Cyclone Alfred LIVE updates: Brisbane, south-east Queensland remain on high alert as storm’s landfall delayed; flooding expected in northern NSW

Tens of thousands of people are without power across south-east Queensland and northern NSW.

In NSW, the outages are mostly concentrated between Tweed Heads and Ballina, but stretch down to Bulahdelah, south of Forster.

Essential Energy said about 10,000 homes and businesses in northern NSW have been impacted due to strong winds and heavy rainfall brought on by Cyclone Alfred. Power outages were most likely to increase substantially on Friday.

It warned power may remain disconnected for long periods of time as the dangerous weather hinders the ability of crews to survey or repair the damage.

“Crews are working to restore as soon as it is safe to do so as outages occur, with some locations unable to be accessed due to heavy rainfall flooding river crossings or water on the roads,” Essential Energy said.

Millions of people are sweating on Alfred’s arrival after the category two system stalled overnight.

Among them is Aaron Hawke who is in Alfred’s direct path in Brighton, just 30km from Caboolture in Queensland.

Alfred is set to cross Queensland’s coast near Caboolture north of Brisbane on Saturday morning, 24 hours later than initially predicted.

For days Hawke and thousands like him have been bracing for the destructive winds, storm surges and flooding set to be triggered by Alfred.

Now he has 24 more hours to dwell on the danger after the system meandered.

“We had a fair bit of prep time, but the delay has added more anxiety because now there’s more time to sit around and wait for something you don’t know how bad it will be,” he told AAP.

The system is set to arrive under the cover of darkness in Saturday’s early hours, potentially causing rising floodwaters and storm surges.

“Imagine crawling around in the water with a torch in the middle of the night with winds howling, it doesn’t sound too much fun,” Hawke said.

with AAP

Tropical Cyclone Alfred’s forecast arrival has been pushed back by 24 hours after the category 2 storm stalled off Australia’s east coast.

The track map released on Thursday night by the Bureau of Meteorology shows the cyclone’s landing time further delayed until 7am Saturday, Queensland time. Cyclone Alfred has dropped in speed to 6 kilometres per hour, and has remained the same distance from land since 5pm.

The cyclone was expected to cross the coast early on Saturday morning between Noosa and Coolangatta.

Forecasts suggest the cyclone could be downgraded in severity to a category 1 storm, but meteorologists warn the delayed landfall could prolong severe weather conditions and remain a major threat to communities.

The NSW SES released a second round of evacuation notices for more areas in northern NSW, after telling residents in Lismore earlier to evacuate by Thursday night.

Residents in certain parts of North Macksville, Macksville, Bowraville, Nambucca Heads and Gumma have been told to evacuate by 8am Friday, March 7.

“You must evacuate before this time because forecasted heavy rainfall will close evacuation routes,” the SES said.

“If you remain in the area, you may become trapped without power, water, and other essential services. It may be too dangerous for NSW SES to rescue you, and buildings may not be able to withstand the impact of flood water.”

Specific roads and streets have been told to evacuate, and can be found here.