HEAVY rains threatened further flooding in Australia’s drenched northeast yesterday as besieged Rockhampton cut supplies to “irresponsible” residents who refused to leave water-bound homes.

New thunderstorms brought more pounding rains to a waterlogged coastal community in north-eastern Australia today as a mayor said it could take a year to fully recover from the worst flooding in decades.

AUSTRALIA put an army general in charge of flood recovery yesterday after weeks of heavy rains deluged the country’s coal-producing north-east, crippling the area’s economy and sending out reverberations felt in energy markets around the world.

Floodwaters in an inundated city on Australia’s north-eastern coast held steady below their predicted peak today as exhausted residents were warned they would face a long wait before the mud-soaked landscape dries out.

A flooded Australian coastal city braced itself for water levels to peak today as authorities held an emergency meeting to draw up recovery plans for the 200,000 people hit by the deluge.

The flooded Australian city of Rockhampton was preparing itself for the worst today as waters continued to rise.

People in an Australian city cut off by some of the country’s worst flooding in decades are being warned to stay out of the water amid fears of snakes and even crocodiles at large.

MILITARY flights rushed yesterday to restock an Australian city before it was cut off by floodwaters that have turned a huge swath of the outback into a lake, while police confirmed two more deaths in the crisis.

Military flights have rushed to restock an Australian city before it was cut off by flood water as police confirmed two more deaths in the crisis.

Military planes were flying food and other supplies toward a major city being slowly swamped in Australia’s flood emergency today, and police were increasing patrols in evacuated regions amid reports of looting.

A WOMAN drowned after trying to cross a flooded causeway in Australia, becoming the first victim of relentless flooding that one official has described as reaching “biblical proportions,” police said yesterday.

Residents of an Australian coastal city were evacuated today as surging floodwaters edged closer to their community, with one official describing the devastation as reaching “biblical proportions”.

Military aircraft dropped supplies to towns cut off by floods in north-east Australia today as the prime minister promised new assistance to the 200,000 people affected by waters covering an area larger than France and Germany combined.

THE Dermot Weld-trained Barrel Of Fun stands out as the banker bet on today’s flat card in Sligo.

DESPITE the continued uncertainty over the participation of Sea The Stars in Saturday’s Tattersalls Millions Irish Champion Stakes, William Hill have installed him as their 10-11 favourite.

Despite the continued uncertainty over the participation of Sea The Stars in Saturday’s Tattersalls Millions Irish Champion Stakes, William Hill have installed him as their 10-11 favourite.

EYTARNA should build on her promising debut effort at the Curragh to land tonight’s Irish Stallion Farms Fillies Maiden at Gowran Park.

THERE is absolutely no disguising the fact that the defection of Sea The Stars greatly diminished yesterday’s Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby at the Curragh.

JOHN Oxx has admitted it would be “borderline” whether Sea The Stars would line up in the Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby if the race was run today.

John Oxx’s brilliant colt Sea The Stars features among 17 entries for the Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby at the Curragh on Sunday following the confirmation stage.

JOHN OXX and Michael Kinane are fancied to continue their tremendous season by teaming up with Pittoni to take the Clonard Maiden at Leopardstown tonight.

Aidan O’Brien dominates the entry for the totesport.com Dante Stakes at York on Thursday.

Check out our tips for today's racing from courses across Ireland and the UK.

RECHARGE foiled Intense Focus with a game win over the Dewhurst victor in the Leopardstown 2000 Guineas Trial yesterday.

Media group APN News & Media, in which Independent News & Media has a 41.8% shareholding, today announced a record interim after-tax profit of AUS$72.1m (€43m) for the six months ended June 30 2006, up 9% on the same period last year.

A deadly box jellyfish is the suspected killer of a seven-year-old girl who was fatally stung off a tropical Australian beach, police said today.

A 14-year-old runaway girl insisted her boyfriend hide her in his house for nearly five years, the man’s lawyer told a court in Australia today.

A prisoner told a jury today that the man who is accused of murdering British teenager Caroline Stuttle in Australia confessed to him in a cell.

A confession written on a picnic table was likely to have been penned by the man accused of murdering British backpacker Caroline Stuttle, an Australian court has heard.

A man armed with a bayonet hijacked a light plane and forced its pilot to make a 90-minute flight across eastern Australia, prompting authorities to swing into anti-terror mode, officials said today.