The once-in-a-century floods in north Queensland have claimed another life, as authorities race to dispose of hundreds of thousands of dead animals.

February 12, 2019

Queensland’s once-in-a-century monsoonal deluge has claimed another life.

In Townsville, where floodwaters inundated thousands of homes and businesses, melioidosis has infected 10 people, killing one, Queensland Health says.

The disease stems from floodwaters heavily contaminated with dirt and bacteria, Julie Mudd said in a statement on Tuesday.

“Given the scale of the flooding we are expecting to see increasing numbers of a range of infections, not just melioidosis,” Dr Mudd says.

Two Palm Island men died at the peak of the floods in Townsville eight days ago.

Further south, police are still searching for a 35-year-old man who disappeared in floodwaters at Groper Creek on Friday.

The receding floodwaters have also left authorities racing to dispose of hundreds of thousands of dead animals that are also posing a health risk.

Cattle, sheep and wildlife perished in the unprecedented two-week weather event, which left large swathes of the state underwater.

State Agriculture Minister Mark Furner won’t say how much livestock has been lost but warned people to take precautions against bacterial infections when disposing of the decomposing animals.

“As the weather heats up it’s becoming a biosecurity matter,” he told reporters on Tuesday.

The rotting carcasses pose a health risk to clean up crews and to local water supplies in flooded communities.

The growing hazard comes amid concerns from exhausted graziers about how they will make loan repayments when banks come knocking in the coming months.

The full financial impact on farmers may not be known for weeks but it’s expected to be hundreds of millions of dollars.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison told the parliament on Tuesday the government was working closely with rural communities to help flood-affected graziers.

“The one thing that we will do is ensure that there is a recovery and restoration plan for north Queensland cattle farmers to be able to return to the prosperity,” he said.

The flood crisis was also discussed in the first sitting of Queensland’s parliament on Tuesday.

The opposition grilled Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk about a decision to open floodgates of the Ross River Dam at the peak of the floods, which inundated many houses.

Ms Palaszczuk said the dam belonged to the Townsville Shire Council and it had acted on advice from various government agencies.

Mopping up in Townsville continues.

Officials have deemed 2950 homes damaged of the 8000 assessed, as an appeal to raise funds for people affected climbed to $3.6 million. 

Deputy Premier Jackie Trad will meet with insurance firms and the Insurance Council of Australia on Friday to discuss recovery efforts.

As of Tuesday, insurers had received 14,600 claims from people in Townsville with losses estimated at $175 million.