Monsoon rains have caused widespread flooding in Queensland, Australia, claiming the lives of two people and causing significant damage to small rural towns on the state's north coast. The deluge, which began earlier this week, has dropped months of rainfall in a few days, leading to widespread devastation.
The body of an 82-year-old woman was found on Tuesday in a paddock near the town of Ingham. The death follows that of a 63-year-old woman on Sunday, who perished when the rescue boat she was traveling in struck a tree and capsized.
Hundreds of residents have been displaced from their homes, and an important bridge has been washed out, disrupting drinking water supplies to the affected area. Queensland Premier David Crisafulli described the destruction as "quite frankly incredible," highlighting the severity of the flooding.
While the flooding has subsided, hundreds of people remain in evacuation centers, and the extent of the damage to homes is still being assessed. The receding waters have eased concerns that Townsville, the region's largest city, might experience similar devastation to that of 2019, when floods caused over 1 billion Australian dollars in damage.
Since Saturday, the state has received approximately 2 meters of rainfall, with some areas experiencing six months' worth of rain in just a few days. A critical highway link collapsed into the Ollera Creek near Ingham on Sunday, hindering recovery efforts and causing significant travel delays.
Power outages have affected fewer than 10,000 properties, and officials are working with the military to deliver generators. A severe thunderstorm warning remains in place for parts of the affected area.
Meteorologists have attributed the monsoon rains to two tropical low-pressure systems, one originating from a marine heatwave in the Coral Sea. Rising ocean temperatures due to climate change have increased the frequency of such events in Australia.
Meanwhile, scorching temperatures have been recorded in Western Australia, with parts of the state experiencing an extreme or severe heatwave. The Bureau of Meteorology has issued heatwave or thunderstorm warnings for most states.