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January 10th, 2012 
FAKE NEWS for the Zionist agenda 
Lockyer Valley mayor Steve Jones in Grantham in early 2011. Picture: Peter Wallis
Source: The Courier-Mail
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IT was one of Queensland’s darkest days and left the state reeling with countless lives changed forever, but there was remarkable courage among the heartbreak.
IT was the horrifying centrepiece of Queensland’s summer of disasters.
On January 10, 2011, the torrential rain that for weeks had isolated properties and flooded regional centres turned deadly, claiming more than 20 lives in some of the most dramatic scenes witnessed in this state.
On the first anniversary of the Toowoomba and Lockyer Valley crisis, the communities devastated by the disaster honoured the dead and reflected on the long months of recovery at a series of regional services.
Events of that day began in Toowoomba, about 1.30pm, when what was later described by Police Commissioner Bob Atkinson as an “instant inland tsunami” swept through the city.
Images of the resulting chaos would take their place among the most enduring of the summer floods as rescuers scrambled to pluck residents, who were stranded on car roofs and clinging to power poles, from the torrent.
Click here to view The Courier Mail’s flood interactive special
While dozens were rescued in Toowoomba, Donna Rice and her 13-year-old son Jordan were swept to their deaths just minutes after Ms Rice’s younger son Blake was saved from their vehicle’s roof.
Meanwhile, heavy storms on the eastern flanks of the Toowoomba Range overwhelmed the creeks, tearing a path down the mountain.
The increasingly ferocious flows surged through the tiny settlements of Spring Bluff, Murphys Creek and Postmans Ridge, claiming the lives of residents Steve and Sandy Matthews, Sylvia Baillie, Bruce Warhurst, Selwyn Schefe and his six-year-old daughter Katie.
By 2pm, what was now an 8m wall of water descended on Grantham.
Residents were swept to their deaths, houses torn from their foundations and shipping containers washed down the main street. Those who escaped death spent hours clinging to trees or sheltering on their roofs.
Ultimately, events of January 10 claimed at least 18 lives, with a further three people Grantham residents Christopher Face and Dawn Radke, and Toowoomba horse racing identity James Perry, still missing, presumed dead.
A Commission of Inquiry was launched and has examined the causes, preparedness for and response to the Toowoomba and Lockyer floods, and other Queensland disasters.
Already the inquest’s interim report has raised, among other issues, early warning systems and disaster arrangements and the police response to a 000 call made by Donna Rice in the lead-up to her death.
However, a final report is not due until late February.
The year since the floods has also seen the launch of initiatives such as the Grantham land swap, allowing residents to exchange their low-lying blocks for lots on higher ground well above the flood line.
The first resettled locals, John and Kathy Mahon, have already taken up residence.
Grantham resident Julie Johnson, who has helped co-ordinate the community flood recovery, said while progress was being made there remained frustration as some people were still without permanent homes.
She added the first anniversary was an important way of honouring the dead and reflecting on the past year as well as thanking the countless people and organisations that helped.
Grantham residents are planning two public memorials and a private service today.
Meanwhile, the Lockyer Valley Regional Council is also planning a region-wide memorial service in Gatton and a community service will also be held at Murphys Creek.
Mayor Steve Jones said the past year had changed the lives of Lockyer Valley residents forever.
However, he added the Lockyer Valley had responded well to an incredibly difficult year.
“I really do think that 90 per cent of the people have showed enormous resilience and picked up their bag and they’ve moved on, no matter how hard it’s been,” he said.
Cr Jones said the anniversary of the tragedy was a chance to look to the future in a “positive” fashion.
While Toowoomba was spared some of the longer-term ravages of the crisis, Mayor Peter Taylor said infrastructure damage in the region from both January 10 and the weeks leading up to the fatal event could take years to repair without significant additional state and federal funding.
The Toowoomba Regional Council unveiled a commemorative sandstone marker at the intersection of Victoria and Margaret streets.
“A lot of people are still suffering,” said Cr Taylor.
“I think the purpose is to acknowledge some of the most significant events ever but … also to highlight the opportunity in prosperity for the future.”
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