Schools closed as Tropical Cyclone Alfred approaches Australia’s eastern coast

Alfred is expected to become the first cyclone to cross the coast near Brisbane since Cyclone Zoe hit Gold Coast in 1974 and brought widespread flooding

Huge swells hit the beaches on the Gold Coast, Australia (Jason O’Brien/AAP Image/AP)

Early wind and rain from a rare tropical cyclone began lashing parts of eastern Australia on Thursday.

Tropical Cyclone Alfred is forecast to cross the Queensland state coast somewhere between the Sunshine Coast region and the city of Gold Coast to the south early on Saturday, Bureau of Meteorology manager Matt Collopy said.