Cyclone forces Fraser Island evacuation

Up to 1,000 campers are being evacuated from Fraser Island as category five cyclone
Hamish heads south towards the central Queensland coast.
Lady Elliot Island and Heron Island, both west of Gladstone, were also evacuated on
Sunday morning as a precaution to the cyclone, which had recorded winds of up to
280km/h on Saturday night.
Forecasters estimate the cyclone, at last report 195km northeast of Mackay, is as
destructive as cyclone Larry, packing savage winds that will whip up big waves and
raise sea levels.
Residents living between Bowen and Bundaberg are being advised to take all necessary
cyclone precautions.
While the category five tropical cyclone continues to run parallel to the coastline,
it also has travelled further south than initially anticipated.
Despite this, Premier Anna Bligh on Sunday ruled out suspending her campaign to deal
with the cyclone, saying it was not necessary now that Mackay had avoided the brunt
of the storm.
"Clearly, people have to come first in this situation ... but (Hamish) is yet to
cause any damage," Ms Bligh said.
"If circumstances change, that will be something that we'll be monitoring.
"All of the central Queensland areas now have to take precautions."
Ms Bligh said Fraser Island's residents would also be evacuated off the island.
"At this stage, the evacuation is proceeding smoothly and people are moving off
their campsites and taking their vehicles down to get off the southern end of the
island."
Ms Bligh also said Hamish may be downgraded to a category four cyclone on Monday.
However, Emergency Services Queensland isn't taking any risks, with executive
director Frank Pagano saying the 90-odd SES workers on standby in Mackay would soon
be redeployed further south in case the cyclone crosses the coastline.
"If the cyclone heads towards the coast in the wide bay area, that might bring heavy
rain in central Queensland and associated flooding," Mr Pagano said.
"That's a very early call though, it's still 48 hours out."
Ms Bligh said she had spoken directly to Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, who assured her
she would have access to defence force personnel for both evacuation and clean-up
purposes.
Not even Brisbane may not be immune from the cyclone, with the state's capital
possibly feeling the effects of the storm around Tuesday.
Tuesday is shaping up as the probable moment of truth for Queenslanders facing the
wrath of Cyclone Hamish, the Bureau of Meteorology says.
Regional director of the bureau, Jim Davidson, said on Sunday that although it had
been a "very well-behaved cyclone", tracking parallel to the Queensland coast for 48
hours, it was also "small, compact and very intense" and on a par with Hurricane
Katrina, which slammed into New Orleans.
The Whitsunday tourist islands and Mackay have escaped damage but Hamish is now
headed towards central Queensland and could effect the south-east of the state.
"The area at risk now is really the Yeppoon to Gladstone strip," Mr Davidson said.
"Tomorrow morning we should see gale force winds along that section of the coast and
the possibility of minor damage.
"Beyond that, tomorrow (Monday) night it should be in the area of Lady Elliott and
Heron islands."
Both could face destructive winds, storm tides and destructive waves, Mr Davidson said.
"The area of most interest is on Tuesday in the Bundaberg/Hervey Bay area," he said.
"The majority of our computer models suggest it will be in the vicinity of Hervey
Bay by Tuesday night, and if that scenario eventuates we'll see a fairly significant
storm tide as well as destructive winds, heavy rain and flooding."
Mr Davidson said that in 1967 Cyclone Dinah caused tremendous damage on Fraser
Island, 200km north of Brisbane.
"We haven't ruled out the remnants of Cyclone Hamish getting as far south as Brisbane."
This could create significant flooding in south-east Queensland, he said.