Tropical cyclone expected to lash Australia’s Queensland from Thursday

Some tourist towns along Australia’s Great Barrier Reef and other places in northeastern Queensland state are bracing for a potential tropical cyclone which is expected to make landfall on Thursday, the day before the Australia Day long weekend.
Authorities advised residents to stock enough emergency supplies to last for at least three days and avoid unnecessary travel as a tropical low in the Coral Sea, about 700 km off the Queensland coast, is expected to develop into a cyclone on Wednesday night, the weather bureau said.
Destructive wind gusts of up to 120 km per hour are forecast for some tourist towns along the Great Barrier Reef with storm warnings stretching for around 900 km.
The weather system has been downgraded to a category 2 cyclone, three rungs below the most dangerous wind-speed level, from category 3 but would still pack enough strength to bring heavy rain and life-threatening flash flooding.