Open thread: Queensland flood disaster

John Wood says:

11:28am | 11/01/11

For the past 3 years, the Queenland government have pumped water from the Murray (and others) to keep dams topped up despite the Murray being starved of water.
The result was over filled dams in QLD and NSW (to a lesser extent) - these recent flood waters hit the dams and instead of filling up have gone straight into overflow and back into the river system.
Now i am not saying these floods were avoidable however the damage could of been minmised by more prudent planning. Who takes responsability here..?

TheRealDave says:

12:06pm | 11/01/11

Boillocks.

Wivehoe was down to about 17% and Somerset was even lower 2 years ago until the drought broke - nothing to do with pumping water to top up. Its natural rainfall in the catchment that has brought the dam levels up. Thats why the Labor government was building Desal plants, talking about recycling water and trying to build a giant Dam.

Gregg says:

02:16pm | 11/01/11

If you can watch Channel 7 Lola, you’ll quickly get the message that any lower lying areas should be evacuated or make plans to leave early for though there should have been a high tide about now, the river flow hasn’t got down the river yet as far as the CBD though as you know level is already rising at West End.

Reports have been that the flood level will get higher through the night into Wednesday and possibly on Thursday but you do not want to be hanging about and all of a sudden find you’re in another version of a water bed.
The council have nominated various lower lying burbs where people need to consider moving, so they probably have info on their web site too.

If you hear an enormous distant roar, just run for the nearest hill for that could be the Wivenhoe letting go and it’s already somewhere between 140% to 170% of normal storage capacity, even with flood gates fully open.

Steven says:

02:25pm | 11/01/11

ABC Local radio is supposed to be the clearing house for all local disaster information and advice.  For you in Brisbane that would be AM612, I think.

Best wishes.

TheRealDave says:

02:28pm | 11/01/11

@gregg, last I heard it was getting up near 184% full.

I can’t wait for Easter at Wivenhoe this year, fishing is going to rock!

The greens said it would never rain again says:

02:32pm | 11/01/11

@John Wood,all the ABC reports that there is not anything anyone could have done,Anna Bligh was first to distance herself mimicking the carefully crafted ABC news dialogue stating that there was nothing anyone could have done especially Gillard who addressed the Media with the same speil and Public Relations Release. No one is responsible for the loss of Life or damage in not only This Labor any state or National govt at anytime
Dams and infrastructure are not a priority so funds are at the behest of he unions and the Project Management companies the are familiar with
The Greens oppose dams because they live in city regions and would rather spend money on a Mardi Gras than build a Dam
Dams are stupid and dont buy votes according to the Greens who place frogs in front of human life
Labor and Green priorities have been exposed in this tragedy and finally the people of Queensland can see through the wafer thin policies of the ALP

Gregg says:

02:55pm | 11/01/11

@ Dave,
You shouldn’t have to worry on getting stuck in mud while launching then.

Phil says:

07:42pm | 11/01/11

The greens YOU ARE SPOT ON. Doubt you will hear Bob Brown tiptoeing through the tulips saying climate chance any time soon..

Labor being behold to the greens vote/secret coalition are still on a no new dams policy. What fu@kwits.

More dams may not have stopped things, but would have reduced impact.

Wilson says:

11:21am | 12/01/11

@ The Greens, increased rainfall in northern Australia due to climate change is predicted by the scientists.

Queenslands village idiot Barnaby joyce is now backing away from his suggestion that building a dam in Toowoomba, which is on top of a mountain is a sensible idea and would have saved lives. So I think you should follow your leader.

Memorandum Wilson says:

12:29pm | 12/01/11

@Wilson,what scientist,supply the name and the independent authority that scrutinised the results,the name of the researchers,assistants the bona fide of this mythical alleged scientific body ,its accreditation’s and affiliates,list of referees and the actual printed results signed by said scientist including his qualifications ,where he studied and what was his Masters written on (Subject)
Also include the list of donations,grants and the company that printed these results,the name of his employer and their list of political and personal donations and the govt body who is using these results and taxpayers money to disseminate this information
If you cant these your full of shit

Wilson says:

03:21pm | 12/01/11

Look for yourself, you might learn something.

Start with that mythical alleged scientific body: the CSIRO

James1 says:

10:44am | 11/01/11

Late last week, I put my wife and daughter on a plane to Queensland to spend two weeks in Toowoomba with our extended families.  Little did I know I was sending them into a natural disaster. 

So here is hoping that everyone else with family in Toowoomba finds them safe and well, as I (thankfully) have with mine.

