Cyclone season travel: how to plan around North Queensland

Cyclone season travel in North Queensland needs a little planning, not a cancelled trip. Tropical cyclones form over warm tropical waters, mostly from November to April, and the Bureau of Meteorology warns coastal communities when one is coming. Most days in the season are ordinary tropical days. The aim is to know the warning steps, keep your plans loose, and follow local advice if a system turns toward the coast.

This guide explains when the season runs, what each warning means, what a cyclone can do, and what to pack and book.

Sources for this section: Bureau of Meteorology, Tropical cyclone warning services; Bureau of Meteorology, About tropical cyclones.

When cyclone season runs

The Bureau of Meteorology says cyclones develop over tropical waters during the warmer months, mostly November to April. That covers the wet summer in northern Queensland, when heat, humidity and storms are common anyway.

Cyclones are not on a timetable. A season can pass with little activity, and a single system can cause a lot of trouble. At the start of each season the Bureau issues a seasonal outlook, which estimates how active the coming season may be. It is a guide only. It cannot tell you whether a cyclone will cross the coast where you are staying.

If you want to avoid the season completely, the cooler, drier months from May to October fall outside it. If you travel in summer, you accept some risk. That can be a fair deal when your plans can change.

Sources for this section: Bureau of Meteorology, Tropical cyclone warning services.

How warnings work

The Bureau uses a set of steps that tell you how close a cyclone is. Learn these four and you will understand most news reports.

• Outlook: issued daily through the season. It gives the chance of a cyclone forming in the seas around Australia over the next three days.
• Information bulletin: issued when a cyclone is active but not expected to affect communities on land within 48 hours.
• Watch: issued when a cyclone is expected to affect coastal communities within 48 hours, but not within 24 hours.
• Warning: issued when a cyclone is affecting, or is expected to affect, coastal communities within 24 hours.

Warnings come with a forecast track map showing where the cyclone has been and where it may go. The Bureau runs cyclone warning centres in Perth, Darwin and Brisbane. State emergency services give the local advice on what to do, so listen to them first.

Sources for this section: Bureau of Meteorology, Tropical cyclone warning services; Bureau of Meteorology, Preparation and safety checklist.

What a cyclone can do

Wind is only part of the story. The Bureau lists destructive winds, heavy rain with flooding, and storm surge as the main dangers.

It rates cyclones from category 1 to category 5, based on the strongest gust. A category 1 cyclone has gusts under 125 km/h and causes minimal house damage, with some damage to crops, trees and caravans. A category 3 or higher is called a severe tropical cyclone, with gusts of 165 km/h or more. Category 5 means gusts over 280 km/h and widespread destruction.

Storm surge is a raised dome of sea water that the Bureau says is typically 2 to 5 metres above the normal tide. If it arrives at high tide, low coastal areas can flood widely. Heavy rain can also keep falling after a cyclone moves inland, so flooding can happen far from the coast.

One more point matters. The calm centre, called the eye, brings a short lull in the wind. Destructive winds then return from another direction, so stay inside until officials say it is safe.

Sources for this section: Bureau of Meteorology, About tropical cyclones; Bureau of Meteorology, Tropical cyclone FAQs.

Before you go

Good planning is mostly about choices you make at home.

• Book flexible. Where you can, choose fares and rooms that allow changes or refunds. Read the terms on cancellations and date changes before you pay.
• Check your travel insurance. Read what your policy says about cyclones, natural events and delays.
• Allow spare days. Airports and roads can close. Do not put a tight flight home right after your last planned activity.
• Pick sturdy places to stay. The Bureau's checklist says local councils can tell residents whether a building was built to cyclone standards. Ask your host or hotel what their plan is.
• Save contacts. Keep the numbers for your accommodation, airline and local emergency services where you can find them without a phone signal.

Sources for this section: Bureau of Meteorology, Preparation and safety checklist.

If a watch or warning is issued

The Bureau's checklist, prepared with Emergency Management Australia, splits advice into stages. These are the points that matter most to a traveller.

• On a watch: check your emergency kit, fill your car's fuel tank, tune in to local radio and television, and find out which is the strongest part of your building.
• On a warning: follow local authorities. Park vehicles under solid shelter, close shutters or tape windows, draw curtains, and stay indoors. Pack an evacuation kit with warm clothes, essential medicines, papers and valuables in waterproof bags.
• If told to evacuate: go early and follow the routes given on radio and television. Wear strong shoes, lock up, and turn off power, gas and water if you can.

Talk to your hotel or host as soon as a watch is issued. They deal with these events and know the nearest shelter and safe high ground.

This is general information, not medical advice. Anyone on regular medicine should keep a few days' extra supply with their travel papers, and a pharmacist can say how to store it.

Sources for this section: Bureau of Meteorology, Preparation and safety checklist; Bureau of Meteorology, Cyclone FAQs.

A simple packing list

The Bureau suggests an emergency kit with a battery radio, torch and spare batteries, water containers, dried or canned food and a can opener, a first aid kit, and waterproof bags. A traveller can keep a smaller version.

• A battery radio and torch with spare batteries
• Drinking water and a few days of dry food
• Copies of passports, tickets and insurance details in a waterproof bag
• Essential medicines and a basic first aid kit

Sources for this section: Bureau of Meteorology, Preparation and safety checklist.

Sources

1. Bureau of Meteorology, Tropical Cyclone Warning Services (page as of January 2012): bom.gov.au
2. Bureau of Meteorology, Surviving Cyclones: Preparation and Safety Procedures: bom.gov.au
3. Bureau of Meteorology, About Tropical Cyclones: bom.gov.au
4. Bureau of Meteorology, Tropical Cyclone FAQs: bom.gov.au