Flash Floods

[griz066]

Darling Downs area around Cecil Plains, we are completely isolated again with all roads closed. Many houses on the farms had water in them after Xmas when the water peaked at 9.22. It is at 7.50 atm and there are a lot of very nervous people. The town itself is high and dry but the outlying ones cop it.

How would you cope if the water engulfed your house like the last pics, totally devastating, note the high water mark in last pic.

[Sir Kev + Darkie]

Houses in Dalby are about to go under again for the 3rd time in 2 weeks 

The water at Chinchilla weir was low enough for them to open the bridge on Friday only for it to once again rise and it is now 1.6m over the bridge and still rising.

[speewa158]

Flash follds went through Toowoomba cars wasted away & now about 1m of water through the main drag . Almost unheard of floods in the area s its hit . Stay safe out there

[Kit_e_kat9]

Flash follds went through Toowoomba cars wasted away & now about 1m of water through the main drag . Almost unheard of floods in the area s its hit . Stay safe out there

http://au.news.yahoo.com/video/national/-/watch/23792183/flood-crisis-worsens-dramatically/  Note the footage called: Flood crisis worsens dramatically ...

Scary. very very scary footage.  They are now reporting a few deaths and many missing people as well.

[danbo81]

They said all that water came down the range and wiped every thing out thats a big drop that range i have family at gatton they didnt think twice got straight out heard someone on the telly say there was a 7 metre wall of water heading down lockyer creek hope every one  gets out and is safe

[Sharky]

Thoughts for our friends around Toowoomba tonight. And to those in the Lockyer Valley who may already have suffered terribly.

From The Australian.
"The Bureau of Meteorology said the creek was at 18.92m at Gatton at 6.30pm (AEST). The previous record was 16.33 in 1893."

That's a serious increase in the flood level. I have a very bad feeling that the morning may bring some very bad news from the west of Brisbane.

[danbo81]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7HLvwPmles

[GU Rich]

I just saw that on a 7 news break, scary stuff up there.

[jclures]

this is not good.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011/01/10/3109846.htm

[speewa158]

This just keeps getting bigger & bigger ,might be time to think about increasing the veggie garden size at home . The way things are looking food will go through the roof ,as lots have lost it all

[hodgefamily]

I'm in Tannum Sands and the shops are out of milk, bread and veges are getting very thin on the shelves.

[D4D]

This is hard to comprehend http://video.heraldsun.com.au/1733507296/Flood-piles-up-cars?area=videoindex9

[Paul Mac]

I thought we have had it bad in Victoria the past 6 months but I'm sure glad I was able to leave Queensland on the 3rd January and get down the Newell before it started to rain again. I travelled over Cunningham's Gap and it will take some time to repair the land slips that had occured there. Whilst in Qld I was in Toowoomba and Gympie for day trips and I'm sure glad I'm not in either of those places today.

To anyone in Qld at the moment, take care and stay safe.

Cheers.

[hodgefamily]

Thought i'd offer free acomodation if needed.
below is a topic i started. Ad your name and location if you can help, or if you know of anyone who needs it.

http://myswag.org/forum/index.php?topic=10593.msg157400#msg157400

[Kit_e_kat9]

I can't believe the shopping craziness that has happened here today in Logan Shire (25k's south of BrisVegas CBD).  We aren't even in the trouble zone and won't be overly affected, yet shops have sold out of milk, bread, batteries and the likes.  It's totally bizzare!  I just stopped off for a loaf myself, and found shelves emptied all over the shop and people queueing with loaded trolleys.  I'll survive for quite a while on what I have at home (with some creativeness in the kitchen) SHOULD the worst happen, and now I have to make my own bread.  I just don't understand why people who aren't even in an affected area would panic in such a way.  The Tip Top bread factory is roughly 1k south of the shop I stopped at.  Looks like cows are going to stop producing milk due to the flooding as well.

Just Insane!

Other issues are that we no longer have computers at work as our HQ has panicked and moved our Server to higher ground (although those premises have never flooded in Brissy's history).  So now I have to go to work for another 3 - 7 days and sit there playing REAL cards waiting for some flood affected victim to call wanting our services.  What's the go there?  I can understand them sending home workers from HQ as it's in a riverfront position, but why can't they send me home if I can't do anything without that Server?  Okay fine, I'm just jealous. 

The footage we are seeing on the tele is also insane.  Alot of it is in black and white (perhaps they are reminiscing over the '74 floods?), but the devastation is just heartbreaking!  Captain Bligh just said that it's going to be worse than '74 flood level wise (might have something to do with the King Tide they are predicting) and to preprare yourselves.  Wivenhoe and Somerset Dams are both at around 180% (about 20% off overflowing) and 90% of our other dams are overflowing right now.  And it's still raining ...  People are homeless all over the state, floating and wondering what will happen next!  I can see a good use for a truck load of foot fungal cream up this way very soon.

WA is on fire!
Vic just got a huge storm!
Tsanumi on top of the Diving Range!

Bloody Butterflies must be flapping their wings everywhere as my world has gone crazy!

Kit_e   
I really want to cry but I'm just too stunned!   

[bullfrog]

Off to take some pics of the Clarence R at Grafton , back soon.

[speewa158]

Bullfrog just tell us about it , be safe the pics could put you in danger , Stay Safe

[fitzyfootlong]

I grew up in Grantham and went to the primary school, it's shocking whaty has happened. Best wishes guys, I hope the missing are all found safe and well.