NicoleG says:

07:00pm | 11/01/11

Are you still in contact with your wife James1? Reports say (don’t know how true) that there could be another flash flood. God I hope not. I’m thinking of them and everyone else effected. This is horrific.

James1 says:

08:58am | 12/01/11

We are staying in touch via text message due to the lack of phone reception in Toowoomba.  She and our daughter are pretty overwhelmed by the whole thing, and to add to their distress all of my relatives’ houses in Toowoomba are full of refugees from the Lockyer Valley, Laidley and Ipswich - it is 4-5 to a room there at the moment.  I just hope that things don’t get worse before they get better.

Thanks again for your concern, Nicole.

Asylum seeker says:

04:44pm | 12/01/11

Send them to Nauru, James.

Lola says:

10:45am | 11/01/11

Tell me about it. The dam is at 200% capacity with 2 Sydney Harbours flowing into it everyday. It’s really scary. I just can’t believe this is happening.

The funny thing is everyone was winging when we were in drought saying Wivenhoe was ‘empty’. Well, we’re now realising the benefit of once have an empty dam - it’s designed that way.

Gregg says:

02:27pm | 11/01/11

The flooding in Gympie Colin is more because this particular torrential hit of a few days came in from the coast and it went over Gympie on the way to Toowoomba, most of Gympie CBD besides some lower undulating sections being on higher ground.
The Traveston may have been washed away half completed!

MelD says:

04:29pm | 11/01/11

well….not all Australians obviously, most but not all

Look after our own says:

12:35pm | 11/01/11

I don’t think that the most stable banking system in the world (ours) can be held responsible for resolving flood difficulties.  If we want a dodgy banking system that doesn’t look after depositors’  funds and is publicly pressured into disregarding their risk threshold, the result would be catastrophic.

More to the point - what measures have consecutive Queensland and NSW governments taken to mitigate known flood potential?
Australia has been way too busy appeasing celebrities and charities by offloading millions of hard-earned dollars to overseas aid and disaster relief. Every time there is an overseas disaster, there’s millions more people calling for aid.  Isn’t it about time we invested in our own people, so that when things go wrong we are thoroughly equipped to respond to the full rehabilitation needs of our own deserving and uniquely hard working communities?

And by the way, where’s pink-tinted bespectacled little Bono, the one who cosies up to world leaders like Rudd, sucking monetary commitments that have been known to finish up buying guns and propping up corrupt regimes? Is Bono suddenly campaigning for flood relief for our struggling water-ruined Aussies in Toowoomba?
I think not.  Cut the foreign aid, suspend the $500M for Indonesian schools, and look after our own.

Fai's not fair says:

12:50pm | 11/01/11

@ Look after our own

I’m not blaming the banks for lack of flood control but I am concerned that farmers with massive losses to their potential incomes have been ‘threatened’ with increases of up to 4% risk margins if they can’t cover their commitments by the end of January. What purpose does this serve? except to further fatten the pockets of executives and shareholders?

The cost of borrowing already committed monies did not suddenly increase in the last four weeks. Is it any wonder a handful of farmers have already taken their own lives and / or walked away from their properties with just a suitcase of clothes?

Gregg says:

02:40pm | 11/01/11

Well said Fairs not Fair and for @ Looks after our own,

Why could not rural financing be subsidised as it is for many other wasteful projects.
There was an article recently on the plight of indigenous people that revealed Indigenous people are being give discounted housing loans, so there’s plenty of precedents and look at all the resources that will be poured at urban areas compared to our farmers.
And you like good food don’t you!

As for more dams, a great idea and more dams and water diversion works could help some with mitigation but it’ll not stop flooding completely when it is associated with the weather currently being experienced.
The Wivenhoe Dam for instance could have been left just half full but then how happy would people be if the drought had continued and a few years down the track it was bone dry again.

True, if there was a suitable location to put a second or third dams down stream of the Wivenhoe and then run them all just half full, that’d be another scenarion and perhaps better than a desal plant if you had faith in a dam being completed quick enough and rain to come.
But there’ll always be a lot of Ifs and the biggest of all is If the communities and Greens would go along with it.

I doubt we’ll be hearing too much from the Greens over the next few weeks but they’ll climb back on their horse.

Peter, Hay, NSW says:

05:32pm | 11/01/11

The Wivenhoe Dam had over 12 inches of rain around it today, only so much anyone can do with that kind of rainfall..I think it has done well considering the adversity…. http://www.bom.gov.au/products/IDR66C.loop.shtml#skip

MelD says:

12:40pm | 11/01/11

What about the fires in Victoria? there have been others and there will be more

MelD says:

12:43pm | 11/01/11

oh and lets not forget Cyclone Tracey, i am sure that wasn’t a picinic

Seej says:

01:33pm | 11/01/11

WWI (60,000 + deaths)

Spanish flu epidemic of 1919 (12 000 + deaths)

Bubonic plague of the early 1900s (500+ deaths)

WWII (40,000 + deaths)

The Great Depression

These floods are certainly terrible and will have a huge impact - not least on those directly affected - but we should keep it in perspective (however difficult that is amid the grotesque media hysteria).

