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Australia’s Third-Largest City at Risk From Floods
By MERAIAH FOLEY

SYDNEY, Australia — Australian officials urged thousands of people to flee to higher ground on Tuesday in Australia’s third-largest city, Brisbane, as floodwaters that killed at least 10 people rushed toward the coastal capital of 2 million people

Cars jammed the streets in Brisbane’s low-lying central business district, with residents scrambling to secure their possessions and move to safe areas as the swollen Brisbane River began bursting its banks.

The city’s mayor, Campbell Newman, warned that at least 6,500 homes could be flooded by Thursday, when the river is expected to peak at about 20 feet above its usual level, the biggest flood in 35 years.

“We are facing one of our toughest ever tests,” Anna Bligh, the Queensland premier, told reporters in Brisbane. “We do have a very serious natural disaster on our doorstep and we will all have to work together.”

Five children were among the 10 killed late Monday as the deluge tore through Toowoomba and other parts of the Lockyer Valley, west of Brisbane, upending cars and ripping buildings from their foundations.

Some 78 people were still missing late Tuesday, and police warned that they had “very grave fears” for 18 of those missing. At least 20 people have been killed in the floodwaters that have swept vast areas of Australia’s northeastern Queensland state.

Emergency crews worked frantically to rescue hundreds of people left stranded by the raging floodwaters — described by some locals as an “inland tsunami” — that Toowoomba and several smaller towns.

Around 300 people were plucked from the disaster zone by helicopter on Tuesday after the tiny hamlet of Forest Hill was cut off by the torrent, Ms. Bligh said. Some 78 people were still missing late Tuesday, and Queensland police warned that the death toll was likely to rise as emergency crews continued to sift through the wreckage.

“The circumstances in Queensland continue to be very dire indeed,” Prime Minister Julia Gillard told reporters in Canberra. “The nation does need to brace itself for the fact that the death toll as a result of yesterday’s flash flooding is likely to rise.”

Torrential rains and flooding has affected parts of waterlogged Queensland since late December. Officials at Australia’s Bureau of Meteorology have warned that the region’s soil has lost its capacity to absorb more water after more than two weeks of severely wet weather that has flooded an area roughly equal to France and Germany.

After enduring a decade of one of the worst droughts in Australian history, Queensland residents are now facing billions of dollars in costs from the floods, which began in late November and have since razed hundreds of homes and businesses, and brought the region’s lucrative coal and farming industries to a virtual standstill.

Brisbane’s main reservoir, which was created to protect the city from flooding after the last devastating flood in 1974, was overflowing, adding thousands of gallons to the region’s swollen river systems, according to Mr. Newman.

“The situation has obviously demonstrably deteriorated,” Mr. Newman told a meeting of disaster management officials in Brisbane, according to local news reports. “Today is very significant, tomorrow is bad, and Thursday is going to be devastating for the residents and businesses affected.”

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Originally posted by Hardware:
A real tragedy, not like the distractions we have going on in the US.

Praying for clear skies for Australia.

The more I get to know people the more I like my dogs.

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Originally posted by Magonsdaughter:
Some news, not very happy, from outside the US.

Floods have cause three quarters of the state to be declared a disaster zone, and for those of you who don't know, it's a damn large state.

9 people confirmed dead and dozens missing due to flash flooding .

http://www.theage.com.au/environment/weather/weeks-of-rain-one-fatal-h
our-20110110-19l7n.html

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Originally posted by Bytemite:
Not near where you live, I hope. Damn shame about the people who died.

This kinda thing always makes me ask, though, why are we even building on floodplains and messing with leevee engineering anyway? There's always a chance of failure, and when there's failure people die and property is damaged, and this is only a 35-40 year flood from the reports. Meaning it's entirely possible to have much bigger floods.

Granted, the week of rain has something to say about this. We can drill wells, though. Highlands, why not? Human civilization hasn't been bound by it's need for a nearby river for a while now.

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Authorities have called for calm as reports come in of panic-buying at Brisbane supermarkets after workers fled the CBD en masse today.

This evening, the Gateway Motorway has been cut in both directions at the Bracken Ridge Exit at Bald Hills due to water on the road.

