Man drowns as floods hit drought-ravaged Australia

[Anonymous]

BRISBANE, Australia - Floods hit parts of Australia's northeastern coast on Thursday, sweeping one man to his death in a swollen creek and inundating homes, but the heavy rain didn't reach drought-stricken farms further inland.



Police found the body of a man swept away as he tried to cross the creek to rescue his horse near the city of Rockhampton, 500 kilometers (310 miles) north of Brisbane.


More than 30 centimeters (12 inches) of rain fell in some areas overnight as the remains of tropical cyclone Beni drifted over the coast after lashing low-lying South Pacific islands in recent days.


Emergency services rescued some people from their partially submerged homes.


The town of Wowan, 85 kilometers (50 miles) southwest of Rockhampton, was badly hit, said Greg Schlender from the Wowan Roadhouse service station.


"The whole other side of town is full of water, the caravan park is under water," he told Australian Broadcasting Corp. radio. "The school's completely under."


More heavy rains were forecast along the northeast coast Thursday.


Much of Australia is in the grip of the worst drought in a century, but the rain did not spread far beyond the coast, where farms worst affected by the drought remained parched.


Local mayor Glenn Churchill said flood waters had damaged roads and bridges in the area as weather conditions went from one extreme to another.


"From severe, savage drought conditions to torrential rainfall and ravaging floodwaters," he said. "We're extremely pleased that many of our dams are filling up, but our priority at this stage is ... the preservation of life and the protection of property."

[Anonymous]

Power lines have come down across the flooded Calliope River west of Gladstone in central Queensland.

Ergon Energy says about 30 customers north of Calliope lost supply just before 3:00am AEST.

Crews are working on the problem and hope to have supply restored by noon.

Ergon's Bob Pleash says the bulk of the original supply problems caused by this week's flooding have been restored but there are still problems at Lowmead and Dululu.

Access difficulties have hampered repair work although crews are hopeful everyone will be on line later today.

[Anonymous]

As the clean-up continues after flashflooding in parts of central Queensland, authorities are warning people to avoid potential health risks.

The extent of the damage has triggered natural disaster relief arrangements for nine Shires.

Queensland Health is warning people not to swim in floodwaters and to keep children away from stormwater drains and creeks.

Residents mopping up are advised to wear gloves and covered shoes and to treat cuts immediately with antiseptic.

Household bleach should be used to disinfect floors and other surfaces after silt and debris is cleaned away.

Meanwhile, residents are not the only ones counting the cost of the damage.

A clean-up is continuing on the Stanwell Magnesium project west of Rockhampton, where the flashfloods destroyed a temporary office, damaged another as well as two utes.

The damage to roads and bridges across nine central Queensland shires is so far estimated to be $10 million.