Australia: Rain and flash floods continue across North Queensland

ABC News
Sun, 08 Feb 2009 12:26 UTC

Heavy rain continues to fall causing more flash flooding and damage in north Queensland.

The rain has eased in Ingham but the floodwaters remain high as the monsoon trough moves south. Ingham has been flooded for seven days.

Residents had begun to clean-up on Friday but heavy rain pushed water back up yesterday. The Herbert River peaked at 12.25 metres last night and has been steady since.

Weather bureau hydrologist Jeff Perkins says it should fall if there is no more rain.

"It's been raining for nearly seven days up there so it'll be good to see a clearance and on radar there's a definite clearance to the south," he said.

The Federal Government is providing ration packs for people stranded by the flooding in north Queensland. Defence Minister Joel Fitzgibbon says Australian Defence Force personnel are working to distribute the packs.

"All around far north Queensland and really some 4,500 24-hour ration packs have been deployed using Caribou aircraft out of Townsville," he said. "The men and women of the Australian Defence Force are very busy up there."

Meanwhile, an Ingham cane farmer used his boat to rescue a motorist from rising flood waters yesterday. Lawrie Spina says they saw the man driving on the road as the water current pushed the car sideways.

"Me and my son and my daughter had to go with the boat and open the door and got him out," he said. "We took him with the boat and they were able to take him back to home."

Missing

A search is continuing for two people missing in the flooded Tully River in the state's far north. A helicopter and five floodboats are searching for the pair who were swept out of a car carrying seven people crossing the river last night.

Five others have already been rescued.

Meanwhile, emergency services are on their way to Cape Tribulation, north of Cairns, to search for a five-year old boy feared taken by a crocodile.

The boy was walking with his seven-year-old brother when he was seen following his dog into floodwaters. The brother told police he saw a large crocodile in the area.

Emergency Management Queensland spokesman Darryl Camp says State Emergency Service (SES) floodboat crews are being used in the search.

A third search for a missing man at Undara, west of Cairns, has now ended after the man was found.

Townsville

Further south, heavy rain is falling in Townsville causing widespread flash flooding. Mayor Les Tyrell says the roads are starting to fall apart.

"The initial damage was one thing but now it's started to extend and the existing stuff gets worse," he said.

There has also been localised flooding on Magnetic Island, off Townsville.

State Emergency Service (SES) coordinator Murray Rivers says roads are cut by falls of up to 200 millimetres. "We just hope there's no wind in the next couple of days because with the king tide and the ground so wet, trees are coming down," he said.

In the Burdekin, the town of Giru remains surrounded by water. A monsoon trough is bringing falls of up to 200 millimetres across the region. Burdekin Mayor Lyn McLaughlin says the community has plenty of food supplies and floodwaters are likely to rise again tonight.

"The SES is still monitoring that and there's till water all through town, so we're really waiting to see what happens with the rain that is forecast - heavy rain for tonight - so we'll see what that does," she said.

Cairns, North-West

SES crews are cleaning and sand-bagging homes in Cairns after 178 millimetres of rain fell on the city last night, causing flash flooding in several suburbs.

Regional director Wayne Coutes says the SES received 92 calls in Cairns last night and nine homes were flooded. The excess water also caused a mudslide at Kuranda, north of Cairns. The rain is now moving down the coast towards Mackay.

In Queensland's Gulf country, the Norman and Flinders rivers are still flooded but they are receding