While ex-Cyclone Debbie may have been downgraded, the sting in her tail is now being felt much further south than the north Queensland coast where it originally made landfall … and it’s causing serious headaches for grey nomad another travellers.
Heavy rains and high winds are expected to continue to batter areas like the Sunshine Coast, Brisbane, and the Gold Coast for a while longer. And it’s bringing flooding, closing businesses and schools, and scaring away campers.
The Sunshine Coast’s Cotton Tree Caravan Park, which banks the Maroochy River and sea, is reportedly half empty with many travellers pulling up stumps and heading for somewhere drier. And management said the park had received cancellations from people travelling from elsewhere.
And, as for the parks where the worst has already passed, it’s time to get things back to normal as soon as possible.
In Clairview, south of Mackay, holiday park owner Julie Larsen said that despite some minor damage, the park would be back up and running in time for their big Easter fishing competition. She told the Morning Bulletin newspaper that they had several people staying at the park who had been evacuated from Mackay and Airlie Beach.
And in Marlborough, motel and caravan park owner Sharon Christensen said she was preparing to be isolated for a few days as flash flooding closed the Bruce Highway south of the township.
She said they had house many people who had driven from Mackay after they were identified as living in the zones expected to be impacted by the storm surge.