Mother nature at her most fierce..

[graylyn]

Kit, it may be that the semis can't get through.  We are having the same problems here - some Coles and Woolies shelves are empty, particularly the cheese etc., although we can get milk from Malanda.

I hope everyone in the Lockyer valley is accounted for. 

Hard to imagine the people of Toowoomba went to a referendum about 10 years ago to use recycled water.

[bullfrog]

Speewa,
All good Jamie, not silly enough to take risks for a pic.
Grabbed a couple of pics before it got too dark, but to give some idea of the water, our little patch where we camp on my mates farm has got about 25' of water over it, logs are going past at jogging pace. The latest word is we should expect a peak of about 7.3m at 9:00am tomorrow. My thoughts are that this number may be a bit shy of the mark, 'spose we will find out soon enough. I'll try to get some pics around the river tomorrow & post them up. Bevan.

[Black Diamond]

This is unbelievable stuff we are seeing at the moment. Some of the video's are like fictional movies.
I cant imagine how much hurt and fear there would be amongst these poor people.

Fire and water can be our best friends, and our biggest enemies. After what happened on black Saturday and with whats happening now just says it all. It just sucks.

Our thoughts are with you all. Cant help but feel helpless here in Victoria.

Take care and keep safe.

John

[Duchess]

Kit_e...it's a stressful situation, no matter how far removed from it you are...yes, bizarre how people panic when it seems that they're not even anywhere near the disaster zone. I guess that most people have been watching as the central and north of Qld have been inundated with water and now, it appears to have landed in their backyard. I reckon though, that there will be a lot of bread tossed out after this! It happens here too and it makes us laugh a bit as we never stop making bread during the floods!

Bullfrog...saw some images on the news this morning of your backyard. Amazing to see how high up under the boat club the water has got. Stay safe over there. Will talk to you again soon.

Keeping all those in flooded areas in our thoughts and prayers here.

[hodgefamily]

The love of field and coppice,
Of green and shaded lanes.
Of ordered woods and gardens
Is running in your veins,
Strong love of grey-blue distance
Brown streams and soft dim skies
I know but cannot share it,
My love is otherwise.

I love a sunburnt country,
A land of sweeping plains,
Of ragged mountain ranges,
Of droughts and flooding rains.
I love her far horizons,
I love her jewel-sea,
Her beauty and her terror -
The wide brown land for me!

A stark white ring-barked forest
All tragic to the moon,
The sapphire-misted mountains,
The hot gold hush of noon.
Green tangle of the brushes,
Where lithe lianas coil,
And orchids deck the tree-tops
And ferns the warm dark soil.

Core of my heart, my country!
Her pitiless blue sky,
When sick at heart, around us,
We see the cattle die -
But then the grey clouds gather,
And we can bless again
The drumming of an army,
The steady, soaking rain.

Core of my heart, my country!
Land of the Rainbow Gold,
For flood and fire and famine,
She pays us back threefold -
Over the thirsty paddocks,
Watch, after many days,
The filmy veil of greenness
That thickens as we gaze.

An opal-hearted country,
A wilful, lavish land -
All you who have not loved her,
You will not understand -
Though earth holds many splendours,
Wherever I may die,
I know to what brown country
My homing thoughts will fly.

Dorothea Mackellar

[farmer6]

I have to agree with you Kit_e_kat9. The 2 things that have stuck in my mind the most from the floods is the pain that people suffer from such tragic events and the stupidity and waste of others. People have gone crazy in town here again and brought 2 months worth of bread they wont eat and milk they wont drink even though the bakeries is still running fine and the roads to the north are open.

I still can not believe after all the flooding that has occurred there are still people that have plenty of warning but don't do anything. I'm not talking about the flash flooding obviously, but story after story of people that say they watched the water rise for 2 days and assumed they are fine then wake up with water in there house and are angry because they are made to move out. I can hardly listen to the radio or TV any more because of the idiots that are driving into flooded areas just to have a look or people that stand there and say 'I can not believe the water is so high'. Its a massive flood, what the hell did they think would happen.

A week or so ago I felt so happy and proud to see the level of support from people here in Emerald for each other. Then as I helped people clean up and saw the amount of people with hardly any water thru there homes, that throw out perfectly good hard wood furniture or electrical goods because they just wanted some new things and will try to claim it on insurance. And people that have moved from there houses into friends places or to spare mine houses and are complaining about that housing they are in. Or travellers that are angry that the roads are not fixed because they want to continue there holiday.

The devastation people have suffered and are still to suffer and the pain that people have to deal with is just so sad and I get so mad when people just get consumed in there own petty little worlds and issues. I probably shouldn't even type this but it makes me so angry. I just could not imagine how our family could deal with the loss of a child and my heart goes out to the families that are forced to have to deal with it. This just makes all the stupid things people do and say annoy me even more.

Stay safe everyone and as I have said before keep ringing and text friends so everyone feels supported.

farmer6

[graylyn]

Yes, Farmer, I have seen that myself in 1974.  I was pulling people out of houses with my 18 foot boat in Oxley Road, Graceville, Sherwood and Oxley, and the one person that I remember was: I tied the boat to his fence post and helped him with all his important belongings, and then lastly he wanted me to wait while he dived back through his window and retrieved a family heirloom - a rosewood chest of drawers.  REALLY!!