Gregg says:

02:52pm | 11/01/11

@Seej,
The bushfires were certainly horiffic for the loss of life, housing and the environment but they did not affect anywhere near as greatly prime agricultural land nor cover anywhere near the same extent of territory.

I’d not like to be caught up in either and there’ll be many feeling the food availability/price flow on effect of flodding throughout Queensland, NSW and WA.
The rain belt from up in Queensland is gradually working its way south and may even cause flooding in Victoria too.

The devastation caused in the toowoomba area is also because you have significant undulating area as a catchment, it’ll all flow down to the lower points, hence the flash flooding, a bit differnt to plains flooding and in some ways more akin to the rapid threat to live and destruction of fire.

MelD says:

04:26pm | 11/01/11

Bali bombing, didn’t happen in Australia but affected us none the less

Reg says:

05:42pm | 11/01/11

It’s not as if this magnitude of flooding has not happened before, it’s just that it’s new to some while others have forgotten. Same with ideas of diverting rivers like the Dawson and Fitzroy to the West. Crazy ideas considering the flooding it would cause in the West with subsequent years and years of no flow at all. Apart from changing the whole inland area and being impractical, the loss of Eastward flow would have a destructive effects on the East coast and the Barrier Reef and what for, a dribble down the Darling every few years. Someone chose to disband the Snowy Authority that could have looked at this problem, once again because it had performed it’s function to the advantage of the South-Eastern states.

We know it is a land of drought and flooding rain, get used to it.

AFR says:

07:19pm | 11/01/11

Come on guys, lets not make this a “my disaster is bigger than yours” pissing contest. Half of Queensland is under water. Thousands of people displaced, people missing. Even if you don’t think its the “worst” ever on whetever your criteria, have some sensitivity for those affected.

Colin J Ely says:

08:32pm | 11/01/11

@Reg
The Bradfield Scheme has never been about diverting ALL flows westward. It is about diverting a proportion of the flows which now just go out to sea into the Murray Darling system.

Reg says:

08:50am | 12/01/11

I realise that Colin but for most of the time there is nothing to divert and it’s a long way from Riverstone to the head of the Darling. Plenty of time to evaporate the diverted waters. Not so bad if it then dropped as rain to the West of the range but more likely it would dissipate itself over the Pacific. Certainly this would fulfill the intention of flood moderation, but at what gigantic cost and political scorn considering the low duty cycle of the engineering. It would seem to me that diversion is the easy part, the problem is what degree of advantage we’d expect to gain by such a gigantic scheme.

Ben in Canberra says:

12:49pm | 11/01/11

Rubbish. Natural disasters DO NOT equal marketing fodder for climate alarmists. Go back to your latest Al Gore blog and show some respect for people in the eye of the storm you cretin.

David C says:

12:52pm | 11/01/11

Nice one James, good on you for using people’s suffering to push your agenda

Fair's not fair says:

12:54pm | 11/01/11

Oh please! Every time nature makes a pit stop, it is labelled global warming…

Yes, it’s a disaster but not the first or last one. Please do not belittle the effects of a NATURAL disaster by being green from your air-conditioned ivory tower that you arrived at in your mass produced vehicle.

Blazes says:

01:08pm | 11/01/11

James, that is disgraceful! How dare you use these tragedies to push your own left-wing, greenie agenda!

AnthonyG says:

01:19pm | 11/01/11

Global warming hey. Theres a sucker born every minute. James dont worry mate the government will fix this overnight with a carbon tax and then the whole world will suddenly be safe.

Concerned Citizen says:

01:36pm | 11/01/11

James earlier today i was reading a comment on a site from a long time Toowoomba resident who said he hasnt seen it like this since 1950’s. It’s not the first and wont be the last.

James says:

02:00pm | 11/01/11

Global warming acts as a magnifier to severe weather (that is basic science), if you don’t personally act to reduce emissions (including asking your MP to act) then you are not only doing a diservice to the current flood victims but you will have a hand (albeit small) in future weather events that kill people.  Time to stop sticking your head where the sun don’t shine and realise that.

Ignorance is not an excuse.

TheRealDave says:

02:43pm | 11/01/11

Yes James….now how do you care to explain BIGGER floods in 1974, the 1950’s and before that??

