10.11 am, Sunday November 22 2009

Storm-hit Brisbane floods

05:00 AEST Thu Nov 20 2008
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Southeast Queensland has again been hit by storms, with flooding reported across Brisbane, the Lockyer Valley and the Gold Coast and its hinterland.

More than 250 millimetres of rain have fallen since 10pm (AEST) yesterday, with police forced to evacuate people in some areas as water levels reached their homes' floorboards, ABC Radio reported.

Police said they had been responding to reports of widespread flooding in areas across Brisbane's south and west.

As well as Ipswich, the affected areas included Oxley, Darra, Forest Lake, Ashgrove, Sherwood and Indooroopilly, police said in a statement.

The storm has also hit The Gap, where emergency workers have been trying to stabilise a landslip which has threatened some homes in the Brisbane suburb after Sunday's destructive storm.

Engineers and soldiers who had planned to work throughout the night on the slip had to be pulled out of the area for their own safety, but ABC Radio reported that work already done on the landslide held during the night.

The weather bureau has issued flood warnings for a number of rivers around the region, including the Bremer, Lockyer and Brisbane rivers.

Power company Energex said about 10,000 homes had lost power around the Brisbane, Ipswich and Bayside areas, as well as the Sunshine Coast hinterland.

Although the storm did not bring wind, the volume of rain classified it as severe, senior forecaster Geoff Doueal was quoted as saying in the Courier Mail.

"It definitely fits in the severe thunderstorm category," Mr Doueal said.

"Not a lot of wind, it's more of a water thing and not a wind thing. There's a lot more heavy rain rather than strong winds which brings on flash flooding."

Police evacuated six homes and warned residents in another six to be on standby to leave.

Brisbane and Ipswich are not the only areas to have been affected by the storms, with Toowoomba, the Sunshine and Gold Coasts and northern New South Wales also copping heavy rain.

Yesterday, 1300 services personnel from Queensland and NSW worked alongside 900 soldiers cleaning up areas of Brisbane after Sunday's massive storm.

About 8100 damage assessments were made, with 4000 homes found to be damaged, 300 deemed badly damaged and 85 uninhabitable.

Queensland Premier Anna Bligh announced the formation of a task force to lead the recovery operation.

It is headed by building industry leader John Gaskin who was in charge of restoring Mackay after widespread flooding earlier this year.

The news of further thunderstorm activity around Brisbane was also a blow to Energex crews, who last night had just restored power to all of the 220,000 habitable homes and businesses blacked out on Sunday.

The crews worked 75 hours non-stop.

Almost 500 homes and businesses were still regarded as too damaged to safely restore their power supply, while crews continued to work on damaged infrastructure.

Life was also starting to return to normal for school children affected by the storm, with St Andrew's Catholic School at Ferny Grove set to reopen on Thursday, and St Peter Chanel at The Gap next on Monday.

The Insurance Council of Australia has predicted the damage bill from Sunday's storm will run into the hundreds of millions of dollars, once power lines, schools and other facilities are taken into account.

 
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