ABC News reports that the floods in northern Queensland have not reached their peak with more monsoon-like storms still to come.
Up to 20,000 homes could be flooded in the coming days if the rain continues to fall in north Queensland as heavily as it has been, authorities have warned.
Townsville Mayor Jenny Hill said police and Defence Force personnel were door knocking suburbs around Townsville.
“We are asking for people to self-evacuate, what we are seeking is for people to assess the situation in their own homes,” she said.
The Ross River dam reached 200.6 per cent at 9:00 am on Saturday and by 1:00 pm had risen to 212 per cent — this represents triple the volume of water in the catchment since January 27. The dam spillway gates have opened on Saturday to allow 1,000 cubic metres of water to be released per second.
The monsoonal rain has already caused extensive flash flooding in Townsville, Bluewater and Giru
The Army is on hand to help with sandbagging in the city’s south with homes underwater and streets resembling canals. Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) Queensland manager Bruce Gunn said the slow-moving monsoonal trough would remain over northern Queensland for the next 48 hours.
Queensland Fire and Emergency Services Commissioner Katarina Carroll said emergency services had conducted 38 rescues in the last few days and assisted 80 people to safety
Torres Strait residents are preparing for flooding, with a severe weather warning for tidal inundation also issued for the entire west Cape York Peninsula coast and parts of the Gulf Country.
Torres Strait Regional Authority chairman Pedro Stephen said some homes had already been inundated after last weekend’s wet weather and they were preparing for more to be evacuated.
The Bureau of Meteorology is warning residents in Tully, Innisfail and Cardwell to prepare for up to 200 millimetres of rain as the persistent monsoonal trough once again begins to affect Cairns and areas to the south of the city.
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