I despise these Climate Alarmists that latch onto these events as ‘proof’ of their crap….whilst ignoring the fact that this proof is merely part of a cycle that has been going on longer than we have been recording and has happened on a greater scale with larger losses of life.

David C says:

02:47pm | 11/01/11

James you’re gusty Ill give you that. Lets see how really gutsy you are. Next week when the waters have receded why dont you go and stand in the middle of Toowoomba and repeat those comments.

Drew says:

02:59pm | 11/01/11

The hypocrisy is rife. This guy is targetted for using suffering to push his agenda but there is little criticism of the other posters on this forum who are using this tragedy to push their rabid anti-jools pulpit screaming agendas. I’ll say it again, the hypocrisy is rife.

James says:

03:16pm | 11/01/11

Emotional nonsense, the globe is warming we are causing it and its impacts will cause more suffering, including to the people of Toowomba (as well as everywhere else).

The nastiest thing we could do is to not try and do everything we can to reduce emissions and forecast future global warming impacts so that we can prepare communities and save lives.  The wilful spreading of anti-science rot will kill people as sure as the tobacco lobby killed people when they tried to tell us that smoking didn’t cause cancer.

Have a good think about the consequences of getting our response to global warming wrong.

Keith Hammersmith says:

03:42pm | 11/01/11

Hey James it was pointed out a couple of times to yoiu, but you chose to not mention it, that the 1974 flodd in brisbane was bigger, same iwth one in the 1890’s,  um yeah I see why you didnt want to address those points - it doesnt suit your argument…

P. Darvio says:

03:49pm | 11/01/11

So it was Global Warming that caused the 1974 and 1893 floods as well?

Tripper Smurf says:

04:00pm | 11/01/11

If you look at all these river systems that are flooding right now, they all have a history of flooding and even the terrain says that they are prone to floods on a semi-regular basis.

Go crawl back up Gore’s bum James.

James says:

04:05pm | 11/01/11

Never said global warming was soley responsible only that it is a magnifier to events like this as it adds more energy and therefore more water vapour into the atmosphere/ocean system, so get your facts straight.  This flood also isn’t over yet and is more widespread than just Brisbane, engage your brain before making more foolish comments.

Wikigreen says:

04:08pm | 11/01/11

@P Darvio,Yes the earlier flood was caused by the assassination of Abraham Lincoln and the accompanying methane vented by the earlier Greens
The 74 flood was global warming caused by the increase of psychedelic rock and the popularity of ZZ Top

MelD says:

04:28pm | 11/01/11

no such thing as global warming, this is on a weather cycle there is no conclusive 100% evidence supporting global warming and until there is I remain a skeptic

and I believe you saying this is what global warming means is a prime example of you blaming it completely on this, stop back peddling

DDam says:

04:33pm | 11/01/11

@ James The Previous residents of the Sun (the sunnies) warned of this and they were right,What should we do,as an authority you can save the planet,post your orders and instructions here for us to follow and save the blue sphere,awaiting in rampant anticipation for you guidance

PaulB says:

05:51pm | 11/01/11

Yep, everything is caused by global war…er…climate ch….er….global climate disr….  er ....what are you people calling it this week James?

James says:

07:31pm | 11/01/11

Final comment:  What can you do?  Educate yourself in basic science and look at the climate data for yourself, the results are clear to those with a basic grasp of physical laws.  At the very least if you don’t really understand science do not peddle ideas that you do not really understand i.e. that global warming is not caused by humans if you think that you need to look more closely at the science.

If you obstruct progress on reducing emissions and tell people that the world isn’t warming (even though if you really were truthful with yourself you would admit you don’t really know either way) you are doing the same thing as telling a kid that smoking will not cause cancer.  Think about it, do you really want to be on the wrong side of history.

Phil says:

07:52pm | 11/01/11

James how bought I shout you an airfare to QLD, buy you a microphone and take you to a few towns inundated by flood for you to srook your global warming, sorry climate chance BS.

Save us all the effort, James stop breathing, you are doing your country a disservice by breathing.

Markster says:

09:16pm | 11/01/11

People are dead, lives destroyed and you come up with this!  One day you will grow up and realise how disrepectful, insensitive, insular and self centred you were.  Hopefully it will be soon and without having to go through something like this personally

Liz says:

09:30pm | 11/01/11

Energy may not be created nor destroyed- Conservation of energy, Laws of Physics. If you are going to spout science and physics, at least be accurate. You cannot ‘add more energy’ to a system. Our weather works in cycles, always has. We have had ice ages, and floods, and droughts and we will continue to see these cycles!

