‘Not out of the woods yet’: Chilling warning as storms, life-threatening flash flooding smash northern Queensland

Residents in northern Queensland have been issued a chilling warning as wild storms batter the region, bringing torrential downpours and potentially life-threatening flash flooding. Areas from Cairns to Mackay were smashed with tropical rain overnight, recording between 150mm and 250mm of rain in 24 hours. The North Ward recorded a whopping 348mm within the same period, followed by Saunders Creek at 294mm and The Lakes with 284mm. A severe weather warning remains in place for large stretches of the state’s north between Cairns and Ayr, with heavy and intense rainfall expected between Tully and Townsville. Police have also issued an emergency alert for residents in Mourilyan, advising them to prepare to move to higher ground as rapid rainfall could lead to localised flooding. “Conditions could change quickly,” the statement read. Queensland Premier David Crisafulli warned on Saturday morning that there was “more to come”, telling residents in the area to be extremely cautious as they were “not out of the woods yet”. “Life and preservation of life trumps everything in a disaster,” he said. Parts of the Bruce Highway have been closed due to water flooding the roads, and residents are sandbagging streets ahead of more rainfall. Doorknocking has also commenced in Townsville suburbs Cluden, Hermit Park, Isalia, Oonoonba and Rosslea, with residents being told to evacuate the area. Townsville Local Disaster Management Group chairman Andrew Robinson said those living in those suburbs “must be prepared to leave”. “Doorknocking - if it hasn’t already begun - will begin shortly to inform the people in those areas,” he said per the Townsville Bulletin. The Bureau of Meteorology expects the heavy and widespread rain to continue for the next few days and clouds to begin clearing by Monday. The brunt of this extreme weather is likely to be felt for residents between Cairns and Mackay, including Townsville, Ingham, and Tully, BOM senior meteorologist Dean Narramore said. “We could see thunderstorms as well,” he said. “In these areas, it could bring isolated, very heavy falls of up to 50-100 mm in an hour, and that could produce dangerous and life-threatening flash flooding.” The bureau said the severe weather was driven by a tropical low sitting off the north tropical coast, bringing “very heavy rainfall onto the coast of Queensland”, that could reach up to 1m in some pockets of the state. Looking ahead, the rain is set to continue smashing down on much of the Queensland coast over the weekend and into Monday. “It may not even ease until Tuesday, with still widespread shower and thunderstorm activity right across northern Queensland,” Mr Narramore said. Over the next three days, the bureau said there could be widespread falls reaching levels from 500mm to 800mm. “Some areas could see in excess of one metre of rainfall over the three days on top of what has already fallen,” Mr Narramore added.