Queensland braces for heavy rain and floods after ex-Tropical Cyclone Koji batters far north | Queensland
Queenslanders are bracing for floods as repairs continue after a tropical cyclone hit the far north coast.
After days of heavy accumulation, former Tropical Cyclone Koji ran out of strength as it crossed the Queensland coast and fell to a tropical low on Sunday.
Cyclone warnings have been canceled but residents in the far north still face major flooding as heavy rain continues to lash the region.
Thousands of people were left without power as authorities worked to restore power to affected areas.
Hamilton Island recorded winds of 113 km/h when the weather system made landfall early Monday, but concerns about high winds have now become the main focus on the impact of heavy rains.
Premier David Crisafulli was confident Queenslanders could handle whatever came their way.
“There’s a risk of really significant rainfall in places over the next 24 to 48 hours,” Crisafulli told Bowen’s Nine’s Today on Monday.
“If people do the right thing and make these preparations, we will continue to get through this unscathed.”
He will chair the state disaster meeting from Proserpine later on Monday.
A heavy rain warning has been issued for Queensland’s central coast and falls are expected to continue until Monday.
Isolated totals of up to 340mm are expected within 24 hours in saturated catchments in some areas, according to the Bureau of Meteorology.
Flood watches continued for the Channel Country after monsoon rain devastated the state’s north-west, isolating towns and properties.
The massive cleanup has yet to begin, with conservative estimates that more than 45,000 livestock are missing or dead.
“We will continue to monitor and see the impact the system may have; the last thing we want to see is more rainfall in areas that consume more than a year’s supply in less than a week,” Crisafulli said.
Feed deliveries continued and authorities were stockpiling antibiotics and veterinary supplies to treat surviving animals and combat infection.
“The economic impact for Western Queensland will be huge because of how important agriculture is to supporting these communities,” Crisafulli said.
“We are doing everything we can to protect as many cattle as possible and help these primary producers.”
Flood warnings were issued on Monday morning for catchments including Herbert, Upper Burdekin, Lower Burdekin, Haughton, Ross, Bohle, Don, Proserpine, Pioneer, Lower Flinders, Norman, Gilbert, Georgina and Eyre, Diamantina and Thomson.
