A FAMILY member of two of the 12 Kingscliff hockey players bunkered down in Airlie Beach as Cyclone Debbie lashes the region has confirmed the group are safe.

The group of hockey players have been holed up at Airlie Beach's Portside Whitsunday Apartments since Monday, as the destructive Cyclone made its way over the region.

Tweed Netball Association president Helen Rigney, said her two sisters, Angela Edwards and Lisa Radcliffe, had made contact, reporting the group was okay.

"They're all good. I spoke to them by text about an hour ago, they said it's settled down a lot but its still pretty miserable,” Ms Rigney said.

"They've been well looked after up there and the (Portside) managers have been awesome.

"They've been upgraded to the penthouse suite; apparently it's bigger and they could get in the spa bath if needed.”

The hockey team known as the Sinkers, arrived in Airlie Beach on Thursday as part of a pre-season trip.

The team was due to fly home on Monday night, but got stuck in the north Queensland town after all flights to and from the area were cancelled as Cyclone Debbie gained momentum.

Cyclone Debbie made landfall on the mainland as a Category 4 system at about 2pm (AEDT) today between Airlie Beach and Bowen, with wind gusts potentially reaching up to 270km/h near its centre.

Flying debris has begun to cause damage as the cyclone's most destructive zone impacted the Whitsunday Islands and mainland towns including Airlie Beach, with more than 45,000 homes currently without power throughout the impact zone.

While "catastrophic” damage is expected, Ms Rigney said the group were still bunkered down, unable to see the extent of destruction left in Cyclone Debbie's path.

"They can see damage to trees, awnings and sails, but they've been told not to venture out as it's not over and could come back,” she said.

"They said it was hairy for a while and pretty scary, but they did what they were told and stayed inside and played cards.”

The team pitched in on Monday in the town, sandbagging in preparation for the arrival of Cyclone Debbie, which was initially expected to make landfall on Tuesday morning.

Ms Rigney said the period had been traumatising for players' families who were trying to maintain contact after Airlie Beach lost power at about 10pm on Monday night.

"Every time I thought about them I cried; the reality set in Sunday when they said they can't get home,” Ms Rigney said.

"I was up at 4am (Tuesday) watching, they were concerned up there too, but being in a group they could bounce off each other.

"I think they tested the spa bath to see how many they could get in there if needed.”

Ms Rigney said while the group were able to maintain only minimal individual contact with family back home without power, social media allowed the group to keep loved ones up to date.

"They were very conservative with phones and when they sent a message, it'd be put on Facebook,” Ms Rigney said.

"Social media can have bad points but in those situations it has good points. We could keep in contact with everyone that way; it was very clever.”

While the group are stranded until Thursday, Ms Rigney confirmed one member of the group had managed to get out of Airlie Beach via bus.

While there may be more destruction to come, residents in the path of Cyclone Debbie could be waiting until Wednesday for emergency help as the slow-moving storm keeps the region in lockdown.