PaulB says:

10:21pm | 11/01/11

I suspect James is an astro-turfer.  One of those who works for a PR company contracted to promote the climate change global taxation agenda.  Their job is to wade into forums like this and promote the party line.  You always see them pushing their barrows when the debate involves lots of money, usually ours, which they want.

Pulp says:

05:25am | 12/01/11

Liz says:09:30pm | 11/01/11
“Energy may not be created nor destroyed- Conservation of energy, Laws of Physics. If you are going to spout science and physics, at least be accurate. You cannot ‘add more energy’ to a system. “

Here we have the whole problem in a nutshell.  Liz has -by ignorance or through deception - misapplied basic science.

Energy has been *transferred* - from carbon locked up in ancient coal and oil beds, to CO2 and etcs, to *add* heat to the air and thence to the the ocean, and more water in the air.  Energy *from* historic stores added *to* our biosphere. Result: global warming and climate change.

Go away and look up radiative forcing before you spread more misinformation. You could do worse than start here.
http://www.grida.no/publications/vg/climate/page/3059.aspx

James says:

09:05am | 12/01/11

Liz, it depends how you define a system, if you stand in a room in normal clothes your body (a system) will have a certain amout of heat energy contained within and will be losing heat energy at a certain rate to the environment.  If you put on a fur coat the level of heat energy associated with you body will go up because you are losing heat energy to the environment more slowly.  This is much like why CO2 warms the earth, it is the fur coat.

Liz says:

07:24pm | 12/01/11

I have not ‘by ignorance or through deception - misapplied basic science’. I am well aware of the basic concepts of physics, I was quoting James’ misquote, as he was the one suggesting you could ‘add’ energy. For those who have not studied physics, they may have been mislead by his statements- he should have used the term ‘transferred’. He didn’t, so I made a comment about its inaccuracy.

James says:

09:01pm | 12/01/11

More energy exists in the ocean/atmosphere system as the composition of the atmosphere changes to include more CO2, which is mainly put there by us.  I should say less energy is lost from the earth rather than more energy being added but the effect is the same and it is NOT part of a natural cycle, we have never seen an increase in CO2 this quick, it is occuring at 10,000 times the normal rate.

Own goal says:

05:58am | 13/01/11

Nice attempt to weasel out of her self-made problem.

What James said was right:  “adds more energy and therefore more water vapour into the atmosphere/ocean system”.

He didn’t suggest that energy hasn’t been “created”  nor would any reasonable reader think he had.

As other posters point out, the CO2 added to the atmosphere has been transferred from fossil fuels by our use of them.  And with that comes the energy transfer.

Well, that at least clears one point up.  As she says she knows that too, Liz was only ever aiming to deceive.

And is trying it on again now.

MelD says:

12:42pm | 11/01/11

why would we want to slug a bear? they have claws you know and can run very fast

jf says:

01:16pm | 11/01/11

Well good for you TheRealDave.

“you bastards were the ones blocking every bloody dam the Labor Party have tried to build for the last 20 bloody years! “

Didn’t stop them bringing in all manner of crappy, half-baked legislation and policy.

But, just for the record, which dam was blocked (not opposed but blocked) by the conservatives?

bella starkey says:

01:24pm | 11/01/11

WTF? What did the bear do you? There must be a law against punching bears!

TheRealDave says:

02:49pm | 11/01/11

See. shattered…damn dyslexic fingers, I meant Beer…..but now I am intrigued with Bear Slugging…..

Gregg says:

03:14pm | 11/01/11

@ Dave,
Kind of like Kanga matches Dave except you slug down a few Bundies and Coke, don the fighting Undies and go out and look for a drop bear to drop or down.
Amazing what a typo can do!

WakeUp says:

06:43pm | 11/01/11

Yep I’m with you RealDave, Inland Tsunami, WOW!  Lets say it again..come on all you disaster addicts out there….keep saying it and keep watching the same footage over and over…yeah its disturbing scary etc….we all feel empathy…but the mainstream media is evil, we all know they are loving it, what about you? Makes me sick to my stomach ,flood, fire, locust, they cant get enough, dont you see? Ratings riding on the backs of real people who are suffering. This is not a TV show…WAKE-UP !!

Roja says:

02:30pm | 11/01/11

Wow, you sound like one of those people that relishes other peoples misery as an opportunity to push your own political agenda.  Perhaps you should investigate what Gillard is actually doing before jumping the gun.  I’ll give you a hint, it’s what John Howard would have done.

