Relief payments announced for affected areas as sustained heavy rain sweeps Queensland

Widespread heavy rain is lashing southeast Queensland, causing flooding, along with ongoing evacuations and road closures in the region, and relief payments have been announced for affected areas.

A sign in front of a flooded road reads: road closed, no entry due to flooding

Floodwaters inundated the town of Grantham, west of Brisbane, on Thursday. Source: AAP / DARREN ENGLAND/AAPIMAGE

Queenslanders have been warned to expect heavy falls and flash flooding over the weekend with widespread rain to persist across the southeast and central coasts.

Payments of up to $180 per person have been set aside for Lockyer Valley and Southern Downs residents to cover the costs of immediate essential needs, like food, temporary accommodation, clothing and medication.

Additional funding to cover clean-up costs has been allocated to people in the Brisbane, Fraser Coast, Gladstone, Gold Coast, Gympie, Lockyer Valley, Logan, Moreton Bay, North Burnett, South Burnett, Southern Downs and Toowoomba areas.

It comes as major to moderate flood warnings remain in place for parts of southeast and central Queensland.

The Condamine and Mary rivers had major flood warnings in place on Saturday afternoon, while there are moderate warnings for the Logan River and Warrill, Laidley, and Lockyer creeks.

A minor flood warning is in place for the Bremer and Brisbane rivers.

Most of those waterways have already peaked or will peak later on Saturday evening, the Bureau of Meteorology said, with flood warnings to ease over the next few days.

But Acting Deputy Police Commissioner Shane Chelepy has warned residents not to get complacent.

"While we're seeing the rain easing today, we still have a number of creeks that are flowing," Mr Chelepy said on Saturday.

"It is highly likely that you'll still see road closures. Please don't enter those roads.

"I know the weather's improving but it allows the emergency services to focus on those areas that we need to focus on. We just ask people in other areas to please take care."
Eighty-seven buildings have been affected by floodwaters in Warwick, with 49 people using shelter services due to the Condamine River breaking its banks.

"The district disaster group and the local disaster group are meeting today," Mr Chelepy said. "As the river drops further, they'll be moving in towards those recovery efforts."

Emergency services were also preparing for moderate flooding at the Mary River to hit the town of Gympie on Saturday.

"We are expecting some minor impacts to businesses in the CBD," Mr Chelepy said. "But we're not expecting the predicted peaks (or) any significant impacts, particularly to dwellings in the area."

Authorities on Saturday warned people not to travel to Gympie, located on the Mary River, as major roads have been cut by floods.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said while the rain is not as intense as the downpours that caused catastrophic floods in February, the system was expected to linger well into Saturday.

"The key thing is to be listening to the alerts and we'll be keeping everybody updated as much as possible," she said.
Queensland beaches stayed closed on Saturday, while families were advised to avoid lakes and creeks.

A powerful easterly swell and strong onshore winds have whipped up four-metre waves with the BOM warning of dangerous surf conditions and possible coastal erosion between Fraser Island and the NSW border.

The unseasonal deluge is Queensland's sixth deadly flood since December, which scientists have put down to a second La Nina weather pattern in two years.

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Source: SBS, AAP


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