Cairns airport closed as Queensland premier declares ‘serious weather emergency’ amid record flood fears

 


Floods exceeding 1977 levels expected, Steven Miles says, as heavy rain leaves 10,500 homes without power

Cairns airport has been closed in anticipation of record flooding in the far north Queensland city as the state premier, Steven Miles, declared a “serious weather emergency” in the wake of ex-Tropical Cyclone Jasper.

On Sunday afternoon Miles said flood levels in Cairns were expected to exceed the previous record of 1977 and there were “significant concerns” for many communities in the far north.

“We’ve seen rainfall in some places of almost 600mm with more to come,” he said. “There are currently 10,500 people without power.”

Prime minister Anthony Albanese also posted a number of pictures of extraordinary flooding on X, formerly known as Twitter, saying Cairns was “dealing with significant flooding after Tropical Cyclone Jasper made landfall.”

Emergency crews responded to calls after heavy rainfall battered towns, causing power outages and trapping some people in their homes.

A 10-year-old girl who was struck by lightning in Beerwah on the Sunshine Coast during severe thunderstorms on Saturday was in a critical condition in Queensland children’s hospital in Brisbane on Sunday.

While Jasper was downgraded to a “tropical low” and reached the waters of the Gulf of Carpentaria overnight on Saturday, heavy rainfall continued on Sunday as people awaited rescue near Cooktown, Mena Creek and Mount Molloy.

Among them were two men who had been stranded for more than 16 hours at Melonsby station in Cooktown. Police said emergency services had been called to the property about 10.40pm on Saturday by reports the men were trapped there.

“Initial investigations indicate both men are safe and well, with an evacuation expected to take place when weather permits, and it safe to do so,” a police spokesperson said just before 2pm on Sunday.

State Emergency Service crews responded to 532 requests for help in the 24 hours to midday on Sunday.

Authorities on Sunday afternoon warned far north residents to expect continuous heavy rainfall for at least another day in what they called a “life-threatening event”.

They urged people to stay in their homes and avoid driving unless they felt unsafe and needed to get to a nearby evacuation centre.

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