Queensland emergency crews search network after five or six teenagers were seen entering a drain after heavy overnight rain

This article is more than 4 years old

This article is more than 4 years old

Six teenage boys have been found unharmed after fears for their safety sparked a search of Brisbane’s elaborate stormwater drain network by dozens of emergency workers.

The teenagers were spotted entering the drain next to Indooroopilly state high school in Brisbane’s inner-west at about 8.30am on Wednesday.



Police deployed at least 29 staff to search for the youths, including water police and dog squad officers as the drain network filled up after heavy overnight rain.

Queensland police later said that the teenagers had been found but issued a sharp warning about playing in drains before or after heavy rains.

“This is extremely risky behaviour which could have ended very badly ... Thankfully they have all been accounted for,” police said.

Swift-water technicians searched four easterly tunnels that lead to the Brisbane river and had planned a second sweep in the opposite direction.

Manholes on the school’s oval were opened for crews to check.

Another high school, St Peters Lutheran college, is nearby and there are primary schools in the area which is between a railway station and the University of Queensland.

“The safety and wellbeing of students and staff is the department’s highest priority,” the education department said.

