Floodwaters still threaten parts of Australia’s east coast after tropical storm

Australia’s prime minister cautioned that the fallout from a vicious tropical storm over the weekend was “far from over” as parts of two states remained inundated with perilous floodwaters on Monday, even as the initial threat from the deluge continued to recede.

One person was killed and several others injured after heavy rain lashed Australia’s east coast on Saturday, toppling trees and power lines and inundating some parts of Queensland and New South Wales states with record downpours.

The two states escaped the level of chaos forecast from the tropical low weather system, which was earlier expected to make landfall as the first tropical cyclone to hit south east Queensland in 51 years — before weakening as it approached.

Still, 200,000 homes and businesses were without power in the region on Monday afternoon — after the storm prompted the biggest blackout in Queensland’s history — and more than 700 schools were closed for the day.

Those living near rivers and creeks were urged to evacuate or stay indoors as water levels continued to rise in some areas — with more rain forecast triggering further warnings during the day.

Disaster was declared for the city of Ipswich, west of Brisbane, where a river was expected to flood overnight. People in the surrounding suburbs were ordered to leave their homes.

Meanwhile, in other towns where floodwaters began to recede a clean-up began as power was restored for tens of thousands of people. The scale of the damage was not immediately clear.

Workers whose livelihoods were hampered by the storm will be eligible for welfare payments for up to 13 weeks beginning on Tuesday, prime minister Anthony Albanese told reporters on Monday.

In the city of Lismore in New South Wales, two military trucks helping with the rescue efforts on Saturday rolled over, injuring 13 of the 36 personnel travelling in them.

One remained in hospital on Monday with injuries that were not life-threatening, Australia’s defence minister Richard Marles said.

The single casualty of the crisis was a 61-year-old man who disappeared in a flooded river near the New South Wales town of Dorrigo, police said. His body was recovered on Saturday.

Mr Albanese warned residents of the two stricken states not to be “complacent” as flood warnings lingered to follow officials’ directives.

“If it’s flooded, forget it,” he said, referring to travelling in or entering inundated areas.

Cyclones are common in Queensland’s tropical north but are rare in the state’s temperate and densely populated southeast corner that borders New South Wales.

Tropical Cyclone Alfred was last week expected to become the first cyclone since 1974 to cross the Australian coast near Queensland’s state capital of Brisbane, Australia’s third-most populous city.

But it weakened on Saturday to a tropical low, defined as carrying sustained winds of less than 63kph (39mph).

Authorities had feared similar scenes to those eastern Australia experienced during massive floods in 2011 and in a series of 2022 events — in which more than 20 people died.