Queensland weather: Flooding hits Brisbane as extreme weather moves south through state

Updated

Flooding has inundated cars and affected more than 30 roads, including the Bruce Highway, in an extreme weather system that moved across south-east Queensland on Saturday.

Key points: Impacts lessened as east coast low did not form over Queensland

More than 30 roads cut at height of storm, cars and raceways flooded in Brisbane region

Gold Coast to be hit by king tide and strong winds tonight



The Bruce Highway has since reopened but many roads remain closed across Brisbane, the Gold Coast and the Sunshine Coast.

The Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) said a dangerous trough had "largely cleared" the Brisbane region by midday and moved to the Gold Coast and then south of the border after 2:30pm.

Rain persisted along the Gold Coast into Saturday evening, although much of it was just off the coast.

BoM forecaster David Grant said the severe weather impacts were not as serious as expected because no east coast low formed in Queensland.

However, a low was expected to form off the New South Wales coast overnight.

The BoM said since Friday morning, 382 millimetres of rain had fallen at Upper Springbrook in the Gold Coast hinterland, while nearby Mount Tamborine received 357mm.

By 2:00pm on Saturday afternoon, power had been cut to 4,517 properties on the Gold Coast, with 119 properties blacked out in Noosa and 58 in Brisbane.

Power was restored in most areas by late Saturday afternoon.

The State Emergency Service (SES) has received more than 1,000 calls for help from across the south east, mainly with minor flood damage and leaky roofs.

About half of those calls were from Brisbane residents.

The downpours quickly inundated dozens of roads in Brisbane this morning, including some in the CBD and West End, and cars were submerged at Toombul on the city's north side.

A man and a woman died in a crash between a mini-van and truck on the Warrego Highway near Ipswich as the downpours made roads slippery and dangerous.

The wild weather also forced the cancellation of scores of events, including the official reopening of the Eagle Farm Racecourse.

A woman was rescued from the roof of her car last night after it was swept off the Capricorn Highway as the dangerous weather system moved over central and southern Queensland.

Sorry, this video has expired Video: Cars submerged in flash flooding across Brisbane (ABC News)

Truck drivers and local farmers managed to retrieve the driver, 21, after her utility was caught in flash flooding near Pine Hill Creek at Alpha, in the state's central west.

The woman was swept away just before 10:00pm on Friday, and had to be treated for shock and exposure when she was rescued about an hour later.

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Bureau of Meteorology

The weather bureau said the central and southern interior and the central and south-east coasts were the first areas to be affected by the extreme system on Friday.

The system dumped more heavy falls as it tracked south, hitting Hervey Bay and then the Sunshine Coast on Saturday morning, where up to 170mm fell in the hinterland.

Speaking on Saturday afternoon, Queensland Fire and Emergency Services deputy commissioner Mark Roche said swiftwater rescue crews had been called to many flooded vehicles in car parks and on roadways, but in most cases people had made it safely out of their cars.

"Some people are still at this moment driving through floodwaters and we are saying don't do that," he said.

"Have a plan B if you see water over the roadway."

Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast 'in firing line' for king tide

Winds gusts of up to 100 kilometres per hour were recorded at Cape Moreton and there were strong winds along areas of the Gold Coast.

"On top of all that with those gale force winds pushing on shore, we've got a king tide for the south east coast tonight," senior forecaster Michael Paeche said on Saturday.

"We are expecting some beach erosion and inundation with that high tide so just another hazard that we need to be aware of."

Mr Paeche said both the Gold and Sunshine Coasts "were in the firing line" for the king tide but the Gold Coast was expected to be most affected.

"The winds last a bit longer there as the trough moves further south so that's an area of particular concern," he said.

"Because we have quite a decent north-easterly swell that's going to be lasting for a day or two following this system, those impacts on the beach can last into Sunday on both the Sunshine and Gold Coasts."

Central Queensland drenched on Friday night

The BoM said the surface trough causing the extreme conditions delivered 75 millimetres of rain to Emerald yesterday while up to 68 millimetres fell in Clermont and Dysart.

It said the system intensified as it moved further east across the Capricornia last night with Yeppoon receiving around 80 millimetres just after midnight.

A number of centres from Bundaberg to Rockhampton had received more than 100mm of rain.

"Mount Watalgan halfway between Bundaberg and Gladstone actually picked up 93 millimetres in one hour," Mr Paeche said.

Topics: rainfall, floods, emergency-incidents, emergency-planning, storm-disaster, disasters-and-accidents, brisbane-4000, qld, caloundra-4551, southport-4215, ipswich-4305

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