Up to 100,000 customers are expected to lose electricity tomorrow when Energex begins turning off power to the CBD and other riverside areas.

Bottled water almost sold out at Woolworths at Garden City at 3pm today.

Today, Lord Mayor Campbell Newman warned the worst of the flooding was yet to come, with Thursday likely to be ‘‘devastating’’.

Cr Newman said latest flood modelling suggested 6500 properties could be inundated, with 16,500 to be partially affected.

However, since then authorities have updated their modelling. Brisbane City Council has released a new flood map showing the likely affected areas, with as much as 12,000 cubic metres of water expected to be flowing out of the Brisbane River per second on Thursday at 3am.

Premier Anna Bligh now says up to 40,000 homes could be affected.

While police advised there were no forced evacuations in the CBD, numerous major employers such as government departments, Telstra, Myer and David Jones all advised workers to go home.

Throughout the early afternoon, roads out of the city were logjammed and public transport crowded as workers sought to return to their homes.

Telstra spokeswoman Elouise Campion was among the evacuees who left the company’s headquarters in George Street, close to the banks of the swelling Brisbane River.

‘‘It’s just a mass exodus from the Brisbane CBD,’’ Ms Campion said from her home in Brisbane’s north.

‘‘It’s actually scary - it’s not something I’ve seen here."

Her husband also left work and rushed to their local supermarket which was inundated by shoppers stocking up on supplies.

‘‘There’s no bread, there’s no D batteries and the local Coles is packed,’’ Ms Campion said.

Deputy Mayor Graham Quirk called for residents to remain clear-headed.

‘‘People need to be sensible and not panic, but they need to be prepared," Cr Quirk said.

"What we’ve seen today is a fair bit of panic. We’ve had a significant departure of people from the CBD going back to their homes.”

An evacuation centre has been set up at the RNA Showgrounds at Bowen Hills for residents affected by floods.

A Brisbane City Council statement said the centre had been set up for those who wanted to evacuate of their own accord and could not be accommodated with family or friends. Residents were advised to take their own pillows and sheets, medication, important documents and spare clothing. Pets were unable to be accommodated at the evacuation centre, council said.

A number of buildings in the CBD and Fortitude Valley were self-evacuated, with Eagle Street at the pier now under water, according to police.

At South Bank, the Brisbane River has broken its banks, with water lapping across the riverside boardwalks in front of the State Library and Performing Arts Centre and CityCat stops underwater.

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Pets were unable to be accommodated at the evacuation centre, council said.

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Originally posted by Bytemite:

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Pets were unable to be accommodated at the evacuation centre, council said.

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Okay, that was my heartstrings. ._. Though the fact that people were so confused and frightened that they're going back to flooded areas when they can't escape got me too.

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Originally posted by Niki2:
Yeah, got my heartstrings, too, and made me angry. How difficult would it be...I mean we did it here for Katrina AND 9/11...grrrr... Don't you have some kind of SPCA or other organizations working on that?

Me, I'd have found a piece of high ground SOMEWHERE rather than abandon mine...glad you were able to when it happened to you!

Glad you put this up, Magons. I've been thinking of you when I hear about it and hoping it was nowhere near you, too. I would have posted a thread about it, but I'm not here as much and I haven't posted any stories in a while, just responded.

But do know our hearts go out to you and we hope this passes QUICKLY--or as quickly as possible. Last night I heard that there were more rains expected; desperate as the situation is, how truly awful it will get WORSE!!!

Holding a good thought for you guys Down Under...


Hippie Operative Nikovich Nikita Nicovna Talibani,
Contracted Agent of Veritas Oilspillus, code name “Nike”,
signing off

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Originally posted by Magonsdaughter:
We're getting the edges of it, road just flooded outside of our house and there is water flowing in down it like a river.

Sheesh

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Originally posted by Magonsdaughter:

My husband suffered a nail through his foot, you know because if you have to go out in torrential rain and climb all over the roof, it needs to be done in barefeet.

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Originally posted by Magonsdaughter:
Unfortunately we are on the down side of the road, and being in a bushy area, the drains are crap basically. The creek near our house has broken its banks. The levees we built last night seem to be holding, although we've had a lot of rain come in through backing up of gutters.

Uggghhhh

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