Brisbane is flooding. I woke to a message from my boss this morning saying we should do what we could to save our homes, and we could work from home if necessary. I panicked on my own (Dylan is still in New Zealand) in our low-lying unit and fled to a R&S's apartment in Auchenflower - even though it's closer to the river, it's on a high hill.
When I left I took a suitcase with me. I thought I was probably overreacting and we'd all have a good old laugh about it later, until I drove around the corner and found the local park and street already underwater.
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| Perrin Park, Taringa at about 8am |
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| Heroes St, Taringa (next to Perrin Park) at about 8am |
Lang Parade, the street behind Dunmore Terrace (where I'm currently based, on the corner of Dunmore and Lima), has flooded.
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| Lang Pde, Auchenflower at 3pm. |
It's crazy.
The soccer field is completely underwater - it's that mass of water behind the fence in the photo that looks like a lake. Roy St and Kilroe St are also starting to go under.
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| Roy St, Auchenflower at 3pm. |
There's a cafe on Lang Parade - the Frog & Toad. The water's definitely going to take it under. I used to get burgers from there sometimes.
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| A rear view of Frog & Toad Cafe, Auchenflower - the white building to the left of the phone box. |
We spoke to a guy who'd gone into the water to help tow out a daft mercedes 4WD that'd broken down in the middle of the giant puddle. He said he had to crawl under the car, completely submerged in the muddy water, to find the tow bar. He'd cut his arm. I hope he doesn't get an infection from the contaminated water - who knows what's in it.
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| 4WD driving through water on Lang Pde, Auchenflower |
The river is also looking really angry, and moving so fast. I wonder if the water could possibly go over Coronation Drive?
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| The Brisbane River, Auchenflower, at about 3pm |
I'm trying to stay calm, but conflicting reports and a lack of information on how evacuations might take place are making me increasingly anxious. It didn't help when R woke me up to tell me her friend said all of Auchenflower was being evacuated and we were being ordered to get out. We tried to call the police's floodlink line, but they didn't know any more than we did and would just say, "I can't confirm anything, information is being constantly updated,".
So when I leaned over the balcony and saw flashing police lights at the end of the street, we figured our best bet would be to talk directly to the police themselves. We ran down the street, meeting a young couple on the way who excitedly informed us that Dunmore Tce (the street the apartment's on) would soon be an island and we should get out before the water rises even more.
The police were not much older than me, in their twenties, a guy and a girl. They were there to stop people from driving into Lang Pde, where water had risen dramatically since we'd walked down earlier. Water was also covering parts of Milton Road just behind it. They told us if we're on high ground, and have supplies, we might be isolated when waters rose but we'd be safe. And if they were to evacuate people on our street they'd make enough noise for us to know about it, so we should get some sleep while we could. We thanked them because who knows how long it'd be until they get a good night's sleep?
So we're staying - which is a relief, because where would I go? I might get hurt just trying to get home, and what if home was flooded? I guess they can get us out by boat if necessary. I like boats.
This is where our fortress is based, so you know what I'm talking about with the various streets:
What a terrifying, exciting thing to be part of. I'm so grateful to R&S for taking me in. If I'd stayed at home I'd probably be breathing out of a paper bag by now.
Going to try to get some sleep now. Electricity might be cut off by tomorrow. Charging my phones while I can.
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