Joan says:

02:34pm | 11/01/11

Gillard flutter gave away $600million at Cancun… she should ask for it to be returned…Australia needs it- Clmate Change or no Climate Change

Rosie says:

02:53pm | 11/01/11

For the first time in my life I am scared, too much bad luck in a very short time. Christmas Island tragedy, Queensland floods and worst so far are the 8 deaths of our fellow Australians. It is so freakish!

How ironic but very comforting to hear Anna Bligh, say that we can now all pray not for it to rain but for it to stop raining. For once I agree with her but dare I ask where does that leave our PM?????? What does she do apart from making an appearance appealing to the public for donations for the flood victims.

To all my fellow Australians that are in anyway affected by any of the tradgies or mishaps you have had to endure lately my thoughts and prayers are with you. That also applies to all cricket fantactics like myself!

Phil says:

02:53pm | 11/01/11

Every army Blackhawk should be in the air pulling people of roofs, and evacuating areas in severe danger.
The army could also deploy troops to help sandbag areas soon to be affected. The federal government should mobilise all its resources now. If it’s not needed, it’s only a waste of money. If it’s need it will save lives, and if it’s too late, it’ll cost lives.

Drew says:

02:56pm | 11/01/11

To quote an above poster (who appears to be a conservative voter):

  David C says:
  12:52pm | 11/01/11
  Nice one James, good on you for using people’s suffering to push your agenda.

Whilst he was criticising a greenie, he could (and should) just as equally criticise his own conservative mates.

MelD says:

04:31pm | 11/01/11

Ah Phil she is sending the defense force but with poor visibility they can’t fly in there just yet

David C says:

05:33pm | 11/01/11

Ok Drew, seeing you have singled me out ,...... how about this one then.. while James is standing in the middle of Toowoomba ranting about global warming Ill stand next to him and rant about the government… Who do you reckon gets taken out first and who gets bought a beer?

Jade says:

06:39pm | 11/01/11

@ Phil… I live in the lockyer Valley and we have had choppers flying over all afternoon evacuating people.

Look after our own says:

07:25pm | 11/01/11

I’m Queensland born.  We own a 1-bedroom flat within 700 metres of the river so I am going to make whatever judgements I choose in regard to political performance.  On past history, and the pathetic stunned mullet appearance today, I don’t have any faith in Miss Gillard’s competence for the job ahead.  Neither women (Anna Bligh) to my mind, are anywhere near capable of the job ahead.

To suggest that any Australian would relish our mates’ misery is a cruel misinterpretation.  What I do not relish is incompetent politicians who have chosen, for far too long, to look after everyone else, placing Australians at the bottom of every list of priorities while dishing out money to opportunistic bleeding heart foreign charities.

Asylum seeker says:

07:43pm | 11/01/11

They should be evacuated to Nauru.

Reg says:

08:25pm | 11/01/11

@Rosie   “For the first time in my life I am scared, too much bad luck in a very short time. Christmas Island tragedy, Queensland floods and worst so far are the 8 deaths of our fellow Australians. It is so freakish!”

For one so religious I am appalled to see you blame bad luck for these misfortunes. At least you could have blamed, or thanked, God for His torturous punishment.

  “How ironic but very comforting to hear Anna Bligh, say that we can now all pray not for it to rain but for it to stop raining. For once I agree with her but dare I ask where does that leave our PM??????”

Probably blaming bad luck eh, same as you did?

“What does she do apart from making an appearance appealing to the public for donations for the flood victims.”

If you are scared for the first time I need to ask how you have escaped the trials and tribulation of flood and drought. I’ve lost count of the number of cyclones that have threatened my life by wind or fast-flowing creeks and trawlers on the road in front of me. And that’s without even trying.

  ” To all my fellow Australians that are in anyway affected by any of the tradgies or mishaps you have had to endure lately my thoughts and prayers are with you. That also applies to all cricket fantactics like myself!”

Sorry I can’t help thinking your concern is rather shallow given how easily you are distracted by the cricket.

Why should it be Global warming that’s causing the floods in Toowoomba when people choose to fill in expansive flood plains and narrow the run-off paths. So they can use it as a cricket pitch I suppose. That was typical flash-flooding that would have been back to normal in a couple of hours. I’ve known the Fitzroy stay near it’s peak for two or three months. Big difference.

Queenslander! says:

09:10pm | 11/01/11

At the moment the focus should be on the safety of people and rebuilding of lives and infrastructure when it is over.  People have tragically lost their lives and vitriole whether it be politics or climate or whatever, should be discussed at other times in other forums.  Even TA stated this is not a time for politics.

