News Queensland flooding crisis.

[80mileshigh]

I have a sister in Brisbane, in Bellbowrie, and close to the river. Until today, the last I'd heard she thought it would be a near-run thing.

Today I learned she and her family were evacuated in the early hours of Wednesday morning as the water came through her home at waist height, destroying all their furniture and appliances. They're in emergency accommodation now, essentially cut off from communication, but safe.

Having lived my life in urban areas of Sydney and Melbourne it has been easy to feel immune to natural disaster. Episodes like this really remind us of our fragility.

 

[Mantis]

You guys hang in there. That sounds like an awful situation. I don't often get emotional over news stories but I did get choked up when I heard about 13 year old Jordan Rice. For anyone who isn't familiar, this little boy was stuck in the midst of raging flood waters with his mom and 10 year old brother on the roof of their car. Jordan could not swim and was reportedly terrified of water yet when a man came to rescue him, he begged the man to save his little brother first. The man did save the little brother but sadly Jordan and his mom were swept away to their deaths. What a brave and selfless boy he was.

http://www.channel4.com/news/jordan-rice-hero-of-the-queensland-floods

 

[tblaxland]

Today I learned she and her family were evacuated in the early hours of Wednesday morning as the water came through her home at waist height, destroying all their furniture and appliances. They're in emergency accommodation now, essentially cut off from communication, but safe.

I'm sorry to hear about all the damage, but glad to hear they are safe.

So far, the only direct impact I have felt from the floods has been the loss of a few days business from our Brisbane office. We haven't heard much from the staff yet but are hoping they are OK.

What a brave and selfless boy he was.

I choked up over that too, imagining my own two kids in the same situation.

 

[Urwumpe]

This might be interesting, it is a visualizer for worldwide precipitation data, provided by the German Weather Service.

http://kunden.dwd.de/GPCC/Visualizer

 

[tblaxland]

This might be interesting, it is a visualizer for worldwide precipitation data, provided by the German Weather Service.

Thanks, except there is no data after October 2010 yet.

There are these images from OSTM:
http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewpr.html?pid=32496

You can see the big warn patch off south east Queensland that is causing all the rain. The low pressure systems from that warm water, coupled with the usual seasonal lows off the coast of the Pilbara in the north west, are contributing to the inverted trough systems over central/southern Australia.

 

[tblaxland]

Some interesting aerial before/after shots available here (includes a nice user interface too ): http://www.abc.net.au/news/infographics/qld-floods/beforeafter2.htm

 

[tl8]

North Queensland is now getting ready for a Category 4 Cyclone (maybe 5). Everyone is getting ready for it and as prepared as they can be.

Cyclones tend not to kill to many people in Aus, but they have wiped out towns before.

In a nut shell, this is going to be really really bad.

Queensland has not had a good summer at all.

 

[orb]

North Queensland is now getting ready for a Category 4 Cyclone (maybe 5).

NASA / NASA JPL: NASA Satellite Tracks Menacing Australian Cyclone.

Click on image to enlarge​

AIRS infrared image of Tropical Cyclone Yasi taken at 6:29 a.m. PST (9:29 a.m. EST) on Jan. 31, 2011. Areas colored purple represent the storm's coldest cloud-top temperatures and areas of heaviest precipitation. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech​

 

[tl8]

It is now a Category 5 and is heading towards Innisfail which was wiped out in 2006 with Cyclone Larry (Was a low cat 4)

 

[Urwumpe]

Today I traveled over Rungholt,
the town sank 600 years ago.
Still the waves rage wild and annoyed,
like then when they smashed the marches.
And the machine of the steamer shook, groaned,
from the water it shouted sinister and jeered
"Stay back, wild Sea"


(Sorry, had watched a documentary about the Northern German Atlantis myth last night and thought the lines of the old poem fit to the general mood down under and in this thread)

 

[Kyle]

Category 5 Yasi on track to hit Queensland

Thought this deserved a separate thread. Cyclone Yasi is now a Category 5 cyclone with 1 minute 150 mph sustained winds, the Atlantic equal of a high end Category 4 hurricane. Yasi just underwent an EWRC (Eye Wall Replacement Cyclone) last night and filtered in some dry air but has since worked through that and is quickly intensifying. NRL shows that Yasi has a solid eyewall, open to the NE, a sign of some dry air still penetrating the core.

And the visible shot shows an intensifying Tropical Cyclone.

Here's a radar shot out of Willis Island - right under the eye!
http://www.bom.gov.au/products/IDR413.loop.shtml

Hope everyone in Australia - Queensland - stay safe! This is terrible given how badly the Queensland area has been flooded!

 

[tl8]

http://www.goes.noaa.gov/sohemi/sohemiloops/shirgmscol.html

 

[Suzy]

How Cyclone Yasi compares around the world and Comparison of large cyclones (still not as big as Katrina!).

 

[tl8]

Yasi will cross the coast at about 11pm. Lucky it appears the eye will miss the more populated areas.

My thoughts and prayers are with those who are about to face this disaster.

I will bring news as soon as it happens.

 

[Artlav]

Good luck to you all.
Let it be an apogee of the disaster and nothing worse would came after.

 

[tl8]

Now about 2 hours from crossing the coast.

Innisfail looks like it will bare the brunt of the force at this stage.

---------- Post added at 09:57 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:13 PM ----------

Now 100km and 2hours away

---------- Post added at 10:02 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:57 PM ----------

I should point out that I am no where near the Cyclone but I am still scared about this storm. I guess this could be my Moonwalk moment (Again).

---------- Post added 02-03-11 at 05:52 PM ---------- Previous post was 02-02-11 at 10:02 PM ----------

It appears at the moment that there has been no loss of life or serious injury.

While there is large scale property damage this is a small positive.

 

[SiberianTiger]

Is there a chance that tornadoes may form because of this storm?

 

[tl8]

No, Cyclone = Typhoon = Hurricane

Sometimes we get Tornadoes from very bad Thunderstorms, but they generally occur in Southeast Queensland (Brisbane was hit by one a few years ago)

 

[Linguofreak]

No, Cyclone = Typhoon = Hurricane

Sometimes we get Tornadoes from very bad Thunderstorms, but they generally occur in Southeast Queensland (Brisbane was hit by one a few years ago)

Hurricanes *have* been known to spawn tornadoes, albeit often weak. Katrina spawned 53. Ivan in 2004 spawned something like 119.

 

[tblaxland]

It appears at the moment that there has been no loss of life or serious injury.

Very lucky. Just one death now, from indirect causes:
Bligh confirms Yasi cyclone death

Ms Bligh said the 23-year old man died after being overwhelmed by fumes from the diesel generator he was using while sheltering in a small room in Bambaroo, near Ingham.

There are also two missing from the Cardwell area.