Crocodiles have been spotted lurking in floodwaters and residents evacuated rising rivers surge across Queensland’s saturated remote north-west.
Small helicopters and planes will be used to fly elderly people from Burketown, near the Gulf of Carpentaria to Mount Isa, about 400 kilometres to the south, on Friday as widespread, record-breaking floods worsen across Queensland’s vast north-west.
Queensland Fire and Emergency Services said it was a precautionary step, not a total evacuation. The nearby Albert River is forecast to rise higher than the record flood level of 6.78 metres later on Friday, while further rises are possible this weekend.
In the nearby Indigenous community of Doomadgee, 10 elderly people have also been moved from an aged care home to a hospital as a precaution.
The Nicholson River is approaching the highest on record, and stormwater is backing up. But as of Friday morning, there was no water in the town, the QFES spokeswoman said.
Supplies in the towns of Doomadgee and Burke are running low, with buying restrictions on essential food items. Some supplies were flown in from Cairns on Thursday, with further resupply flights planned.
Floodwater at the Burketown airport has forced the runways to close, with all REX flights to Burketown cancelled and the Gregory airstrip and emergency airstrip remaining inaccessible.
A critical pump station in Burke has also been inundated, with residents warned of potential exposure to raw sewerage.
“There have been a number of evacuations in the shire to date,” Burke Shire mayor Ernie Camp said.
“Council will continue to contact rural residents to ascertain their health and wellbeing.”
Cr Camp said a further emergency food resupply had been planned for either Friday or Saturday.
“However, subject to weather and subsequent road closures, this may have to be pushed back,” he said.
Added to the danger, crocodiles have been spotted in the rising floodwaters surrounding the community.
“A few crocodiles have already been sighted in different areas of the community,” wildlife ranger in charge Zachariah Sowden said.
“Please take care when you are moving around the community close to the floodwaters, and stay out of the water where possible to limit a chance encounter with a crocodile.”
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Some cattle stations in the Nicholson and Gregory river catchment areas have also been evacuated.
However, some people have been stranded after days of persistent rain such as a group of five at The Drovers Camp in Camooweal, about 200 kilometres west of Mount Isa.
Traffic is moving to the Northern Territory border, about 14 kilometres west, but the Barkley Highway link to Mount Isa remains cut by floodwaters.
Josie Rowlands from The Drovers Camp said it was “very green, very wet and very soggy”, but said the rain was welcome.
“It’s going to be good because we’re going to be at a point when we have no rain,” she said.
“I’m never going to say ‘no more rain’.”
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Earlier this week, some mine operators in the region said they were shutting down temporarily after the monsoonal deluge.
One company, 29Metals, which operates the Capricorn Copper mine north of Mount Isa told InQueensland all its production and non-essential activity was suspended after it was hit by about 370 millimetres of rain in a week, including 200 millimetres in one day.
The Century mine at Lawn Hill, north-west of Mount Isa, has had 456 millimetres since the start of March and has suspended operations.
“Production will not recommence until the weather and safe access to the production areas can be re-established. The safety and wellbeing of our employees and business partners remains paramount,” the company said.
Glencore said its operations at Mount Isa Mines and Lady Loretta Mine had minor disruptions from the significant rainfall and flooding conditions occurring in the region.
There are major flood warnings for the Nicholson, Gregory and Leichhardt rivers, with further falls of potentially more than 100 millimetres of rain expected over catchments.
There is also a major flood warning for the lower Flinders Rivers and a minor warning has been issued for the Cloncurry River, which was expected to reach a minor flood level of three metres on Friday night.
“Several flood peaks continue to move along the Cloncurry and Flinders Rivers, and further rises are likely at Walkers Bend over the next few days,” the Bureau of Meteorology said in an alert.
– with AAP
