Marie Carvolth never thought her Gold Coast home would be impacted by a cyclone.
Her family sheltered for six days and nights without power inside the Currumbin property as ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred showcased its fury with destructive winds and torrential rain.
As they ate dinner in darkness, her 11-year-old son witnessed a tree crash into their neighbour's roof.
The home was without water for two days and lost reliable communication, with Ms Carvolth unable to see if her sick mum was OK in hospital.
"I don't want anyone else going through what my family and community went through," she told reporters outside Queensland Parliament in Brisbane.
Her son missed school for five days and when he did return, the streets were strewn with debris.
"Kids were faced with having to step over fallen power lines to walk to school," she said.
"None of that is normal for a weather event on the Gold Coast."
Dozens of protesters on Thursday gathered to plead with the government to act on climate change, which they said was responsible for the arrival of Alfred, the first cyclone to hit southeast Queensland in more than 50 years.
Wheelbarrows filled with waterlogged drawers, pillows, stuffed toys and appliances were dumped in front of the parliament, creating a 'snapshot' of the destruction.
"It shows none of us are immune to the impacts of climate change anymore," Ms Carvolth said.
More than 400,000 homes lost power across Queensland and northern NSW during the cyclone's peak, with trees felled and properties flooded by the ensuing days-long deluge.
The federal government has paid $80 million in disaster relief to residents and businesses across the region in its wake.
Yet a month after a disaster that claimed two lives and left 30,000 without power, another weather emergency is arising in north Queensland, with communities battered by triple-digit rainfall totals.
The Lower Herbert River near Halifax is set to surpass the major flood level of 5.5 metres, prompting warnings for residents to move vehicles to higher ground.
A large estuarine crocodile was spotted in a flooded section of the Bohle River in Townsville near residential areas and an unfenced turf farm.
Wildlife officers captured the reptile, the second to be removed from the area in weeks.
The incident follows days of persistent downpours across the Lower Herbert and Tropical Coast, with 453mm at Cardwell Gap in the 24 hours to Thursday afternoon.
Other towns like Trebonne recorded 351mm and flood-weary Ingham received 267mm.
"The grounds are very saturated and rivers very swollen meaning the additional rainfall we've seen in the last day has nowhere to go and has greatly increased the flooding situation," meteorologist Miriam Bradbury said.
Ingham was among the worst hit by February floods which claimed two lives, damaged roads and shut down power for days after the nearby Herbert River broke a 1967 record level.
The Bureau of Meteorology warned intense downpours could continue into Friday across the tropical coast.
"The risk of heavy falls is much, much lower than what we saw yesterday and the overnight period," Ms Bradbury said.
Flood warnings are in place for the Herbert, Bohle and Ross Rivers.
