Feb 20 • 22:39 UTC 🇦🇺 Australia ABC News AU

Large parts of Queensland on alert as flooding threatens to isolate communities

Heavy rainfall in northern and western Queensland is raising flooding concerns, potentially isolating communities and threatening livestock.

Queensland is facing severe weather conditions as heavy rain continues to fall across northern and western areas, putting outback graziers on high alert. The ongoing deluge follows a week of significant rainfall that has already caused flooding in the region, posing risks to the agricultural community just two months after they faced catastrophic losses from earlier floods. The Bureau of Meteorology has issued severe weather warnings for parts of the north-west, with forecasts of localised rainfall reaching dangerous levels, exacerbating the already precarious situation for farmers.

As the weather pattern persists over the weekend, there are projections of further significant rainfall totaling between 100 and 150 millimetres, with isolated areas potentially experiencing even more severe downpours of up to 220 millimetres. The anticipated increase in rain raises concerns not just for community integrity, with road closures likely, but also for livestock, an essential part of the regional economy. Farmers are monitoring conditions closely, as this new wave of rain could lead to dangerous flash flooding and further impact agricultural operations in an area already beleaguered by recent inundations.

The implications of this situation are substantial, particularly for the outback graziers who are not only facing immediate threats from flooding but also the long-term repercussions of such weather events on their livelihoods. The risk of isolation for communities due to road closures highlights the need for emergency preparedness in these vulnerable regions. In essence, Queensland's northwest is bracing for the potential ramifications of flooding once again, underlining the broader challenges posed by climate change and extreme weather events in agriculture-dependent areas.

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