Cyclone Kirrily set to intensify before Queensland impact

Tropical Cyclone Kirrily has formed off the coast of central Queensland. The Bureau warns the category one system will intensify before making landfall between Cardwell and Bowen sometime tonight. A warning is in place for a quarter of a million residents between Innisfail and Sarina, and inland towards Charters Towers. More than 120 schools across the region have been closed as a precaution. Queensland's Disaster Assistance Response Team arrived in the region yesterday ahead of Kirrily's arrival. Meanwhile, claims received for damage caused by ex-Tropical Cyclone Jasper and storms that battered southeast Queensland over the Christmas period have exceeded $743 million.