A sodden day awaits southeast Queensland and northern New South Wales in the fallout of Ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred, with alerts out for potential flooding.

Emergency flood alerts have been issued and about 238,000 homes and businesses are without power in Queensland and New South Wales in the wake of Ex-Cyclone Alfred. It comes after severe winds lashed the state's south east and heavy rains smashed coastal communities.

South East Queensland and northern NSW continue to experience thunderstorms, intense rainfall and flooding in the wake of Alfred. Follow our ongoing coverage.

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Tropical Cyclone Alfred has spent the night creeping towards Queensland’s coast and northern NSW. Despite authorities downgrading the cyclone to a tropical low early Saturday morning, locals have been warned not to be complacent with serious flooding risk remaining despite wind speeds slowing down.

Hundreds of schools will be closed across Queensland and NSW tomorrow as ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred continues to smash the east coast. In Queensland, which 7NEWS meteorologist Tony Auden earlier warned was bracing for “phenomenal” rain totals, hundreds of schools are expected to be closed across the state.

Tropical cyclone Alfred is a reminder that powerful storms have the power to show up in some surprising places.

Tropical Cyclone Alfred is expected to cross the southeast Queensland coast late this Thursday as a Category 2 storm. The last tropical cyclone to make landfall in the region was ex-Tropical Cyclone Zoe in 1974, half a century ago.

Rainfalls of up to 80 millimetres are forecast by the BOM in Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast, while 50mm could fall in Grafton, where the Clarence River is nearing major flood levels.