Brisbane and Queensland Floods 2011

One of the most devastating of recent floods in Australian history hit Brisbane and Queensland in December 2010. Thirty five people were killed, over two hundred thousand people were affected by it, and damages came to around 2.38 billion AUS dollars. It was not just one flood, but a series of them caused by bad weather in the preceding months. Heavy rainfall had begun in September 2010 and the final blow was a cyclone on Christmas eve.

The worst affected areas were those along the banks of the Burnett River and the Fitzroy river. The areas around the Fitzroy River flooded and forced a thousand people out of their homes in Theodore. The military were on hand to take people to an evacuation site, and it was the first time in history a whole town had to be evacuated. The flooding continued there for another two weeks after the evacuation. The Burnett River was worst hit on the 28th and 29th December, when the river levels rose to over eighteen metres. Over twenty houses were swamped, and the towns were completely cut off for days.

As soon as the extent of flooding and damages was realised, the Australian Defence Force were sent to help those affected, as well as thousands of volunteers from all over the country. In the aftermath of the floods, the coal industry suffered.

Brisbane was not new to flooding, as the banks had broken before in 1974. The main cause this time around was Cyclone Tasha, a tropical storm which hit the area, combined with the La Niña, a phenomenon where wet weather comes to Australia every year. There was a sharp increase in rainfall, heavier than any year since 1973, and by December 2010 the weather was the wettest on record. The average rainfall was measured at 8.25 inches. Climate change was also blamed, as the temperature of the ocean surrounding Australia was said to have risen by half a degree, producing more vapour.

The flooding continued into January 2011, becoming worse in Brisbane. On the 11th January, the Brisbane River’s banks broke and the surrounding areas were forced to evacuate. Twenty thousand homes were affected by the waters, as well as local sights and monuments. One of the bridges suspended over the river, The Brisbane River Walk, collapsed into pieces.

Nine people are still listed as being missing from the floods. The first of the thirty five deaths occurred in the November of 2010, when a woman became trapped in her car during a flood. Five more people died in the coming weeks because of the same reasons.

At first, the floods were one-off events in certain areas. But on 24th December 2010, a monsoon arrived from the Coral Sea. The rainfall did not cease, and by the 30th of the month, huge areas of Queensland were underwater, which also resulted in a massive invasion of crocodiles and snakes. Three hundred roads and highways were forced to be shut for safety. The disaster was said to cover three-quarters of Queensland itself.

Sources: Wikipedia, Queensland Government

Here’s an interesting video of the floods, from a particular viewpoint. It’s by Queensland Rail, and shows how the Queensland floods affected the transport system and just how much work was involved in getting things back to normal again. The video clip gives some facts and statistics of the flooding, as well as some idea of the drama and chaos that the floods caused generally.