Trucks Stranded in North Queensland Due to Flooding
Floodwaters in North Queensland have stranded dozens of truck drivers in Greenvale. The local roadhouse provides meals while the area faces severe weather warnings and road closures.
Dozens of trucks delivering food and general goods to flood-affected areas in North Queensland have become stranded in a rural town, as floodwaters have cut off roads in all directions.
Andrew, a truck driver from Brisbane, is one of about 30 drivers stranded in the town of Greenvale, located 200km northwest of Charters Towers. He told Yahoo News he has been on the road for more than a week, taking a load of steel to Cairns via Greenvale.
"I've been here since Friday morning," he said, adding he has been sleeping in his truck on the side of the road.
Drone vision over the town shows trucks crammed on the side of the main road, sometimes parking four trucks deep. Among them is a Woolworths truck carrying food.
"We heard they're trying to stop trucks at Mt Garnet to stop the congestion down here when it does open," Andrew said. "There's just no room here to park."
He is hoping tomorrow they will finally be able to keep moving north if the rain slows - however, the Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) is predicting falls of up to 70mm in the area.
Andrew and his fellow drivers have turned to the local Greenvale Roadhouse to keep them fed during their time in the town, with the business stepping up to offer hearty homestyle meals to the truckies at a special rate. On Saturday night, $15 could buy a plate of roast lamb and chops with fried rice, or spaghetti and garlic bread.
The roadhouse's Facebook updates have become so popular that Aussies have been donating money to buy coffee for the drivers. One visitor donated $200 to go towards coffee.
"This morning we wrangled the truckies together for a photo (who are a bit camera shy) to say a huge thank you to everyone who has called it forward," they wrote online. "Most truckies got a free coffee this morning and they are very grateful. So, from them and from us -- thank you! Great to see that good people still exist."
More than 300 roads in the state have been closed due to flooding, including multiple locations on the Bruce Highway. Queensland's Deputy Premier Jarrod Bleijie warned against panic buying on Sunday, saying the government is looking into "all options" to restock food in areas isolated by floods.
"Far North Queensland has been cut off from road, rail, freight," Bleijie said. "I just plead with people, particularly in far north Queensland, when shops are resupplied, please only buy what you need, because there is difficulty in getting the supply."
Major flood warnings are in place for the Herbert River, the Haughton River Catchment, the Cape and Upper Burdekin Rivers, the Western River and the Flinders Rivers.
On Sunday afternoon, BoM issued a severe weather warning for parts of the Gulf Country and northern inland, as well as the North Tropical Coast. The predicted severe storms are likely between Kowanyama and Townsville, with heavy rain and flash flooding possible.
Weatherzone described the week's deluge as a "one-in-2000 year" event, with numerous locations between Townsville and Cairns receiving around 1500 millimetres of rain within three days, resulting in major flooding, widespread evacuations, and two flood-related deaths.
