At 4am AEST (7am NZT) the Bureau of Meteorology indicated Debbie was about 105km east northeast of Bowen.
Debbie is forecast to make landfall between Ayr and Midge Point, near Bowen, later on this morning.
Debbie is a category 4 with sustained winds near the centre of 175km/h and gusts up to 250km/h
Eight Kiwis are among those on lockdown in their rooms as Cyclone Debbie approaches Hamilton Island in the heart of the Great Barrier Reef.
Wellingtonian Emma Gibbons, her boyfriend Ryan Cayless and six more family and friends are staying at the Beach Club, a resort next to Catseye Beach.
Gibbons said as the wind picks up guests have been told to stay in their rooms until morning - they have been given emergency dinner and breakfast packs to tide them over, as well as torches in case the power fails.
Emma Gibbons and boyfriend Ryan Cayless are hunkering down as Cyclone Debbie approaches. Photo/Supplied
All furniture has been brought inside and guests have been told to take shelter in their bathrooms if things get bad.
"It's dark now but the wind has certainly gotten up outside and louder now," Gibbons said. "It's been pretty relaxed and positive with the staff as they are used to bad weather but not quite this severe."
People seemed to be taking the impending cyclone in their stride and planning for a long night in, with wine and beer selling out at supermarkets and liquor stores yesterday, Gibbons said.
"We are all in good spirits here and there's nothing we can do but wait it out."
A Hastings man is also sitting tight in his apartment, evacuation bags at the ready, just 500m from the red zone as Cyclone Debbie rages outside.
Neville Chapman, his partner, and her son are in the top story of an apartment block in Cannonvale, near Airlie Beach. Houses just a few streets in front of them were evacuated earlier today.
Neville Chapman moved to Airlie Beach two years ago - "This place is paradise - but even paradise has a bad day." Photo / Supplied
Debbie is currently a category three system, but is expected to reach category four later tonight, with wind gusts of up to 260km/h and damaging storm surges that could cause significant flooding.
Authorities said Debbie was likely to damage or destroy older homes and could claim lives when it hits land.
People living in low-lying areas across Bowen, Proserpine and Airlie Beach have already been ordered to evacuate their homes as Debbie intensifies.
The view from Neville Chapman's apartment. Photo / Supplied
Outside Chapman's apartment palm trees are bending under the force of winds and the sky is full of squally rain and gusts. He said they are "excited but it's getting a little bit scary".
"We're knuckling down. We've brought everything in, shut the windows, shut the doors and prepared to be isolated for four to five days.
"This place is paradise - but even paradise has a bad day."
Chapman had prepared by filling the bathtub with water in case the sewerage system is wrecked, bringing the BBQ inside for cooking when the power is out and packed away food, water, clothes, cash and essentials for a quick departure if need be.
Chapman, who works cleaning boats at the marina, said all but nine boats had been tied up side by side in the marina. The others weren't allowed in as they weren't insured.
"Those nine boats, it looks like they'll end up on the rocks."
Chapman, who had moved to Australia two years ago, said the supermarkets had been totally gutted once the town found out two to three days ago that the cyclone would hit. Pallets of canned food and bottled water had flown off the shelves.
Shop fronts in town had been barricaded with sandbags this morning.
"There's going to be huge devastation," Chapman told the Herald.
"We've loved every minute of this place except for today."
New Zealand isn't likely to escape the clutches of Cyclone Debbie either.
The category 4 cyclone is expected to move inland through Queensland and fall apart over Thursday and Friday.
Weather Watch weather analyst Philip Duncan said the leftovers from the cyclone will start to move out over the Tasman Sea come Friday. That will "join forces" with some heavy rain over Fiordland and downpours could slide up New Zealand over the first days of April.
"It'll hit the whole country. Much of the North Island and West Coast of the South Island is at risk of a big downpour.
"It's going to die and come back to life as a new system with new rules around it.
"Who knows what it'll come back as."
Duncan said that the first 10 days of April could see rain warnings and thunderstorms popping up as part of a subtropical weather pattern.
But it was early days and there was plenty of time for the weather to change, Duncan said.
