Thousands flee homes as Australia battles massive floods

A woman has died while thousands of people have been forced to flee their homes after torrential rainfall caused flooding in northern Queensland authorities said adding that waters will continue to rise and warned of a dangerous and lifethreatening situationMore than 1000mm 39 inches of rain has fallen on parts of northeast Queensland since Friday with record rainfalls set to continue into Monday according to Queensland State Premier David CrisafulliCrisafulli said conditions were unlike anything northern Queensland had experienced for a long timeMeteorologists said that these could be the worst floods in the region in more than 60 years BBC reportedIts not just the intensity but its also the longevity of it he told Australian broadcaster ABCThe woman who died was onboard a State Emergency Service SES dinghy which hit a tree and capsized in the town of Ingham in northwest QueenslandIt is understood she was a member of the public who was being rescued at the time and was not an emergency worker BBC reportedThe other five people on board were able to get to safety An investigation has been launchedMeanwhile three people were rescued from the roof of a house in Cardwell about halfway between Cairns and TownsvilleVideo has emerged showing a man clinging to a pole in Ingham after his vehicle was washed away and being taken to safety by locals in a boatThe Townsville Local Disaster Management Group says that 1700 homes in the city may be inundated some up to the second floor as river levels riseThousands of people across six Townsville suburbs were told to leave their homes by midday on Sunday but officials say about 10 per cent of residents had opted to stayThe same areas were severely hit during the 2019 flooding BBC reportedPremier Crisafulli urged people to heed the warnings saying In the end houses and cars and furniture that can all be replaced Your family cantOn Sunday night local time a new evacuation centre was being opened ndash as others reached capacityParts of the road between Townsville and the tourist centre of Cairns have been cut off hampering efforts to get rescue teams and sandbags to the worsthit areasMeanwhile Townsville airport is closed until Monday morning supermarkets have run out of fresh food and thousands of homes are without power including in Ingham and the Indigenous community of Palm IslandAnd there is a warning for locals to watch for crocodiles lurking in floodwaters away from their usual habitatsNorth Queensland is prone to destructive cyclones storms and floodingBut climate scientists say that warmer oceans and a hotter planet create the conditions for more intense and frequent extreme rainfall eventsThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever