The tropical storm, named Alfred, is on track to bring dangerous winds and flooding along the coast of southeastern Queensland, including the country’s third-largest city.

Alfred has been called by officials a "very rare event" for Brisbane, Queensland's state capital, with the city last hit by a cyclone more than half a century ago in 1974. The city of around 2.7 million had near misses from cyclones in 1990 in 2019.

Australia braced for a rare east coast tropical cyclone that is swirling towards Brisbane, its third-most populous city, with authorities urging residents in flood-prone suburbs to evacuate soon.