Fair's not fair says:

08:35am | 12/01/11

@ Roja
- I’ve tried to find out for weeks what Joolya is offering for the Australian citizens who work hard and pay taxes to keep her employed (I hesitate to say ‘gainfully’). Alas, there is no form of real assistance. Yesterday, we had one helicopter on loan from the defence forces. The media had 10 times that able to fly and relay to me in my small (in the process of owning) home endless replays of the dire situation faced by us Aussies.

Small businesses and home owners are the ones who will lose out. This fits nicely with the philosopht of the ALP. While ever people own property, they are harder to control. Once they lose that, they are then dependant on the Govt for welfare support and subsequently able to be manipulated.

Please do not suggest that Joolya is on par with John Howard: she does not have any understanding of how an economy works, what it’s like to have bank commitments, what is involved in managing a family, how to juggle work, home and future plans, how to save money, or how to show empathy when you really don’t give a toss. (Acting lessons required).

In the 2000 floods in NSW, the previous Federal government immediately made funds available for primary producers to continue operating their businesses. These funds were for the planting of the next crop and included seed, fertilizer, sprays, etc. They were not used for holidays. These funds directly kept country towns alive and functioning and people employed. It was fully taxed, kept mental health at a high level and stopped foreclosures by banks. More importantly, the local economy bounced and flourished.

Where is Joolya’s response?

Frustrated says:

03:06pm | 11/01/11

We heard that the fire was deliberately lit -I hope they flog the
b***rd who did it!  After that they can shoot him.

BobbyDan says:

04:15pm | 11/01/11

@Frustrated, yes there were 5 - 7 ingition places reported by passing motorists and a vehicle was sighted with occupants acting suspiciously near the fence line along the road. The fixed wing aerial water bombers have been reloading here at 6225 a 100ks south, so the fire must have spread south with a wind change.
I am concerned for friends in Toowoomba and south of Brisbane CBD but know they are old hands at cyclones as are family further up the QLD coast.
Carnarvon is also facing another lot of water with roads out and plantations flattened or drowned, no cheap bananas, pumpkin, melons or salad vegies this summer. Most will have to come from Kunnunara and China (do not fancy thier growing and pest control practices).
More later today as I catch up with people on the scene.
Thank you ABC local radio.

The Badger says:

04:52pm | 11/01/11

Bobbydan
7 ignition points.
fire contained, but still a threat if the wind gets up.
no casualties

Gregg says:

03:09pm | 11/01/11

Base Hospitals are usually reserved for country town hospitals Bec and though Brisbane has not long grown from a country town, the RBH is up on the north side of the CBD, well away from the river.
The Mater Hospital is on the south side of the river but up on higher ground far enough away not to flood I suspect.
There’s an Army Bas Hospital at Enogerra and that’s well away from the river too, so should be OK.
Hope that helps.

MelD says:

04:34pm | 11/01/11

you then have a problem with limited visibility, better to use boats in this instance

Peter, Hay, NSW says:

05:21pm | 11/01/11

@MelD..anything..navy, air, nasa, ?? and congratulations to Anna Bligh “Labor”, Ian McFarlane & Cambpell Newman “Liberal” and even Bob Brown “Greens” for just putting the concentration on the job at hand right here, right now without the politics

TChong says:

05:22pm | 11/01/11

Kindly dont invade.
Its a union rule is it.?
Of all the absurd conservative comments seeking to blame the ALP. Greens and Gillard personally, your comment would have to win the Stupidest Post award .
No doubt more will follow from you.

Reg says:

05:56pm | 11/01/11

Rhetoric? ... How ironic.  Fortunately the others would have the same restriction, or hadn’t that occurred to you?  (Been chatting with Tony eh?)

Just to get thinks in perspective, the total yearly rainfall of Australia…yes total…is only 10% of the water that flows down the Mississippi River in the US, in one year. Our country has weathered to large flat plains not all that far above sea level and this means generally slow flowing rivers, except in times such as this. .

yawn says:

08:33pm | 11/01/11

@Chong @reg,good boys,little pat on the head for the union sycophants

NicoleG says:

05:17pm | 11/01/11

You really are a freaking nong! This is NOT the place to troll.

Daniel says:

07:06am | 12/01/11

LOL, someone has to be blamed. It’s funny seeing people go Julia this, or should build a dam that. It’s a bit rich people expecting that infrastructure was not in place to predict or prevent a natural disaster then going on to expect knee jerk policy just because of recent events.

Fair's not fair says:

08:14am | 12/01/11

Nice sentiment, Peter, however I doubt many of our primary producers will be around to benefit from this “generous” offer. Perhaps this will go the same way as the 3 x 3 road tax introduced to fix NSW roads? Sounds good but not immediate enough. We had a system in place - it was called Exceptional Circumstances - but KRUDD in his control freak streak way did away with the saving of anywhere west of the mountains.

