Carrara audience to be blown away

DELTA Goodrem is expected to blow away ticketholders to the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games opening ceremony on Wednesday – that is if Tropical Cyclone Iris doesn’t do it first.

The cyclone reformed yesterday about 300km east of Cairns and while North Queensland is expecting a del- uge and winds of up to 100km/ h, the Gold Coast can expect some wild weather too.

WeatherZone Senior Meteorologist Jacob Cronje said the system associated with Cyclone Iris could combine with a high pressure system in the Tasman Sea to bring wind gusts of up to 80km/h on the Gold Coast tomorrow.

“We are not expecting the cyclone to directly impact the Gold Coast but with the high pressure system in the Tasman and this in the north, we expect onshore winds to produce showers and the occasional strong gusts,” he said.

“They’re not sustained winds at this stage but the south easterlies are expected to remain strong throughout (tomorrow) and lessening on Thursday.”

The cyclone is expected to keep tracking east across Far North Queensland instead of down toward the Gold Coast, meaning the Games will be saved from a cyclonic deluge.

A maximum of 5mm of rain is expected to fall on the Gold Coast each day this week.

However, Bureau of Meteorology forecaster Adam Blazak said the volatile system could change track quickly and it would be monitored closely.