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11 January 2011
Last updated at 17:48 ET
Up to 20,000 homes are now at risk in Brisbane, the Queensland state premier has said, as deadly floodwaters surge towards Australia's third city.
Central Brisbane was a ghost town, with electricity cut and thousands urged to either evacuate or stay at home.
West of Brisbane, the city of Ipswich is set to reach a flood peak of 22m in the next few hours, in a situation described as "total chaos".
Rescuers are preparing for a "gruesome" day searching for victims elsewhere.
The death toll from flash floods in Queensland is so far 10, but state Premier Anna Bligh told Australian television that the number of people missing west of Brisbane in the Lockyer Valley had risen.
"The police now are searching for more than 90 people," she said. "These are people who their families can no longer contact or find."
She added: "The one good news is the rain has cleared, so we've now got a number of search and rescue teams all ready to deploy into the valley to really start what might be a very gruesome search this morning for bodies and our police and emergency workers there are going to have a very tough day.
"I think we will all be shocked by what they will find."
'Serious event' The central business district in Brisbane was almost totally deserted early on Thursday, hit by a power cut that was intended to prevent generators becoming a fire risk if flooded.
Shops put up signs that they would not open.
The Brisbane Courier Mail said the Brisbane River had burst its banks at Yeerongpilly and Indooroopilly, flooding streets. The paper quoted city council flood modelling as predicting that 40,000 properties would be affected.
More than 6,500 Brisbane residents are expected to take refuge in three evacuation centres.
The inner suburb of Fairfield has already suffered flooding to dozens of homes.
Local media said the peak for Brisbane could be in the early hours of Thursday and the level remain until Saturday. It is predicted to be higher than the 5.45m reached in the devastating 1974 floods.
Ms Bligh said: "I want to reassure particularly the people of Ipswich and Brisbane that we have every available resource deployed to assist them over the next couple of days in what we expect to be a very serious event."
Brisbane is facing a combined surge of water from the flooded Lockyer Valley and the Wivenhoe Dam, which is so full it has been forced into controlled releases.
High, or king, tides on Thursday will exacerbate the problem.
Sandbags have been given out to residents in the city of two million people.
Mayor Campbell Newman said that Thursday would "be devastating for the residents and businesses affected".
More rain The Queensland Times said Ipswich was on the brink of disaster, with shops flooded up to their awnings.
Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.
Toowoomba resident Jenny Mullholland on the flood aftermath
Thousands of people have fled to evacuation centres.
The paper quoted councillor Paul Tully as saying the water was rising by one metre an hour. It was "total chaos", he said.
The expected flood surge of 22m in the city is half a metre higher than the 1974 peak.
Queensland's flooding has caused billions of dollars worth of damage and affected 200,000 people.
The most deadly floods so far hit Toowoomba, just west of Brisbane, on Monday killing at least 10 people.
Prime Minister Julia Gillard warned that the death toll was likely to rise.
Toowoomba mayor Peter Taylor told BBC Radio 4: "We're working 24 hours a day responding on a emergency number for people who need any assistance in terms of evacuation."
The forecast is for more rain to come for some areas, and there are reports of flooding in neighbouring New South Wales, with the Clarence River expected to peak at 7m.
Are you in Ipswich or Brisbane? Have you been affected by the flooding in Queensland? You can send us your stories and experiences using the form below.
Send your pictures and videos to yourpics@bbc.co.uk or text them to 61124 (UK) or +44 7725 100 100 (International). If you have a large file you can upload here.
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Central Brisbane was a ghost town, with electricity cut and thousands urged to either evacuate or stay at home.
West of Brisbane, the city of Ipswich is set to reach a flood peak of 22m in the next few hours, in a situation described as "total chaos".
Rescuers are preparing for a "gruesome" day searching for victims elsewhere.
The death toll from flash floods in Queensland is so far 10, but state Premier Anna Bligh told Australian television that the number of people missing west of Brisbane in the Lockyer Valley had risen.
"The police now are searching for more than 90 people," she said. "These are people who their families can no longer contact or find."
She added: "The one good news is the rain has cleared, so we've now got a number of search and rescue teams all ready to deploy into the valley to really start what might be a very gruesome search this morning for bodies and our police and emergency workers there are going to have a very tough day.
"I think we will all be shocked by what they will find."
'Serious event' The central business district in Brisbane was almost totally deserted early on Thursday, hit by a power cut that was intended to prevent generators becoming a fire risk if flooded.
Shops put up signs that they would not open.
The Brisbane Courier Mail said the Brisbane River had burst its banks at Yeerongpilly and Indooroopilly, flooding streets. The paper quoted city council flood modelling as predicting that 40,000 properties would be affected.
More than 6,500 Brisbane residents are expected to take refuge in three evacuation centres.
The inner suburb of Fairfield has already suffered flooding to dozens of homes.
Local media said the peak for Brisbane could be in the early hours of Thursday and the level remain until Saturday. It is predicted to be higher than the 5.45m reached in the devastating 1974 floods.
Ms Bligh said: "I want to reassure particularly the people of Ipswich and Brisbane that we have every available resource deployed to assist them over the next couple of days in what we expect to be a very serious event."
Brisbane is facing a combined surge of water from the flooded Lockyer Valley and the Wivenhoe Dam, which is so full it has been forced into controlled releases.
High, or king, tides on Thursday will exacerbate the problem.
Sandbags have been given out to residents in the city of two million people.
Mayor Campbell Newman said that Thursday would "be devastating for the residents and businesses affected".
More rain The Queensland Times said Ipswich was on the brink of disaster, with shops flooded up to their awnings.
Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.Toowoomba resident Jenny Mullholland on the flood aftermath
Thousands of people have fled to evacuation centres.
The paper quoted councillor Paul Tully as saying the water was rising by one metre an hour. It was "total chaos", he said.
The expected flood surge of 22m in the city is half a metre higher than the 1974 peak.
Queensland's flooding has caused billions of dollars worth of damage and affected 200,000 people.
The most deadly floods so far hit Toowoomba, just west of Brisbane, on Monday killing at least 10 people.
Prime Minister Julia Gillard warned that the death toll was likely to rise.
Toowoomba mayor Peter Taylor told BBC Radio 4: "We're working 24 hours a day responding on a emergency number for people who need any assistance in terms of evacuation."
The forecast is for more rain to come for some areas, and there are reports of flooding in neighbouring New South Wales, with the Clarence River expected to peak at 7m.
Are you in Ipswich or Brisbane? Have you been affected by the flooding in Queensland? You can send us your stories and experiences using the form below.
Send your pictures and videos to yourpics@bbc.co.uk or text them to 61124 (UK) or +44 7725 100 100 (International). If you have a large file you can upload here.
Read the terms and conditions
Webmaster Forum | SEO Forum | Coding Forum | Graphics Forum</b>