Communities in Queensland's flood-ravaged Far North are steeling themselves for a fresh onslaught of severe weather, as a dangerous tropical system bears down on the coast. The looming threat comes as the region, already saturated from weeks of deluges, faces the prospect of more devastating floods.
Cyclone Threat and Severe Warnings
The Bureau of Meteorology is monitoring a tropical low, designated 12U, which has a moderate risk of developing into a tropical cyclone off the northeast Queensland coast later on Friday or early Saturday. Forecaster Angus Hines emphasised that regardless of whether it earns a cyclone name, the system will deliver significant impacts. "The bottom line is by the time this reaches the coast during the weekend, whether it has or hasn't been named as a tropical cyclone, it's still going to bring some really significant weather impact onto the country," he told AAP.
The system is tracking slowly towards the coast at around 13km/h and is forecast to make landfall in the vicinity of Townsville, potentially just to the north, late Saturday night or early Sunday morning. The Bureau has issued a severe weather warning stretching from north of Cooktown south to Hamilton Island in the Whitsundays.
Heavy Rain and Wind to Hit Saturated Ground
The slow-moving nature of the system means it will bring widespread, persistent rain, initially affecting the North Tropical Coast from Cooktown through Cairns down to Townsville. The forecast predicts intense rainfall, with six-hour totals of 100-180mm possible and isolated falls exceeding 200mm in coastal areas. Further inland, western Cape York could see falls of up to 150mm.
This rain will fall onto already sodden catchments, filling the same river systems that have recently burst their banks. Townsville Mayor Nick Dametto confirmed the region is preparing, stating, "We're very much prepared for the worst, but expecting the best." Additional emergency crews are on standby, and State Emergency Service teams have been mobilised.
Graziers' Desperate Struggle Amid Livestock Crisis
For farmers and graziers in Queensland's Gulf Country, the forecast is a nightmare scenario. They are already battling to save cattle exhausted and sick from previous floods. Cody Rogers from Wyangarie Station near Julia Creek described animals suffering from pneumonia, tendonitis, and rain scalding, with midges and sand flies adding to their stress. "Cattle, man and machine - we're all getting tired," he said, as he prepared to move his stock yet again.
The situation is dire following more than a week of heavy rain that isolated towns and properties. More than 30,000 livestock are reported missing or dead after floodwaters devastated Queensland's northwest. Mr Rogers expressed the anxiety felt by many: "It's pretty nerve-wracking, a fair bit of anxiety waiting for that to turn up... All we can do is day by day at the moment." The prospect of further rain raises fears of compounding an already critical situation for the region's agricultural heart.
