Floodwaters ravaging thousands of kilometres of outback Queensland have now spilled over into a second state as a new satellite image captures the extraordinary extent of the damage.
Heavy rain battered western and inland areas of the state over the last fortnight, causing three rural communities to evacuate their homes, with some isolated areas drenched with almost a year’s worth of rain.
NASA’s Earth Observatory was able to picture the sheer size of the flood when skies cleared on Thursday.
The satellite uses false colours to enhance floodwaters by making water on the ground appear blue and sediment-heavy water darker blue.
The Bureau of Meteorology said the widespread flooding will linger for several weeks in some areas due to saturated ground.
‘If the water was just going to go away, where would it go to?’ the Bureau’s Miriam Bradbury said.
‘A portion soaks into the ground and a portion moves into our river systems.’
But Ms Bradbury told Daily Mail on Friday the ground in flooded areas of southwest Queensland has become ‘so saturated, it cannot absorb anymore’.
A side effect of the saturation is that floodwaters have started flowing down the river systems into northern New South Wales, causing new flood warnings.
The state is ‘getting it from all angles’, Ms Bradbury said.
‘Some of the flooding is driven by rain in some of those areas, but some at Warrego River has flowed down from Queensland areas,’ she said.
She said the extent of the flooding ‘remains to be seen’ over the next few weeks.
The Bureau said heavy rainfall has eased across southern Queensland with a weak trough to linger in central and northern areas on Friday before moving north.
But with flooding set to last for weeks and rivers expected to remain high, locals are desperate for no more rain.
A man and his horse were rescued by police and emergency services from floodwaters at the rural town of Tambo on Wednesday.
Shortly before 5.30am, the 31-year-old was travelling from his home in Blackall to Toowoomba to get surgery for his wounded horse.
Queensland Police said the man was unable to see the floodwater in the pre-dawn darkness and was immediately swept off the roadway along with his horse.
The driver climbed on top of the roof of his 4WD until emergency services arrived a short time later.
Longreach Disaster Coordinator Inspector Chris Smith said the incident is another reminder to be vigilant during severe weather.
‘When it is dark, it is often difficult to see that a road could potentially be hazardous. No matter how shallow it may look, it’s not worth risking your life or the lives of emergency services who rescue you,’ he said.
‘It may seem like an inconvenience, but by taking the time you need to seek alternate routes, it may just save your life.’
Police said 27 residents were evacuated from Adavale and a number of people were relocated from Jundah and Thargomindah.
Sydney
Friday. Max 26. Partly cloudy. Slight chance of an afternoon shower, most likely near the coast. Light winds.
Saturday. Min 16 Max 25. The chance of fog in the early morning. Sunny day. Winds west to southwesterly 15 to 20 km/h turning south to southeasterly in the late morning then becoming light in the evening.
Sunday. Min 15 Max 27. Sunny. The chance of morning fog in the west. Light winds.
Melbourne:
Friday. Max 19. Partly cloudy. Light winds becoming southwesterly 15 to 20 km/h in the morning then tending westerly in the late evening.
Saturday. Min 12 Max 18. Partly cloudy. High chance of showers about the Dandenongs, medium chance elsewhere. Winds westerly 15 to 25 km/h tending southwesterly early in the morning then becoming light in the evening.
Sunday. Min 9 Max 21. Becoming cloudy. High chance of showers in the southeast suburbs, medium chance elsewhere. Winds north to northwesterly 15 to 25 km/h turning westerly 25 to 40 km/h during the morning then decreasing to 20 to 30 km/h during the evening.
Brisbane
Friday. Max 28. Partly cloudy. High chance of showers, most likely in the morning and afternoon. Light winds becoming east to southeasterly 15 to 20 km/h in the early afternoon then becoming light in the evening.
Saturday. Min 19 Max 29. Partly cloudy. Medium chance of showers. Light winds.
Sunday. Min 19 Max 28. Partly cloudy. Medium chance of showers, most likely in the morning and afternoon. Light winds.
Canberra
Friday. Max 23. Partly cloudy. Light winds becoming northwesterly 15 to 20 km/h in the late afternoon then becoming light in the evening.
Saturday. Min 6 Max 23. Sunny. Light winds becoming northwesterly 15 to 20 km/h in the early afternoon then becoming light in the evening.
Sunday. Min 3 Max 21. Sunny. Light winds becoming west to northwesterly 15 to 25 km/h during the morning then becoming light during the evening.
Adelaide
Friday. Max 21. Partly cloudy. Slight chance of a shower about the southern suburbs in the afternoon, near zero chance elsewhere. Light winds becoming southwesterly 15 to 25 km/h in the middle of the day then tending southerly 15 to 20 km/h in the evening.
Saturday. Min 12 Max 22. Partly cloudy. Slight chance of a shower about the southern suburbs, near zero chance elsewhere. Light winds becoming southwesterly 15 to 20 km/h in the early afternoon then becoming light in the evening.
Sunday. Min 10 Max 23. Partly cloudy. Medium chance of showers in the afternoon and evening. Light winds becoming westerly 20 to 30 km/h during the morning then tending southwesterly 15 to 25 km/h during the afternoon.
Perth
Friday. Max 25. Partly cloudy. Very high chance of showers. The chance of a thunderstorm. Winds easterly 30 to 50 km/h. Gusts to 85 km/h are possible about the hills and foothills, with damaging winds possible in the evening.
Saturday. Min 15 Max 27. Partly cloudy. Medium chance of showers, most likely in the morning. The chance of a thunderstorm about the northern suburbs. Damaging winds possible in the east in the morning. Winds easterly 35 to 50 km/h decreasing to 15 to 20 km/h in the evening. Gusts to 85 km/h are possible about the hills and foothills in the morning.
Sunday. Min 17 Max 30. Partly cloudy. Medium chance of showers. The chance of a thunderstorm. Winds easterly 15 to 25 km/h tending northwest to southwesterly 15 to 20 km/h during the afternoon then becoming light during the evening.
Darwin
Friday. Max 33. Mostly sunny. Slight chance of a shower. Light winds.
Saturday. Min 24 Max 32. Partly cloudy. Medium chance of showers, most likely in the afternoon and evening. The chance of a thunderstorm. Light winds.
Sunday. Min 24 Max 32. Partly cloudy. High chance of showers, most likely in the afternoon and evening. The chance of a thunderstorm. Light winds.
Hobart
Friday. Max 19. Cloudy. Slight chance of a shower, most likely in the evening. Winds northwesterly 15 to 25 km/h turning westerly 20 to 30 km/h in the late evening.
Saturday. Min 8 Max 16. Cloudy. Slight chance of a shower, most likely in the early morning. Winds westerly 20 to 30 km/h decreasing to 15 to 25 km/h in the morning then increasing to 35 km/h before turning northwesterly 20 to 25 km/h during the afternoon and evening.
Sunday. Min 13 Max 17. Cloudy. Very high chance of showers, becoming less likely in the late evening. Winds northwesterly 20 to 30 km/h tending westerly during the day.