Queensland towns brace for record flooding

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The town of St George in Queensland’s southern inland is in unchartered territory as it prepares for a record flood. A mandatory evacuation order was enacted for the entire town but several hundred people refused to leave. The flood disaster is far from over, with towns downstream now on high alert.

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MARK COLVIN: Flood waters are sweeping across Queensland and into the southern inland town of St George.

Thousands of people have been forced to evacuate their homes as a record flood peak bears down on the town.

Although the expected peak of 15 metres was revised downwards this morning, dozens of homes have already been inundated and the water is still rising.

Thousands of people in New South Wales have been isolated by floodwaters too.

Imogen Brennan reports.

IMOGEN BRENNAN: The predictions for the town of St George were dire. The Balonne River was expected to reach 15 metres, but that’s been revised down to below 14.5.

Emergency Services Minister Neil Roberts says concerns are still high.

NEIL ROBERTS: The river at St George topped 13.5 metres earlier today. That is in excess of the record set in March 2010 of just around 13.4 metres. And the advice from the bureau today is that it will peak overnight some time or some level above 14 metres and potentially higher.

So again we are in unchartered territories here. These are new records never seen before.

IMOGEN BRENNAN: More than 30 homes have been flooded already and that number is expected to rise with the water.

Two and a half thousand people have been driven and flown out of the town as the swollen Balonne River creeps higher up the levee.

They were taken to evacuation centres in Dalby, a few hours away, and also to the RNA showgrounds in Brisbane.

(Sounds of people in the Dalby evacuation centre.)

Dalby’s evacuation centre is noisy, but out of harm’s way.

(Sounds of evacuated pets)

Residents were urged to take their pets too. They’re being looked after by the RSPCA (Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) in an air conditioned mobile kennel outside the evacuation centre.

Some residents didn’t want to leave their homes.

Amy Thomas is a cotton grower in St George.

AMY THOMAS: My husband’s still back out on the farm and, yup, it was under a lot of protest me coming here. So and I’m still very, very anxious as to what’s happening back home.

IMOGEN BRENNAN: Police commissioner Bob Atkinson says he’s disappointed several hundred people refused to leave the town.

BOB ATKINSON: Whilst the evacuation is mandatory and we do expect that people would leave and hope that they would, the vast majority have, our situation though is that we can’t and won’t physically force people, drag people out of their homes.

IMOGEN BRENNAN: One of the people who remains in town is Nationals Senator Barnaby Joyce.

BARNABY JOYCE: Well I decided not to leave because I was asked to stay. As part of the local disaster management group I think it would be a bit peculiar if part of that group decided that they were going to vacate town.

REPORTER: What is the situation there at the moment?

BARNABY JOYCE: We hope that the flood waters will not get to 15 metres and we’re advised now that that will be the case, they’ll be much lower, slightly over 14. That is a real blessing because at 15 you could create massive damage.

IMOGEN BRENNAN: The clean-up has started in the towns of Mitchell and Roma.

Emergency Services Minister Neil Roberts says it could be some time before people can return home.

NEIL ROBERTS: Damage assessments for homes in both Roma and Mitchell have commenced. And preliminary assessments show that in Mitchell around 250 homes or more, or 280 homes or more have damage with water above the floorboards, and in Roma at least over 400.

IMOGEN BRENNAN: Authorities are also preparing for flooding in a number of small towns downstream of St George, including Dirranbandi and Cunnamulla.

Emergency Services Minister Neil Roberts says the water is expected there within days.

NEIL ROBERTS: That won’t be til later in the week and we’ll get more assessments from the bureau about potential impacts downstream. But most certainly there will be a lot of rural properties where there will be flooding.

IMOGEN BRENNAN: As the waters sweep south, record flood levels are expected in some areas of New South Wales too. Thousands of people are already cut off in the north-west of the state.

The Namoi River in Wee Waa, where more than 2,000 people have been isolated, is expected to peak tonight.

The Weather Bureau’s Gordon McKay says the floods are receding in Moree and Narrabri but the disaster is far from over.

GORDON MCKAY: With respect to the floodwaters coming down from Queensland, the first area to be affected to the south of the Queensland border is the Culgoa, Berri, Bokhara and Narran River system and primarily there’s a couple of small communities there at Goodooga and Weilmoringle which will be isolated, even possibly evacuated.

IMOGEN BRENNAN: When are those waters expected to make their way down from Queensland?

GORDON MCKAY: Well probably, it takes about a good week for them to reach the first gauges south of the border and start to impact those towns.

IMOGEN BRENNAN: As the waters slowly rise, the anxious wait continues in many towns.

MARK COLVIN: Imogen Brennan.

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