‘I’m ready’: why John is determined to weather Cyclone Alfred in his tent despite authorities’ warnings

‘If the tent collapses, I’ll just be trapped inside there until [the storm] passes’: rather than heading to an evacuation centre, John says he’ll ride out Tropical Cyclone Alfred in his tent. Photograph: Joe Hinchliffe/The Guardian

From John’s spot on the foreshores of the Redcliffe peninsula he can see dark clouds moving over Bramble Bay, obscuring and then revealing the distant towers of the Brisbane CBD.

It’s early Friday afternoon and the wind is steadily picking up, flapping the polyester floor of his tent.