Thousands of residents have fled their homes in Australia’s coastal northeast, as floods in the region worsen.
Queensland State Treasurer Andrew Fraser described the floods as a ‘disaster of biblical proportions’ and said the ultimate cost would exceed AUD1bn (€760m).
The town of Rockhampton, 600km north of the state capital, Brisbane, and with a population of 77,000, was cut off, with 40% of its houses expected to be flooded in coming days in waters over 9m deep.
Australia's Bureau of Meteorology has said flood waters in the town could reach 9m tomorrow and peak at 9.4 metres on Wednesday, a level similar to floods that hit in 1991 and 1954.
Parts of tropical Queensland could remain cut off for days by the floods, which have had a devastating impact on the state's economy, with coal mining and farming particularly badly hit.
A 41-year-old woman died when her car tried to cross the flooded inland Leichhardt River. Police said her body had been found about 2km away.
The rain has eased, but the waters are gradually working their way down the state's river systems to the coast.
Roads and rail links have been cut along the east coast, while Rockhampton, at the mouth of the Fitzroy River, was slowly being inundated. Flood waters have already reached 8.8m in parts.
Mayor Brad Carter said the town is cut off and the river is rising faster than expected.
Thousands have already been forced from their homes by the disaster, which in the last week has left an area larger than France and Germany under water and disrupted the lives of more than 200,000 people.
With more than a dozen towns under water, evacuation centres have been hastily set up, while military aircraft are on standby to help with evacuations.
Flood warnings have also been issued for parts of the Northern Territory, while in the west of the country, oil and gas producers have been forced to suspend production by gale force winds brought by a brewing tropical cyclone.
