HEAVY rain over Rockhampton is stopping the recovery effort from the floods and increasing the possibility of more water leading to higher flood levels.
Flood waters at Rockhampton peaked yesterday, but it has been raining heavily in central Queensland's biggest town for several hours, with strong winds and lightning in the early morning.
The rain is putting at risk the recovery of the town of Theodore, which was evacuated last week as floodwaters rose, with plans to start moving people back into the town tomorrow being now reviewed.
A major problem is that the ground is already saturated or flooded, so rain falling now is adding directly to the floodwaters.
Rockhampton Mayor Brad Carter has warned the city could take a year to get back on its feet, adding that flood victims faced a long wait, possibly up to two weeks, before they could return home.
The BoM has warned water levels will remain above 8.5 metres until at least late next week.
"I think that this could drag on for 12 months,'' Mr Carter told the Nine Network, adding it would be three weeks before the airport could be re-opened.
However, the flood peak for the southern inland town has been revised downwards, with the Balonne River now not expected to rise beyond 14 metres.
"The information we had originally was 14 metres on Saturday, and possibly that could creep just above that on Monday or Tuesday,'' Balonne Shire Mayor Donna Stewart told the ABC.
But the latest advice was that the peak would be under 14 metres, she said. At 14 metres, only about 30 homes would be affected.
St George resident and Nationals senator Barnaby Joyce said more sandbags had been sent in to help residents prepare.
He spoke of the need for new dams to prevent future disasters, with St George facing its second major flood in less than a year.
"It's not good for our economy to be shut down and lose billions of dollars in production,'' Senator Joyce told Sky News.
"In the future I think we need to look at building dams to mitigate the effects of floods.''
The rain has led to several road closures in the Darling Downs area of southern Queensland, which was hit by the floods last week, but has started rebuilding efforts.
The main road up the range to the city of Toowoomba has been cut off because of a landslide caused by the rain, while to the west, waters have risen up and cut the Warrego Highway near Jondaryan.
More rain is expected over both central and southern Queensland this afternoon, with the possibility of heavy storms.
Meanwhile, daylight rail shuttle services have restarted in Queensland's north to help people resume their holidays or get home after flood-related delays.
The service will operate between Mackay and Cairns after floodwaters cut train services between Brisbane and Cairns, at Bundaberg and Rockhampton.
"The special services were a response to unique circumstances affecting customers in far North Queensland,'' Acting Transport Minister Paul Lucas said.
"Unfortunately, the flooding in Central Queensland has had a knock-on effect for many, including disrupted travel plans.''
The services will run until at least next Tuesday, but could be extended depending on the flooding situation further south.
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http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/heavy-rains-hamper-rockhampton-recovery-efforts/story-e6frg6n6-1225982981189
Flood waters at Rockhampton peaked yesterday, but it has been raining heavily in central Queensland's biggest town for several hours, with strong winds and lightning in the early morning.
The rain is putting at risk the recovery of the town of Theodore, which was evacuated last week as floodwaters rose, with plans to start moving people back into the town tomorrow being now reviewed.
A major problem is that the ground is already saturated or flooded, so rain falling now is adding directly to the floodwaters.
Rockhampton Mayor Brad Carter has warned the city could take a year to get back on its feet, adding that flood victims faced a long wait, possibly up to two weeks, before they could return home.
The BoM has warned water levels will remain above 8.5 metres until at least late next week.
"I think that this could drag on for 12 months,'' Mr Carter told the Nine Network, adding it would be three weeks before the airport could be re-opened.
However, the flood peak for the southern inland town has been revised downwards, with the Balonne River now not expected to rise beyond 14 metres.
"The information we had originally was 14 metres on Saturday, and possibly that could creep just above that on Monday or Tuesday,'' Balonne Shire Mayor Donna Stewart told the ABC.
But the latest advice was that the peak would be under 14 metres, she said. At 14 metres, only about 30 homes would be affected.
St George resident and Nationals senator Barnaby Joyce said more sandbags had been sent in to help residents prepare.
He spoke of the need for new dams to prevent future disasters, with St George facing its second major flood in less than a year.
"It's not good for our economy to be shut down and lose billions of dollars in production,'' Senator Joyce told Sky News.
"In the future I think we need to look at building dams to mitigate the effects of floods.''
The rain has led to several road closures in the Darling Downs area of southern Queensland, which was hit by the floods last week, but has started rebuilding efforts.
The main road up the range to the city of Toowoomba has been cut off because of a landslide caused by the rain, while to the west, waters have risen up and cut the Warrego Highway near Jondaryan.
More rain is expected over both central and southern Queensland this afternoon, with the possibility of heavy storms.
Meanwhile, daylight rail shuttle services have restarted in Queensland's north to help people resume their holidays or get home after flood-related delays.
The service will operate between Mackay and Cairns after floodwaters cut train services between Brisbane and Cairns, at Bundaberg and Rockhampton.
"The special services were a response to unique circumstances affecting customers in far North Queensland,'' Acting Transport Minister Paul Lucas said.
"Unfortunately, the flooding in Central Queensland has had a knock-on effect for many, including disrupted travel plans.''
The services will run until at least next Tuesday, but could be extended depending on the flooding situation further south.
Read More
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/heavy-rains-hamper-rockhampton-recovery-efforts/story-e6frg6n6-1225982981189
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