Authorities have issued an emergency warning for Chinchilla, with major flooding expected in Charleys Creek today.
Residents in the low lying areas of the Western Downs town, about 300 kilometres west of Brisbane, have been told to secure their belongings and evacuate to higher ground.
Charleys Creek, which runs by the town, topped 6.4 metres on Wednesday and is currently sitting at 6.1m.
Businesses and homes in Chinchilla were beginning to be affected by major flooding at Charleys Creek yesterday, but the peak is forecast for today. (Supplied: Wattle and Hide Photography)
Police issued an emergency alert for Chinchilla, with residents of low-lying areas told to “leave now”, particularly on the Miles side of town, as officers knocked on doors.
Western Downs Mayor Andrew Smith said the region’s showgrounds would now act as an evacuation centre.
Peter Sullivan is in the second week of his new job as the Hotel Manager at the Club Hotel in Chinchilla and said the hotel would likely be inundated if the river continued to rise.
“We’re looking at 200mm through the hotel so we’re not really looking forward to that,” he said.
The Bureau of Meteorology is forecasting Charleys Creek, at Chinchilla, will peak at 6.8m around midday today. (ABC News: Aisling Brennan)
It has been all hands on deck to get two truckloads beer pallets, kegs, spirits out from the drive-through bottle shop and food from the kitchen to higher ground.
Mr Sullivan said now the furniture was up and electrical equipment was out of the way, he could do little more than wait and see what came next.
Locals brace for worsening floods
The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) expects the river to peak early on Thursday.
Seven people were already rescued from a campground in Chinchilla after Charleys Creek broke its bank early this morning.
Loading…
Worsening flooding conditions were also expected for Longreach in the central west.
Longreach Mayor Tony Rayner said the Thomson River could reach a major level by Friday and may affect low-lying houses on the edge of town.
“We are expecting it [the Thomson River] to elevate from a minor flood to moderate and then to major by the weekend,” he said.
“Whether it’s as big as 2000, we don’t know just yet, but we are preparing for a big one.”
In that flood, the Thomson River at Muttaburra peaked at 8.10m. It passed 6m on Wednesday afternoon.
Mr Rayner said the council would have a more precise forecast when waters reached Camoola Park in the next 24 hours.
Receding waters in Bundaberg
To the east, a “not safe to return” warning remains in place for flooding in Bundaberg, as hundreds of homes and businesses remain flooded.
Water has swallowed streets in Bundaberg Central. (ABC News: Lucy Loram)
The Burnett River peaked on Tuesday morning at 7.4 metres, affecting more than 200 homes and businesses.
But the full extent of the flooding will likely not be known for days.
Tuesday night was a nerve-wracking time for Bundaberg East resident Jason Evans. (ABC News: Nikki Sorbello)
Resident Jason Evans also lives nearby and watched anxiously as waters filled his backyard and crept closer to his home.
“We weren’t expecting it to be this high,” he said.
“This is our first time experiencing a decent-sized flood here.”
Jason Evans was hopeful floodwaters spared his home despite filling his yard. (ABC News: Nikki Sorbello)
Mr Evans, who moved to the town seven years ago, was hopeful the house had been spared.
“At the moment I think it will stay dry but we’re 4 foot off the ground so we’re pretty lucky,” he said.
Loading…Businesses underwater
The Burnett River has continued to fall since its peak earlier in the week, and was last recorded at 6.65m on Wednesday night.
The Burnett Traffic and Tallon bridges across the river have reopened in Bundaberg.
Floodwaters ran through Peter Brockhurst’s Bundaberg restaurant but he hopes to reopen by the weekend. (ABC News: Nikki Sorbello)
In Bundaberg East, restaurant owner Peter Brockhurst found floodwaters had gone over the floorboards at his business in Bundaberg East.
“If you buy in the middle of a flood plain will it ever flood? Yeah probably,” Mr Brockhurst said.
“It’s just as long as you’ve got processes in place to deal with it the best you can.”
Laurence Moidin watched on as floodwaters filled hardware store Sunshine Mitre 10 on Wednesday morning.
Floodwater in Bundaberg Central began filling businesses on Tuesday. (ABC News: Olivia Nunes-Malek)
He believed machinery had been lost and the retail section of the shop was completely underwater.
“We’ve tried our hardest to try get as much stock out as possible but there’s only so much you can do when safety is most important,” he said.
“It just makes you sick to your gut because you just feel hopeless.”
Water has swallowed streets in Bundaberg Central. (ABC News: Lucy Loram)
The flooding around Bundaberg caused the council to close the bridges, leaving residents on the north side of town cut off from the south.
At the Marina, boats had broken free of their moorings on Tuesday due to the heavy currents.
Several boats in the marina broke free of their moorings as water levels in the Burnett River rose. (Supplied: Shane Hall)