Thousands cut off by flooding in Australia

Australians were battling both fires and floods today after days of intense summer heat and storms.

Thousands of people were stranded as flood waters isolated several communities in the eastern states of New South Wales and Queensland, as well as the tropical Northern Territory, which was lashed by a cyclone over the weekend, emergency services reported.

Meanwhile, the major highway from the east to the west coast city of Perth remained closed today because of a blaze that remained out of control, eight days after three lorry drivers died in an attempt to drive through a wall of fire.

Federal lawmaker Barry Haase, whose 2.3 million-square kilometre (890,000-square mile) Outback electorate is described as the largest in the world, called for the Great Eastern Highway to be reopened despite the danger.

The closure of the road, which runs through Mr Haase’s electorate, was proving costly for interstate trade, he said.

But state official Peter Keppel said the fire, which has burned 41,000 hectares (101,300 acres) of scrubland since it started on December 28, remained dangerous.

With temperatures expected to reach 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) today and northerly winds forecast, the fire could again cross the highway, which is closed between Southern Cross, 370 kilometres (230 miles) east of Perth, and Coolgardie, 560 kilometres (350 miles) east of Perth, Mr Keppel said.

In southeast Australia, water-dropping aircraft were used today to attack a 10-hectare (25-acre) fire in steep terrain in a national park in Victoria state.

North of Victoria in New South Wales state, thousands of people remained cut off by floods, State Emergency Service spokesman Phil Campbell said.

“The threat in terms of rising floodwaters has eased,” Mr Campbell said. “The greater concern for us is the ongoing isolation of those several thousand people who will remain isolated in some instances for up to week.”

Those isolated include 1,000 music fans who attended a four-day music festival near Tenterfield that is due to end today, he said. They will remain trapped by a washed-away bridge until tomorrow, Mr Campbell said.

Further north in Queensland state, flood waters were receding from weekend peaks.

Emergency volunteers were being airlifted to Queensland farms isolated by floods to deliver supplies to stranded residents, the State Emergency Service reported.

West of Queensland in the Northern Territory town of Katherine, 20 people took shelter overnight at a school in preparation for expected flooding, Police Superintendent Peter Gordon said.