Australian Christmas flight chaos as worst-ever flood hits Far North Queensland as airport closes
Cairns has been devastated by unprecedented flooding in 45 years, with the city’s airport inundated and causing Christmas travel chaos for thousands of Australians.
Far north Queensland received more than 600mm of rain in the past 24 hours, with a further 300mm of rain expected on Monday in the wake of ex-tropical Cyclone Jasper.
The popular holiday destination is now ‘an island’ with the main roads cut off by floods.
Hundreds of residents and tourists have been forced to leave their homes as hotels have been converted into evacuation centers. The city’s flooded airport is closed for a second day.
Nine people were trapped on the roof of a hospital this morning while emergency services tried to rescue them.
Meanwhile, there are real fears that the region could run out of drinking water within hours, with residents urged to conserve water where possible.
Cairns Airport was forced to close due to severe flooding, with extraordinary footage showing multiple planes on the runway submerged in a rising tide
The Wajul Wujal Indigenous community in far north Queensland has been cut off. The photo shows stranded residents of the local hospital, which was inundated by floodwaters
Heavy, intense rainfall with dangerous and life-threatening flash flooding is forecast north of Cairns, along with a six-hour rainfall total of up to 300mm.
The towns of Port Douglas, Wujal Wujal, Daintree Village and Cooktown is among those in the line of fire.
Mayor Terry James has warned the Cairns region could run out of water if infrastructure blockages are not resolved and residents do not conserve water.
“We currently have about 30 hours left, so we are urging people to fill up on water while they can,” he said.
“If we cannot unblock the blockage, the reservoirs will run out of water by 10am on Monday morning,” he said on Sunday evening.
‘We urge people to use water only for emergencies – as drinking water, to save or preserve lives.’
The severe flooding has thrown Christmas plans into disarray, not just for locals going on holiday but also for travelers heading north for the holidays.
The airport is unlikely to reopen on Monday as further heavy rain is forecast.
The Palmerston Highway in far north Queensland has split in two after heavy rain and flooding from ex-tropical Cyclone Jasper.
“Cairns is like an island,” Mark Olsen, CEO of Tropical Far North Queensland Tourism, told the Today show.
‘Yesterday was certainly a day for the history books, with record rainfall across the catchment.
‘Our focus at the moment is keeping the community safe – from Cairns we cannot travel north to our friends in the Douglas Shire, our northern beaches are cut off, we are cut off on the highway south and both tracks to the plateaus are also currently cut off.”
Emergency services carried out more than 250 assisted rescue operations on Sunday night
Nine people trapped on the roof of the hospital in Wujal Wujal are still stranded.
The Wujal Wujal Council has issued an urgent plea after a crocodile was spotted at the bridge crossing
These tourists managed to board one of the last flights out of Cairns on Sunday before the airport closed mid-afternoon
Shocked locals spotted a crocodile in a flooded drain in Ingham town center on Monday morning
“Parents, keep your children away,” the message said.
“There are children swimming nearby.”
Mr Olsen has called for more help from Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Queensland Premier Steven Miles.
‘We really need to get out there and assess the situation and it will take a few days to really understand it, so people who have bookings for Christmas and New Year, just give us a few days to understand where we stand. bee.’
Further south, Ingham also monitors flooding, with a crocodile swimming in a swollen drain in the center of the town.
Australian Defense Force personnel are on standby to support flood recovery efforts.
“People are devastated and it is obviously a very dangerous situation for many who are in unprecedented flooding,” Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told ABC’s AM on Monday.
“Tragically, the weather forecast predicts more rain.”
Emergency services have carried out hundreds of rescues in recent days, including motorists stranded in the water