Police believe bodies found in Queensland floods are those of missing backpackers | Queensland
Two bodies were found during the search for backpackers lost in floodwaters in Queensland; This marks the first deaths from flooding in the region.
Police on Thursday said they believed the bodies were those of two international tourists who had traveled from Brisbane to Queensland’s flood-ravaged North Burnett region but failed to arrive at their destination.
The disappearance of the 26-year-old man and the 23-year-old woman has sparked a search of the area from Kilkivan to Mundubbera, west of Gympie, where floodwaters have recently inundated communities.
Police, State Emergency Service volunteers and helicopters combed the area from Wednesday morning and later located a silver vehicle on Tansey Road, Kilkivan.
Channel Seven reported that its news team found the car while investigating the flood zone.
Police later confirmed that two bodies were found in the vehicle. Divers and forensic teams are investigating the scene.
“However, police believe the two deceased are the missing 26-year-old man and 23-year-old woman,” police said.
They mark the first deaths in the flood-hit area, where more communities are expected to be submerged in the coming days.
The community of Chinchilla, northwest of Brisbane, is next in line after Bundaberg flooded on Wednesday, leaving hundreds of homes and businesses submerged.
Chinchilla’s flooded Charleys Creek is not expected to reach a peak of 6.8 meters until noon on Thursday, local mayor Andrew Smith said.
Residents were hopeful that Charleys Creek, which runs through the town, would not reach the devastating flood levels of 2011.
The Bureau of Meteorology has warned that major flooding is approaching in Longreach, where prolonged flooding is expected from Thursday evening to Friday morning.
Senior meteorologist Jonathan How said heavy rainfall was no longer expected in the region, but slow-moving river waters would continue to affect communities downstream from Bundaberg and Chinchilla in the coming days.
He said light showers were expected in the south-east of the state on Friday, which “will create problems in terms of cleanliness but will not cause flooding.”
Eight major flood warnings were issued in Queensland late on Thursday morning, including for residents of Longreach, Windorah, Surat and Warkon.
Major flood warnings were still in place in the Northern Territory’s Top End and the Kimberley in Western Australia on Thursday morning, including for the Daly River.
“Everything is pretty saturated and any more rain could cause flooding, which is something to keep an eye on for the next few days,” How said.
He said heavy rain was expected in the Kimberley over the weekend and was expected to reach central Australia on Monday and Tuesday next week.
