Australia Floods: Brisbane Suffers As Water Arrives

BRISBANE, Australia — Floodwaters washing through Australia's third-largest city crested Thursday just shy of record levels but high enough to submerge entire neighborhoods and cause damage one official likened to the aftermath of war.

One man died in Brisbane after being sucked into a storm drain by the muddy waters, Queensland state Premier Anna Bligh said. Thousands of homes were swamped, and officials told residents it will be days before many of them can return to their houses. Others were told their homes will never be habitable again.

In one spot of bright news, the swollen Brisbane River's peak was about three feet (one meter) lower than predicted, at a depth slightly below that of 1974 floods that swept the city. The river had already begun to recede by Thursday afternoon, though it was expected to stay high for several days.

Waters in some areas had reached the tops of roofs, shut down roads and power, and devastated entire neighborhoods. Mayor Campbell Newman said 11,900 homes and 2,500 businesses had been completely inundated, with another 14,700 houses and 2,500 businesses at least partially covered in water.

"Queensland is reeling this morning from the worst natural disaster in our history and possibly in the history of our nation," Bligh told reporters. "We've seen three-quarters of our state having experienced the devastation of raging floodwaters and we now face a reconstruction task of postwar proportions."

The flooding, which has killed 25 people since late November, has submerged dozens of towns – some three times – and left an area the size of Germany and France combined under water. Highways and rail lines have been washed away in the disaster, which is shaping up to be Australia's costliest, with early damage estimates around $5 billion.

At least 61 people are missing, and the death toll is expected to rise. Many of those unaccounted for disappeared from around Toowoomba, a city west of Brisbane that saw massive flash floods on Monday sweep away cars, road signs and people. Fourteen died in that flood alone, with police finding the bodies of two of those people on Thursday. Deputy Police Commissioner Ian Stewart warned that number was likely to rise as search and rescue teams accessed more devastated areas Thursday.

"We've got to brace ourselves for more bad news," Stewart said.

Almost 115,000 homes were without power across Queensland by Thursday because electricity was switched off to prevent electrocutions and damage to electrical systems. Continue ►