Weather forecasters have warned much of Queensland to prepare for a very wet Easter Sunday, but say the state's already drenched far north may be in for a reprieve.
Bureau of Meteorology forecaster Livio Regano said ex-cyclone Iris would continue to produce hazardous surf condition across the Fraser and southeast Queensland coasts during Saturday, after closing a number of Gold Coast beaches on Friday.
He said the full force of the former cyclone would be felt on Sunday and Monday as it brought heavy falls to much of the coast.
But he said the flood-affected north of the state was likely to be spared the worst, with the system likely to move south of Townsville.
"There is an area really from Hervey Bay all the way up to Townsville that is going to be the main focus now," he said.
The heavy falls are expected to last from Sunday to Tuesday, with some areas potentially getting up to 500mm over three days.
Meanwhile, emergency services in the far north have been sandbagging around low-lying areas, in case the ex-cyclone changes course and heads towards the region, which was last week drenched by ex-tropical cyclone Nora.
Authorities have also urged those going away over the Easter weekend to prepare for the heavy falls and avoid travelling if possible.
"There's a clear message for everyone that's travelling over the weekend, from Sunday night to next Wednesday, there'll be heavy rain everywhere," State Disaster Co-ordinator Deputy Police Commissioner Bob Gee said.
