Thousands of north Queenslanders are being evacuated as Cyclone Debbie bears down on the coast

Thousands of north Queenslanders are being evacuated as Cyclone Debbie bears down on the coast, bringing winds of up to 300kph and a four-metre storm surge.

The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) has warned the storm will be the worst since Cyclone Yasi in 2011, and the Premier said it was “bigger than Marcia” — the category five system that hit Queensland in 2015.

The category two cyclone is about 400 kilometres off Townsville and is expected to intensify into category four and cross the coast just south of Ayr about 7:00am Tuesday.

Evacuation orders are in place for low-lying areas in parts of the Burdekin, Whitsunday, and parts of the Townsville council regions.

“You’re going to see people without power for some time, large trees down, roofs damaged,” meteorologist Adam Blazak said.

Source: BOM warning as Cyclone Debbie intensifies; Queensland emergency services prepare for worst – ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)