Over the weekend, residents of Brisbane, Australia, were bracing for the impact of Tropical Cyclone Alfred. The storm was downgraded to a tropical low, and made landfall on the mainland on Saturday. It was the first storm of its kind in the area in 51 years.

Brisbane is a subtropical city of more than 2.5 million people, situated on a flood-prone river. That’s why residents mustn’t get complacent after Cyclone Alfred.

Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner has asked Brisbane residents to work together to set up a “Ute Army” to help with the aftermath of Ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred.

That made it Brisbane's wettest 24-hour period since 314mm fell in the 24 hours to 9am on January 26, 1974 – the year of the devastating Brisbane River floods in the wake of Tropical Cyclone Wanda. It was Brisbane’s 5th-wettest day on record. The heaviest rain day in the city was January 21, 1887, with 465.1mm.

Lydia and Brendan Greste were just 26 when they bought an unliveable cottage in Annerley in 2021, paying $675,000 at a fiercely fought out auction.

Merv Birt has survived cyclones up north, and the devastating floods that swept through Brisbane in 1974, 2011 and 2022. But Alfred was different.

It is deja vu for Queensland residents as they work to save property from ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred rainfall.

Major developers say the effects of ex-typical cyclone Alfred will exacerbate pent-up workforce shortages and productivity problems that mean every project in South East Queensland already costs 20 per cent more than it should.

Power remains cut to hundreds of thousands of residents as torrential rain causes flooding across Queensland’s capital.

The four large islands are popular getaways for locals. In the wake of ex-tropical cyclone Alfred, they have another claim to fame: as a city’s protectors from extreme weather.

Brisbane bus drivers braved wild conditions to deliver 700 services on Sunday morning before being recalled about 11am but the southeast’s trains and ferries are still offline.