It is not just farmers who will walk away; the businesses that rely on the notoriously high spending farmers will also collapse. Do I need to spell out the rest of the scenario? Schools, police stations, hospitals, medical services, etc etc etc all dribble away until the ALP have exactly what they are aiming for: a large welfare state that they can control by welfare payments.

It’s so much easier to pretend there isn’t a problem. If Joolya keeps saying that this will not impact on the economy, then maybe she’ll believe it. Once she acknowledges there is a problem, she will have to deal with it. I don’t think she really understands how an economy works, big or small.

TChong says:

05:25pm | 11/01/11

Best Wishes and good luck , hope things turn out OK

Peter, Hay, NSW says:

05:50pm | 11/01/11

Sky are actualy covering this, the ABC is not…I really question why we are paying our taxes into the ABC ??

Vicki PS says:

06:35pm | 11/01/11

Gladys, I’d love to know where the TV stations recruit their caption writers.  Is there a secret cache of would-be screenwriters attending remedial classes somewhere, who offer their services gratis?  Not even the ABC is immune to the appalling mis-spellings and grammatical boobs committed by these miscreants.  My favourite today—‘Cabultcha’ !

Queenslander! says:

09:02pm | 11/01/11

Bough en instead of Bo en was another I heard.  They started to improve next edition though.

Gregg says:

10:13pm | 11/01/11

Hardly something to get frustrated about Gladys and just put it down to multiculturism.

Mal says:

08:00pm | 11/01/11

Biteme:  That is a pretty harsh call.  I saw the interview with the pilot and he was pretty cut up about it.  He didn’t have the gear or the training to do something that dangerous

Tripper Smurf says:

08:06pm | 11/01/11

The Channel 7 chopper didnt have any safety equipment (ie a winch) on board.  What you may not of heard is that the same chopper landed to pick up a swift water rescue team, and when they returned didnt find the family, as they had in the intervening time been washed away.  The mother and child were later found some 10kms away downstream.  The dad is listed among the missing.

Gregg says:

08:13pm | 11/01/11

Even if the seven helicopter had a rescue winch, operating one and going down on the end of one does take some skill and ability which a journo and camera person probably wouldn’t have.
Get real, and they did what they could!

Bitme says:

09:00pm | 11/01/11

To all the knockers go see this http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=3182738n&tag=related;photovideo
At the very least he could have stayed around and called in help via his radio. He should not have left there alone.

Tripper Smurf says:

09:17pm | 11/01/11

The swift water rescue team was unable to get to them unless the chopper picked them up and flew them to the nearest side of that rapid.  Differnt situation, different call mate.

And Im not knocking ya, Im just trying to correct your perception of this piolit and news team.

Gregg says:

10:23pm | 11/01/11

Personally, I think Anna, her ministers, police commissioner and other essential services people all have a pretty good handle on it as they should do and Anna is showing some strength, a stronger woman and leader than a lot giver her credit for.

Gillard on the other hand gives the appearance of just wanting to be in on it and what exactly she feels she needs to do up in Brisbane I’m buggered if I know and it’s not as if she be out in SES overalls helping.
She would be far better off staying in Canberra and seeing if she can keep the country ticking a bit better.
Queenslanders do not have a great liking for her anyway and why not just put the additional cost of her trip up there into the recovery funding.

To boot she attempts for whatever reason to come across with this Chuchillian air, ” We’ll stand shoulder to shoulder ” crap and her delivery quality is just woeful.

Mr nice says:

07:54am | 12/01/11

Believe what you hear at union meetings is ok, But the Green Labor Coalition has two leaders,Bob Brown and Gillard,surely an appearance by Mr Brown would help Stiffen the upper lip

PaulB says:

10:23pm | 11/01/11

More Astro-turf (fake Grass-roots).  The “Megaphonies” who bleat for Israel are among the worst.

Ask a stupid question says:

09:10am | 12/01/11

Close, Andrew, but no cigar. Rosie blamed the floods on the Prime Minister back in December.

I know you’ll think I’m making that claim up, so here are her exact words, and here’s the link to the article where she made the comment.

“I repeat Gillard has brought bad karma to this country! Before Christmas, the horrendous tragedy in Christmas Island and now floods and the big cricket loss to the Poms we are likely to face!”

You can’t make this stuff up.

AnthonyG says:

09:09am | 12/01/11

Never a truer word spoken.

James says:

11:11am | 12/01/11

Hey there John on the spot, these assessments must be make on decade time scales, not on the fly after you have staggered out of a pub.

cait says:

02:12pm | 13/01/11

Or perhaps it is the effects of climate change?