The city of Ipswich has been shut down and water levels are continuing to rise in Brisbane today as evacuation efforts accelerate throughout South East Queensland.
The Brisbane River has now broken its banks, prompting officials to cut electricity services as up to 40,000 homes in surrounding suburbs brace for at least minor flood damage.
The news comes as officials confirm the state’s floods have claimed the lives of 10 people, five of them children.
There are still 90 people missing across the state and Queensland premier Anna Blight has said there are still grim fears for at least 15 of those missing persons.
The flooding in Brisbane comes as Ipswich is nearly completely underwater, with residents making their way to evacuation centres set up across the city. Hundreds of properties are expected to flood, with mayor Paul Pisasale warning residents to “prepare for the worst”.
The cost of damages is now expected to run into billions of dollars.
Energy provider Energex has now cut off power to the Ipswich and Brisbane CBDs, along with surrounding areas including Brisbane West, Caboolture, Redcliffe, Fassifern Valley, Gold Coast Hinterland, Gympie , Lockyer Valley and Hinterland.
Over 50,000 residents will be affected, the company has said.
In Brisbane, suburbs including Strathpine have now become inundated with water and are being evacuated, with 300 residents in Forest Hill having to be evacuated by air. The Brisbane River has burst its banks at Yeronga already and the waters are growing closer to residential houses.
The Brisbane City Council has also maintained flood warnings for dozens of suburbs including Brisbane, Coorparoo, Fairfield, Fortitude Valley, Oxley, New Farm, Kangaroo Point, Windsor, Norman Park, Sherwood, South Brisbane, Tennyson and Indooroopilly – a full list is available at the council’s website.
The Council has warned residents the floods are expected to be worse than the 1974 disaster, with the Brisbane River set to peak at just over 20 metres – but officials have constantly warned that weather models will change by the hour.
Premier Anna Blight has said the city, along with Ipswich, will face “their greatest threat and their toughest test in more than 35 years”.
“We would expect to see 9,000 properties affected significantly by this water level and more than 30,000 other properties having some impact,” she said.
More flooding is expected even though rains have stopped, as the Wivenhoe dam reaches capacity. Brisbane mayor Campbell Newman has said operators now have to discharge water in order to prevent the dam from bursting.
“Unfortunately, the big shock absorber is that dam is now full. Whatever happens in that upper catchment is going to have a significant impact on Brisbane,” he said.
Evacuation centres have now been set up at QEII Stadium, and at the RNA Showgrounds. Over 6,000 residents from Brisbane are expected to be using the centres, but Newman says exact figures won’t be available until the next few days are past – more centres could possibly be constructed.
Business in the city has now come to a halt, as police are warning more people to stay away. Several workplaces have now shut up shop and streets are empty as electricity services are shut down.
Anna Bligh has defended the move, saying that, “we would have catastrophic situations if we did not shut down power”.
Elsewhere, Prime Minister Julia Gillard has said seven more helicopters will be added to the rescue effort. Over 90 people are now missing, and while Gillard says residents should “be prepared for more bad news”, improving weather conditions in Toowoomba and Rockhampton will help rescue teams.
More aircraft from the defence force is also being made available to deliver supplies to stranded townships.
“We do have 700 defence personnel on a notice to move should that be necessary in order to assist the people of Queensland. So on the defence force side more is being done,” Gillard said.
Patrick Stafford is a freelance journalist and a former deputy editor of SmartCompany.
