'Rain bomb' hits Australia's northeast, killing seven in floods

 A severe storm system pummelled Australia's northeastern city of
Brisbane on Sunday, causing evacuations, power outages and school closures as
the death toll climbed to seven from accompanying flash floods.

More than 1,400 homes in the capital of Queensland state were at risk of
flooding while more than 28,000 homes were without power statewide, as
pristine beaches on the Gold and Sunshine coasts, which are key tourist
attractions, all closed.

"We never expected this rain," state premier Annastacia Palaszczuk told a
briefing. "This rain bomb is just really, you know, it's unrelenting ... It's
just coming down in buckets."

More than 100 schools across the southeast of a state famed for abundant
sunshine will be closed on Monday. State rescue services said they received
100 requests an hour for help in recent days.

Among the six killed in the flooding were a 34-year-old man who tried to swim
to safety after the waters submerged his car and another whose vehicle was
swept away in the most populous state of New South Wales (NSW).

About 700 people were asked to evacuate from the city of Gympie on Saturday
after the Mary River system surged beyond 22.06 m (72.4 ft) for the town's
worst flood since the 1880s.

Meteorologists said the deluge and thunderstorms would continue through
Monday, before starting to ease off in Queensland, but moving south to New
South Wales, where some communities at risk in its northeast have been told to
evacuate.

reuters.com