The Bureau of Meteorology defended its weather forecasting following criticism from Fraser Coast mayor George Seymour about inadequate warnings prior to torrential rain in Harvey Bay post-Tropical Cyclone Alfred. Despite claims of insufficient notice, senior forecaster Christie Johnson stated that the bureau provided broad warnings and adjusted them as threats were assessed. The emergency situation resulted in historic call volumes for the Queensland State Emergency Service, with over 35 rescues conducted. As of Monday, more than 200,000 were without power across southeast Queensland and northern New South Wales.
To give you an indication of the response and scale of the operation in the last 24 hours, there's been 3,676 calls to help for the SES; that is the largest 24-hour period in the history of Queensland State Emergency Service, he said.
The bureau operated well. We've had broad areas under warning, and we've tried to reduce those areas under warning as we've received greater guidance and the appeared threat areas have reduced, she said.
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