Widespread flood in Australia’s Queensland; planes submerged, crocodiles swimming

Monday, December 18, 2023

Record rainfal causes widespread flood in far north Queensland. Authorities expect this will be the Australian region’s worst-ever flood.

Thousands of people have been evacuated but others remain stranded.

Extreme weather driven by a tropical cyclone has dumped a year’s worth of rain on some areas.

Images from the region show planes are under water at Cairns airport, a crocodile is swimming in the middle of a town, and people fleeing homes in boats.

So far there is no report of deaths or people missing.

There may be intense rainfall in Queensland for another 24 hours.

Hundreds of people moved to safe shelters, many homes were under water, power and roads cut off and safe drinking water dwindling.

The city of Cairns has received more than 2m of rainfall since the weather event began.

Queensland Premier Steven Miles told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation the natural disaster was “about the worst I can remember”.

Nine people including a sick child spent the night on the roof of the hospital after emergency crews were unable to reach them.

Forecasters said the torrential rain would continue for most of Monday and coincide with a high tide. It will be intensifying the impact on low-lying communities.

While the rain is likely to begin easing on Tuesday, rivers are yet to peak and will remain swollen for days.

Several rivers may break records set during a mammoth flood event in 1977.

The Daintree River, for example, has already exceeded the previous record by 2m, after receiving 820mm of rain in 24 hours.

State officials estimate the toll of the disaster will top A$1bn (£529,000; $670,000).

Frequent flooding in recent years hit poarts of Eastern Australia.

The country is now enduring an El Nino weather event. It is typically associated with extreme events such as wildfires and cyclones.

What is El Niño and how does it change the weather?

Australia has been plagued by a series of disasters in recent years. This includes severe drought and historic bushfires, successive years of record-breaking floods, and six mass bleaching events on the Great Barrier Reef.

A future full of worsening disasters is likely unless urgent action is taken to halt climate change, the latest UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report warns.

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