At least eight peope were killed and
72 left missing after the latest downpour to hit Australia's
flood-wracked Queensland state sent raging torrents rushing through
several towns, washing away cars and houses, officials said Tuesday.
Emergency services officers plucked more than 40 people from
houses isolated by the torrent that hit the Lockyer Valley with
little warning on Monday, but thunderstorms and more driving rain
were keeping helicopters from reaching an unknown number of other
people still in danger on Tuesday morning.
Queensland state Premier Anna Bligh said there were "grave
concerns" for at least 11 of the missing.
"This has been a night of extraordinary events," Bligh told
reporters Tuesday. "We've seen acts of extreme bravery and courage
from our emergency workers. We know they're out on the front line
desperately trying to begin their search and rescue efforts, and we
know we have people stranded and people lost."
Queensland has been in the grip of its worst flooding for more
than two weeks, after tropical downpours across a vast area of the
state covered an area the size of France and Germany combined.
Entire towns have been swamped, more than 200,000 people affected,
and coal and farming industries virtually shut down. Monday's deaths
took the death toll since late November to at least 18.
Until Monday, the flood crisis had been unfolding slowly as
swollen rivers burst their banks and inundated towns as they moved
downstream toward the ocean.
But Monday's flash flooding struck without warning in Toowoomba,
a city of some 90,000 people nestled in mountains 2,300 feet (700
meters) above sea level. Bligh said an intense deluge fell over a
concentrated area, sending a 26-foot (eight-meter), fast-moving
torrent crashing through Toowoomba and smaller towns further down
the valley.
On Tuesday, the water was still pushing its way downstream,
flooding river systems as it moved toward the coast. Hundreds were
being evacuated from communities in the water's predicted path and
residents in low-lying regions of the state capital of Brisbane -
Australia's third-largest city - were urged to sandbag their homes.
"We have a grim and desperate situation," Bligh said.
Rescue workers were battling more bad weather Tuesday. Heavy rain
and thunderstorms were forecast for the region for most of the day,
which could lead to more flash flooding, the Bureau of Meteorology
warned.
Deputy Police Commissioner Ian Stewart said rescue efforts were
concentrated on towns downstream of Toowoomba, including hardest-hit
Murphy's Creek and Grantham, where about 30 people sought shelter in
a school isolated by the floodwaters.
News video from late Monday showed houses submerged to the roof
line in raging muddy waters, with people clambering on top. A man,
woman and child sat on the roof of their car as waters churned
around them with just inches (centimeters) to spare.
Among the dead were a mother and her two children, Bligh said.
In Toowoomba, the waters disappeared almost as fast as they
arrived, leaving debris strewn throughout downtown and cars piled
atop one another.
The flooding in recent weeks has cut roads and rail lines across
Queensland, the state's coal industry has been virtually shut down,
and cattle ranching and farming across a large part of the state are
at a standstill.
Queensland officials have said the price of rebuilding homes,
businesses and infrastructure, coupled with economic losses, could
be as high as $5 billion.
