit
You can find the Southern Downs Regional Council’s Disaster Dashboard at disasterdashboard.sdrc.qld.gov.au/
For weather updates and associated warnings, visit www.bom.gov.au/australia/warnings
In case of emergency, tune into your local radio stations:
ABC Classic FM – Southern Downs QLD 101.7 FM
ABC Local Radio – Southern Downs QLD 104.9 FM
ABC Radio National – Southern Downs QLD 106.5 FM
ABC triple j – Southern Downs QLD 103.3 FM
