© ABC News / Giulio SagginThe CBD in Brisbane was a ghost town on Wednesday.
More than 50 suburbs are expected to be flooded when the Brisbane River hits an expected peak of 5.2 metres at about 4:00am on Thursday.
Already thousands of people have been forced to flee their homes after the swollen river burst its banks and rose past 4 metres on Wednesday.
Premier Anna Bligh is warning despite a slight revision in the expected flood peak, Brisbane residents are going to wake up to a scene of widespread devastation.
"We will wake tomorrow to an image of Brisbane ... that will shock many of us and I do say to people that we need to be ready for that," she said.
"People need to brace themselves.
"I think we are going to see some extraordinary solidarity overnight ... and I think that we are going to wake up to a shocking and remarkable challenge.
"But I sense that this is a challenge we are up to and a challenge we will meet."
Infrastructure was destroyed, 35 suburbs were deluged, and Lord Mayor Campbell Newman warned sewage was seeping into the floodwaters after treatment plants were inundated.
Councillor Newman said the city's ferry terminals had been "smashed to pieces" while council engineers were forced to demolish the floating RiverWalk around the New Farm cliffs amid fears that it would break away and career downstream.
The Brisbane River was a swirling torrent, with boats, pontoons and other debris being swept towards the sea and muddy water inundating low-lying areas.
The flooding was caused by water surging downstream from the overloaded Wivenhoe Dam meeting a larger than usual high tide.
Authorities warn of a growing risk of disease, including Ross River Fever, hepatitits and gastroenteritis, as the floods linger into the weekend.
Councillor Newman was pleading with locals to heed flood warnings tonight.
"Please, if the water's coming your way, it's not too late, you need to make a decision about evacuation or trying to sandbag," he said.
"People shouldn't muck around. If they're on the flood map, if their street is on the list, make the decision to get out."
'Miracle'
Amid the havoc and tragedy, there was some good news today.
Two people who were swept away by the floods in the Lockyer Valley were found alive in what police hailed as a "miracle".
The floodwaters in the city of Ipswich peaked two metres shy of the forecast, saving hundreds of homes.
But more than 3,000 Ipswich homes and businesses were swamped, with about one-third of the city affected.
A quick reduction in Wivenhoe Dam releases may have saved some Brisbane homes, with hydrologists saying water level readings at Mt Crosby, upstream of Brisbane, suggest the flood may fall short of the 1974 mark.
But 12 people are confirmed dead, and grave fears are held for at least nine more, as authorities continue the grim search for bodies in the Lockyer Valley.
Assistant Commissioner Steve Gollschewski says it is certain the death toll will rise as crews search the area ravaged by an "inland tsunami" late on Monday.
"It is our belief there will be further victims," he warned.
The homicide squad has been called in to help with the search for victims.
More than 3,500 people are in evacuation centres in Ipswich and Brisbane.
Flood victims have been pulling up at an evacuation centre at Brisbane's RNA Showgrounds, their cars full of whatever they had been able to salvage.
Many were carrying mattresses, bags and pillows and their faces were numb as the shock sunk in.
Brisbane's CBD was a ghost town on Wednesday, with the Riverside Expressway closed after floodwaters rose to within 2 metres of the road, and most of the Queen Street Mall closed.
Sandbags lined shops at the lower end of the mall and also businesses in the surrounding streets. Bridges across the river were all closed.
Police evacuated whole city blocks and more than 120,000 people were without power as Energex crews shut down the electricity grid in low-lying areas.
In the southern inland, further west, petrol was being rationed in a number of communities and those in Dalby and Chinchilla are waiting on a second flood peak.
Chinchilla experienced a 7.5 metre peak at Charleys Creek today, with up to 70 properties affected.
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