Rockhampton: Australian city braces for floods to peak

by Dramelin 6:00 PM 0 comments

Hundreds of homes and businesses in an Australian city will be inundated when a river reaches its flood peak on Thursday, authorities say.
The Fitzroy River in Rockhampton, in central Queensland, is predicted to rise to 9m (30ft).
It comes nine days after Cyclone Debbie made landfall in northern Queensland, causing floods along a 1,200km (745 miles) stretch of coast.
Authorities described the threat to Rockhampton as a major flood event.
"This body of water is incredible," Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said.
"It has to go out somewhere and it`s coming through the Fitzroy.
" The river is expected to remain at 9m until the weekend, flooding about 300 homes and businesses.
Despite temporary levees being installed, floodwaters have already hit many buildings and forced roads and an airport to close.
Local councillor Tony Williams said it could take businesses up to two years to recover.
"I think it will be the nail in the coffin for a lot of businesses," Mr Williams, chair of the local disaster management committee, told Seven News.
Cyclone Debbie pounded Australia`s east coast as a category four system before causing torrential rain as a tropical storm.
The Insurance Council of Australia has estimated the damage bill could reach A$1bn ($770m).
Why has the flood peak taken so long? Rockhampton sits near the mouth of the Fitzroy River, which draws water from a catchment twice the size of Tasmania.
The peak comes so long after Cyclone Debbie because the catchment is upstream, said civil engineer Dr David Callaghan from the University of Queensland.
"The reason for this delay is that it is a large catchment," he told the BBC.
"It takes time for water in a large area of that total catchment to all arrive at once to any particular location along the river.
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