Cairns Airport will remain closed for at least the rest of Monday, as the airport deals with the impacts of record rainfall in the Far North Queensland region in the wake of Tropical Cyclone Jasper.
Yesterday, photos emerged of parts of the airport underwater. In an update this morning, Cairns Airport said the flooding on the aerodrome had “subsided”, but given the airport’s closeness to the Barron River “there is significant debris that needs to be removed and cleaned”.
“We have been onsite since early this morning inspecting the runway, and have held briefings with our airline partners and other key stakeholders,” it said in an update this morning.
“We will then be in a position to assess our runway infrastructure, to determine its serviceability.”
“This will take some time. As such, we can confirm that operations will not recommence at Cairns Airport today. Please do not travel to the airport today.”
With all services scheduled for today “cancelled or delayed”, the airport recommends travellers contact their airline directly for information about specific flights.
“We also wish to reiterate that our domestic and international terminals, including the car parks, have not been adversely impacted,” it added.
This is Cairns today. The Cairns community is dealing with significant flooding after Tropical Cyclone Jasper made landfall. Our government is working closely with the Qld government to ensure assistance is available to those who need it. pic.twitter.com/wwV6CcLtDc
— Anthony Albanese (@AlboMP) December 17, 2023
Travellers stranded
On Cairns Airport’s Facebook page, travellers were overwhelmingly appreciative of the hub’s updates.
However, along with countless domestic passengers, many international travellers remain impacted by the airport’s closure.
“We have checked our airline – we are supposed to fly in at 4:30am tomorrow from Japan – will this still be a possibility?” asked one concerned traveller.
Another chimed in, saying “We are in Japan too, flight Tuesday evening. Our flight was cancelled on way here – got text at 3am and flight was due 8.40am. So you might not know until later today”.
Travellers are also stranded in Papua New Guinea.
“We’re stuck here in PNG and trying to get a flight to Cairns tomorrow early as per schedule,” one person wrote.
Safety first
The North Queensland airport has stressed that safety is its highest priority.
“Our team and the wider Cairns Airport community are working tirelessly to enable operations as quickly as possible,” it stated.
“We are grateful for your cooperation and understanding. Another update will be posted at approximately 4pm today.”
According to the ABC, Central Cairns has been removed from the severe weather warning area, but some severe weather warnings are still in place for areas north of Cairns.
“It’s important to note that the forecast for the rest of the day is for showers and storms, so we could still see these showers producing large amounts of rainfall,” senior meteorologist Laura Boekel remarked.
Impact on tourism
Tourism Tropical North Queensland (TTNQ) CEO Mark Olsen said, “The Barron River, which is famous for the Barron Falls, has reached record levels and overflowed into the Cairns Airport for the first time in history”.
“Safety is the priority, and an assessment of the airport will be undertaken at midday. The airport will not be welcoming any flights until it has been given the all-clear,” he stated.
Olsen added, “Tropical North Queensland currently has more than 4500 visitors in the region including 400 emergency services crew”.
“Since December 5, the region has lost an estimated $60 million in cancellations and forward bookings,” he said.
“We have another tough week ahead as we assess the damage and map our way forward.
“We are resilient, and we will recover. However, the industry will need assistance to rebuild and recover. It will take a few days to assess the impact on the industry.”
Help for residents
Olsen said the organisation’s top priority right now is ensuring the safety of both the community and visitors.
“Right now our focus is on accommodating the incredible emergency services team and providing emergency accommodation for our displaced residents.”
“A large number of residents have been evacuated from the northern beaches and we are working to provide emergency accommodation for them and their pets”.
