How new cyclone Alfred will affect Queensland in coming days
Tropical Cyclone Alfred could bring some wild weather to eastern Queensland this week, as a new forecast predicted it would strengthen to a category three storm.
Currently at category one, the storm formed about 4pm (5pm AEDT) yesterday over the Coral Sea roughly 840 kilometres east-north-east of Cairns after swirling around as a tropical low across the weekend.
The cyclone had been set to be called "Anthony" but the weather bureau changed the name to avoid any confusion with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, as a federal election looms.
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The Bureau of Meteorology cyclone forecast track map for Tropical Cyclone Alfred issued on Sunday afternoon, February 23, 2025. Bureau of Meteorology
"When a name matches a prominent person of the time, we reorder to the next name starting with that same letter to avoid any confusion," a bureau spokesperson said on Friday.
Currently about 900km off the Queensland coast, the cyclone continues to move eastward.
It's forecast to strengthen to category two today, and category three is "likely" by Tuesday, BoM senior meteorologist Angus Hines said.
It's expected to move east, then south in the next few days, bringing stiff south-easterly winds, choppy marine conditions, and sizeable swell along Queensland's east coast.
Longer-term, Hines said there was a "chance" the cyclone could veer west, possible on the weekend or early next week.
That would increase the chance of severe weather, he said.
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Meanwhile, a second tropical cyclone, named Bianca, has formed off the coast of Western Australia.
Bianca is about 1000km off the coast in the Indian Ocean, moving further westward away from Australia.
It's expected to shift southward today.
The category one storm is forecast to increase to category two, but no further, and it may be back below cyclone strength by Wednesday.
No impact on Australia is predicted.
Hines urged people to keep monitoring forecasts, particularly the cyclone track map, which will be updated with more confident predictions throughout the week.
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