Sandbag like it's 1974
Floods. Well, here's a bit of a redux.
Along the eastern coast of Australia is the Great Dividing Range, vaguely comparable to the Rockies, if the Rockies occupied the site of the Appalachians. Eastern Australia has been in drought for about ten years. As of the middle of 2010, we have been having increasing rains. And it's been raining nearly non-stop in a 200 or so mile radius of Brisbane proper.
Places north and west of Brisbane have experienced severe flooding for the past 30 days, on and off. For some, this round of flooding is the third in a row.
Now, here's the kicker. Toowoomba is up on the slopes of the Great Dividing Range, but sits in a bit of a culvert, a catchment. Aboriginal peoples called it a swamp. It got slammed with a lot of rain yesterday--and that rain collected, and then kept crashing down the slopes toward the places you haven't really heard of yet (like the Lockyer Valley), but are places that were, more or less, swept off the map by that flash flood. If you want to get a feel for just how torrential it was in Toowoomba, take a gander. Watch the whole thing.
That torrent is sluicing down the Brisbane River toward the sea. And that's problem number one.
Problem number two is the Wivenhoe Dam. Eight months ago, we were all thrilled that it was reaching 80% capacity--thankful that there was a supply of water, and taking it as a sign of the drought easing. This dam can safely hold 200% - 225% of its capacity. And it was at 175% around 1:00 this afternoon. With more rain expected, there's no choice but to do controlled releases of water, straight into the already swollen Brisbane River.
Problem the third is the tides. It's not a king tide, necessarily, but these tides right now are stronger than average, and they, in conjunction with problems one and two, are making for a flood that will rival, and probably surpass, the flood of 1974.
My home is situated about a half-mile from Enoggera Creek. This creek is susceptible to breaking its banks at any moderate downpour (if you scroll down on the map in the "my home" link, you'll see the creek and the Northey Street Park that constantly goes under). Now? Now it's getting serious.
It is unlikely that the swollen Enoggera will reach the door to my house. I estimate that ground level where I live (on a hillside slope, natch) is at least 5 meters higher than the furthest the waters are expected to extend. But these floodwaters, from this creek, others, and the Brisbane River proper, will cause serious problems throughout the city. We're lucky; we're forewarned. The peak isn't expected to hit until Thursday afternoon, so we have time to prepare, and those who live in places that went under in 1974 are heading for higher ground right now.
But the extent of the inundations across the state is unprecendented. I've written elsewhere that the floods here cover an area twice the size of Texas. That's not me quoting someone; that's me looking at the numbers and doing the math. And it's only going to get worse. Queensland provides a third of the world's coking coal; this will powerfully affect the steel industry. Most of the state's arable land is underwater, with crops ruined, and topsoil swept away.
And this doesn't even touch on the people whose homes are just gone.
This is something astonishingly huge in scope (the New York Times has even posted an article). Hell, I live here and I don't grasp it all. I'm concerned, but not yet afraid, and I'm writing this to let all my friends and family know just how severe the situation is, and to let everyone know that while it is enormous, we're doing all right. I'm on high ground. My QLD-based Australian family are all fine and well. And to be frank: the Queensland State Emergency Services are doing an outstanding job.
The floods are a huge event, yes. But I'm all right. And if you don't hear from me for a couple of days, well, chances are they had to cut power to an inundated circuit. Which means I'm still all right. I'll keep posting on FaceBook and Twitter so everyone knows I'm doing fine, but for a disaster of these proportions, we're all doing relatively very well.
Cheers.
Along the eastern coast of Australia is the Great Dividing Range, vaguely comparable to the Rockies, if the Rockies occupied the site of the Appalachians. Eastern Australia has been in drought for about ten years. As of the middle of 2010, we have been having increasing rains. And it's been raining nearly non-stop in a 200 or so mile radius of Brisbane proper.
Places north and west of Brisbane have experienced severe flooding for the past 30 days, on and off. For some, this round of flooding is the third in a row.
Now, here's the kicker. Toowoomba is up on the slopes of the Great Dividing Range, but sits in a bit of a culvert, a catchment. Aboriginal peoples called it a swamp. It got slammed with a lot of rain yesterday--and that rain collected, and then kept crashing down the slopes toward the places you haven't really heard of yet (like the Lockyer Valley), but are places that were, more or less, swept off the map by that flash flood. If you want to get a feel for just how torrential it was in Toowoomba, take a gander. Watch the whole thing.
That torrent is sluicing down the Brisbane River toward the sea. And that's problem number one.
Problem number two is the Wivenhoe Dam. Eight months ago, we were all thrilled that it was reaching 80% capacity--thankful that there was a supply of water, and taking it as a sign of the drought easing. This dam can safely hold 200% - 225% of its capacity. And it was at 175% around 1:00 this afternoon. With more rain expected, there's no choice but to do controlled releases of water, straight into the already swollen Brisbane River.
Problem the third is the tides. It's not a king tide, necessarily, but these tides right now are stronger than average, and they, in conjunction with problems one and two, are making for a flood that will rival, and probably surpass, the flood of 1974.
My home is situated about a half-mile from Enoggera Creek. This creek is susceptible to breaking its banks at any moderate downpour (if you scroll down on the map in the "my home" link, you'll see the creek and the Northey Street Park that constantly goes under). Now? Now it's getting serious.
It is unlikely that the swollen Enoggera will reach the door to my house. I estimate that ground level where I live (on a hillside slope, natch) is at least 5 meters higher than the furthest the waters are expected to extend. But these floodwaters, from this creek, others, and the Brisbane River proper, will cause serious problems throughout the city. We're lucky; we're forewarned. The peak isn't expected to hit until Thursday afternoon, so we have time to prepare, and those who live in places that went under in 1974 are heading for higher ground right now.
But the extent of the inundations across the state is unprecendented. I've written elsewhere that the floods here cover an area twice the size of Texas. That's not me quoting someone; that's me looking at the numbers and doing the math. And it's only going to get worse. Queensland provides a third of the world's coking coal; this will powerfully affect the steel industry. Most of the state's arable land is underwater, with crops ruined, and topsoil swept away.
And this doesn't even touch on the people whose homes are just gone.
This is something astonishingly huge in scope (the New York Times has even posted an article). Hell, I live here and I don't grasp it all. I'm concerned, but not yet afraid, and I'm writing this to let all my friends and family know just how severe the situation is, and to let everyone know that while it is enormous, we're doing all right. I'm on high ground. My QLD-based Australian family are all fine and well. And to be frank: the Queensland State Emergency Services are doing an outstanding job.
The floods are a huge event, yes. But I'm all right. And if you don't hear from me for a couple of days, well, chances are they had to cut power to an inundated circuit. Which means I'm still all right. I'll keep posting on FaceBook and Twitter so everyone knows I'm doing fine, but for a disaster of these proportions, we're all doing relatively very well.
Cheers.