Tropical Cyclone Ului is expected to pick up speed today, as it continues its path towards the Queensland coast.

The category three cyclone is still about 1,000 kilometres north-east of Mackay and moving south-west at 12-kilometres-an-hour.

Weather bureau spokesman Geoff Doueal says the cyclone is still expected to cross the coast between Mackay and Cardwell on Sunday morning, before heading across to the Northern Territory.

“We’ve lost that really nice, succinct eye and we can’t really find the eye any more in the latest satellite pictures,” he said.

“[We're] at the bottom of the category three range the way it’s looking.”

However, Mr Doueal says the cyclone may speed up and it has become a little more intense in the last few hours.

“[Earlier, it was] starting to move a little bit quicker then it was and that was kind of what we were expecting,” he said.

“It’s tended to lose a little bit of its eye and starting to get a little bit more convection around the centre again in the last couple of hours, but it’s still hanging onto a category three at the moment.

“Luckily enough last night there was a direct pass over the top of it by a satellite that detects the winds around the centre of it.

“[There's] still quite a lot of wind around it and the gales extend out a fair way … from the centre, so it’s going to be quite windy all the way along the coast, not just near the point where it comes.”

Emergency preparations

Emergency services in northern and central Queensland are working to ensure they are ready for the cyclone.

Emergency Management Queensland (EMQ) spokesman Robbie Medlin says the threat is real and residents should be prepared.

He says the State Emergency Service (SES) are ready to respond.

“We have also ensured that they are adequately resourced for sandbags, tarpaulins, ropes etc, and we are working with the local governments and councils to ensure that any assistance we can provide to prepare for the event is given,” he said.

In the state’s far north, the Mayor of the Cassowary Coast Regional Council, Bill Shannon, says the four-year anniversary tomorrow of cyclone Larry should serve as a reminder to residents not to be complacent about cyclones.

“In that period people can forget and also of course, there’s new people coming to the region, so what I’m really very conscious about is not having people over-react at this stage – just get those things ready, get the yard sorted but don’t panic,” he said.

“The local disaster management response group – all of those people on that committee – have been alerted to the situation but we’re certainly not activating anything at this stage.

“That’s the same message those people as the rest of the community – be alert, keep a look out go to that BOM [Bureau of Meteorology website] if you’ve got a computer.”

Townsville Mayor Les Tyrell says residents need to have up-to-date emergency kits and listen to authorities.

“People should understand that the cyclone is over 1,000 kilometres away and at this stage it’s difficult to predict a precise landfall site,” he said.

“But we should also always remember that these things do happen and they do cross the coast.”

The Building Services Authority (BSA) says construction sites in north and central Queensland need to be cleaned up before the cyclone reaches the coast.

BSA spokesman Ian Jennings says loose items on work sites can be hazardous during strong winds.

“Prepare sites really by removal of lose materials, building materials and rubbish,” he said.

“You’ve got to consider these things are missiles and they also need to secure scaffolding and platform sort of equipment to make sure that’s very secure in this extreme weather.

“Securing also of metal roofing, cladding, guttering and flashing to make sure they don’t become missiles as well.”

Surf warning

Surf Life Saving Queensland (SLSQ) says it will monitor the movement of the cyclone over the coming days to judge its effect on beaches.

Stinger nets have been removed at Magnetic Island in north Queensland, but the nets are still in place at Townsville beaches.

SLSQ regional manager Peter Roulston says swimmers need to take the advice of lifesavers and signage on local beaches.

“We monitor very closely the tracking of the cyclone to see where it’s going and if it looks like it’s going to start creating a problem in this area, we’ll close the beaches and send our lifeguards home,” he said.

“[We'll] just take precautions to make sure everything is tied down and everyone’s safe and put up signs for people to be aware of the situation.

“Beach-goers need to be aware and make sure that the flags are up and it’s quite safe to swim – take precautions that way.

“There’s ferries running over to Magnetic Island still running and they’ll run right up.

“If the ferry’s not running, then you can pretty much guess that the beaches would be closed.”

The cyclone is expected to bring dangerous surf conditions to the Wide Bay Burnett region in southern Queensland.

In Queensland’s south-east, beaches are expected to close today as dangerous surf conditions develop.

Sunshine Coast lifeguard Scott Braby says the swell will be about three metres and is warning people to take care.

“We should see most of the beaches up and down the Sunshine Coast – and for the Gold Coast for that matter – close for swimming,” he said.

“Even for surfing, experienced surfers will have a great time on the protected points but there’ll be big wave surges, some erosion and fairly dangerous conditions.

“That’s what were expecting even without the cyclone moving further south we should get some big swells.”

Animals

The State Government is urging livestock and pet owners to consider a contingency plan for their animals ahead of the wild weather this weekend.

Queensland Primary Industries Minister Tim Mulherin says residents should be prepared for heavy rain and strong winds to affect livestock which are left out in the elements.

Mr Mulherin says residents can check with the RSPCA if they are not sure what to do with their animals.

He says livestock should be properly identified and is cautioning owners to be careful when moving their cattle.

“Animals tend to become jittery,” he said.

“They seem to have a sense of pending danger, so I’d urge people to be careful when dealing with stock.”

He says emergency fodder should be prepared and livestock moved to higher ground if possible.

“It’s also the after-effects of any cyclone, normally brings torrential rain and flooding, so I’m encouraging primary producers and pet owners to take extra precautions which will assist them,” he said.