But while authorities have been warning residents to stay indoors as Cyclone Alfred approaches, die-hard surfers have been throwing caution to the increasing wind. "This is what we look forward to," said Jeff Weatherall as he waited for a jet ski to pick him up from Kirra beach and carry him into the big waves.

Alfred is expected to become the first cyclone to cross the coast near Brisbane since Cyclone Zoe hit Gold Coast in 1974 and brought widespread flooding.

Extensive flood evacuation warnings are in place in northern NSW as Tropical Cyclone Alfred starts to affect the coastline in the state’s north, with the category 2 storm’s now delayed landfall prolonging extreme weather conditions.