A bull shark has been dumped in the middle of a Queensland road after floodwaters triggered by Cyclone Debbie hit northeast Australia.

Queensland Fire and Emergency tweeted a picture of the shark washed up on a road near the town of Ayr.

It said: "Think it's safe to go back in the water? Think again! A bull shark washed up in Ayr. Stay out of floodwater."

Emergency crews have been forced to rescue dozens of people from floodwaters since the Category 4 storm first hit the coast between Bowen and Airlie Beach on Tuesday.

Image: People have been warned to stay out of floodwaters. Pic: @QLD FES

The region is still being experiencing torrential rain and damaging gusts of wind, which have hampered relief efforts.


"We have a very, very large state here and this is a very, very big weather system that's going to wreak havoc all the way down the coast," Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said.

The storm has been downgraded to a tropical low as it heads southeast towards Brisbane.

The city was drenched by a month's worth of rain in a single day, according to meteorologists and theme parks and beaches along the Sunshine Coast and Gold Coast were closed.

Image: Army vehicles drive through floodwaters near the Queensland town of Bowen

Some towns remain cut off by flooding as water levels continue to rise in many areas and have spread to include the neighbouring state of New South Wales.

However, only one significant injury has been reported as a result of the storm, a man crushed by a collapsing wall.

Among the areas worst hit by the storm were the Great Barrier Reef Islands, which experienced winds of more than 160 mph at the height of the cyclone.

Image: Houses threatened by flood waters in Murwillumbah

Hundreds of residents and tourists are now being evacuated from the Hamilton and Daydream Islands after struggling with no power and toilets not flushing as water ran low.

Around 1,300 soldiers have been mobilised to help with the clean-up and deliver emergency supplies.

Farming is a major industry in the area, with officials saying the economic cost to the area will be huge.

Image: Flooded areas can be seen from an Australian Army helicopter Image: A car in flood waters in Murwillumbah Image: Houses threatened by flood waters in Murwillumbah Image: Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull looks at damaged and flooded areas from aboard an Australian Army helicopter Image: Infrastructure along the Tweed river as flood waters rise in Murwillumbah Image: A boat that ran aground on Hamilton Island Image: Flood waters enter a car park outside the Robina Hospital on the Gold Coast Image: Army vehicles drive through floodwaters near the Queensland town of Bowen Image: People paddle in a kayak after flood waters entered their back yard in Murwillumbah Image: Flooding from Burdekin River which has risen some 10 metres in Ayr in Queenland Image: A car drives through water in Billinudgel Image: Sugercane farmer Eddie Fabbro inspects his crop outside the Queensland town of Ayr Image: Locals run through floodwaters in the the Gold Coast suburb of Mudgeeraba in Queensland Image: Buildings near the flooded Pioneer River in Mackay Image: Cars sit submerged after heavy rain associated with Cyclone Debbie hit the Gold Coast suburb of Robina in Queensland /

"Producers in the Whitsunday area were planting winter vegetables and they're expected to suffer heavy crop losses as well as infrastructure, crop and irrigation equipment damage," said Queensland's Rural Economic Development Minister Bill Byrne.

"In the Mackay district, it's understood that the cane fields at Proserpine, Mackay and Sarina have been flattened."