Big wet continues in Moreton Bay Region

Published 8:15am 23 March 2021

Heavy rain continues to batter the Moreton Bay Region causing flash flooding and the closure of more than 30 roads. Here’s what we know today.

Moreton Bay Regional Council advises there are 31 local roads closed across the region. Areas affected include Brendale, Caboolture, Cedar Creek, Closeburn, Dayboro, Deception Bay, Elimbah, Griffin, Highvale, King Scrub, Kobble Creek, Kurwongbah, Laceys Creek, Mango Hill, Moodlu, Morayfield, Mount Pleasant, Narangba, Neurum, Petrie, Rocksberg, Strathpine and Whiteside.

See the full list here

What to expect today?

The Bureau of Meteorology says a strong upper trough combined with deep moist airflow is expected to bring widespread areas of heavy rainfall and thunderstorms across southern Queensland to the southeast coast today and overnight into early Wednesday morning.

Many catchments are relatively wet across parts of the flood watch area from rainfall received during the past few days.

Widespread rainfall totals of 50-70mm are expected for the flood watch area, with heavier isolated totals up to 100-150mm possible mostly with thunderstorm activity.

River and stream level rises are expected, particularly across the southern parts of the flood watch area. Minor to moderate flooding across rivers and creeks is likely over the next few days with isolated areas of major flooding possible.

Localised flooding and disruption to transport routes are likely within the flood watch area especially in South East Queensland.

The Pine and Caboolture rivers are among the catchments, listed by the bureau, likely to be affected.

Call to remain vigilant

Mayor Peter Flannery says the region is still at risk with ongoing rainfall today and into tomorrow.

“Our catchments are saturated and floods could occur rapidly with little or no warning, but for the most part, we’ve come out luckier than parts of the Gold Coast and New South Wales, but we have to remain vigilant,” Mayor Flannery says.

“Our crews have been working around the clock to clear roads of debris, clearing fallen trees, checking roads and drains and where required supporting community organisations. Overnight our teams managed multiple road closures due to flooding and closely monitored weather conditions throughout the night.

“Thankfully there has been only minor damage to some properties so far and we are continuing to directly check on approximately 80 properties in the region to assess impacts from flooding. The consistent rainfall overnight continued to trigger minor flood warnings for parts of Burpengary, Kobble Creek, Kurwongbah, Elimbah, Cedar Creek and Deception Bay.

“If residents need assistance, we encourage them to call the SES on 132 500. The SES have been working hard in challenging conditions, responding to over 100 requests for assistance in the last 48 hours.

“We’ll keep a close eye on today, particularly on our creeks and rivers which have the potential to rise rapidly with more heavy rainfall.

“With the continued rain this morning and today our roads remain extremely vulnerable to flooding. We currently have 36 impacted roads across the region and this may escalate quickly. Please drive carefully and don’t enter into any flood waters. If it’s flooded, forget it.”

SES answers calls for help

Since 5am yesterday the Queensland State Emergency Service (SES) has received 526 calls for help, 80 of those were in the Moreton Bay Region.

A spokeswoman said the calls for assistance were widespread in relation to structural damage, leaking roofs and requests for tarps.

Need sandbags?

Moreton Bay Regional Council has opened 13 sandbag stations across the region. Sandbags will not stop flood waters entirely, but careful placement of correctly filled bags may reduce the amount of water that enters a property.

To find the nearest sandbag station, head here