Repairs are under way after a tropical cyclone battered the far north coast, but forecasters warn the threat is not over as Queensland braces for more devastating floods.
After days of intense build-up, ex-Tropical Cyclone Koji ran out of power as it crossed the Queensland coast, downgraded to a tropical low.
Cyclone warnings have been cancelled, but residents in the far north still face the threat of major flooding as heavy rain continues to pummel the region.
Thousands were without power as authorities worked around the clock to restore electricity to affected areas.
As the economic costs of the twin disaster continued to rise, Premier David Crisafulli was confident Queenslanders could handle whatever came their way.
“There are stages of an event like this – first there’s the wind, then it’s rain, and then there’s the flood,” he said on Sunday.
“We have seen the wind that’s started to dissipate … we’ve seen large amounts of rain with more to come, and then there’s the he prospect of flooding.
“Queenslanders will handle that. They always, always do.”
Warnings have been issued for heavy rain along the central Queensland coast, with falls expected to continue into Monday.
Some areas could cop isolated totals of up to 340mm in 24 hours across saturated catchments, according to the Bureau of Meteorology.
Flood watches remain in place for the Channel Country after the monsoon earlier devastated the state’s northwest, isolating towns and properties.
The mammoth clean-up has barely begun, with conservative estimates of more than 45,000 livestock missing or dead.
“We will continue to watch and see the impact that the system could have – the last thing we want to see is more rainfall in areas that have copped more than a year’s supply in less than a week,” Mr Crisafulli said.
Fodder drops continue, and authorities are stockpiling antibiotics and veterinary supplies to treat surviving stock and combat infection.
“The economic impact for western Queensland, because of how important agriculture is to underpin those communities, will be large,” Mr Crisafulli said.
“We’re doing everything we can to spare as many cattle as possible and help those primary producers.”
Flood warnings are current for catchments including Herbert, Upper Burdekin, Lower Burdekin, Haughton, Ross, Bohle, Don, Proserpine, Pioneer, Lower Flinders, Norman, Gilbert, Georgina and Eyre, Diamantina and Thomson.
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