Flooding threat rises as thousands on alert

Wanga Wallen on the Gold Coast copped 400mm over the last day, 360mm at West Woombye on the Sunshine Coast and Brisbane City received 300mm.

As a vast region is inundated by a continuous downpour, residents have been told to move to higher ground away from the water or get ready to leave immediately if the threat worsens.

Major flooding is occurring on the Bremer and Albert Rivers and the Warrell and Laidley Creeks in Queensland while NSW’s Richmond and Clarence Rivers are also breaking their banks.

There were 17 swift water rescues across Queensland on Monday.

Heavy rain and thunderstorms will continue across southeast Queensland on Monday morning but conditions are expected to ease into the afternoon.

“However with a lot of water to make its way through the river systems, the flooding impacts are likely to continue, certainly into the middle and maybe latter parts of this week,” Bureau of Meteorology’s Christie Johnson said.

More than 450 schools across Brisbane remain closed on Monday and bus services have been cancelled as roads are inundated by flash flooding.

Hundreds of thousands of homes remain without power but Energex crews are working tirelessly to reconnect the 200,000 properties.

“They are putting everything to try and reconnect people, and it’s very difficult to get back on your feet without power,” Premier David Crisafulli told ABC Radio.

Mr Albanese vowed to hold insurance companies to account as southeast Queensland is inundated by water.

“This is a time where they need to do a bit of repair of their relationships with the Australian public by doing the right thing and making payments immediately for people who are eligible,” he told the Seven Network on Monday.