Australian military mounts major airlift to evacuate flood-hit community
Dec. 19 (UPI) -- The first group of about 20 people were airlifted to safety Tuesday from a remote flood-ravaged community in northern Queensland amid a major rescue operation by the Australian military.
The Wujal Wujal evacuees arrived safely in Cooktown just before 5 p.m. local time aboard one of two Australian Defense Force chinook helicopters deployed to rescue all 275 residents of the town, submerged by floodwaters after days of torrential rain dumped by a weakening tropical cyclone.
"It's just gorgeous to see how the people have opened their arms to welcome these brothers and sisters," Cook Shire Mayor Peter Scott said of the emotional reunion as the evacuees set foot on dry ground in the town 50 miles north of Wujal Wujal.
"It's hugs and slaps on the back left, right and center."
The rescue mission is expected to evacuate a further 100 people Tuesday with the airlift operation continuing through Wednesday with priority being given to vulnerable residents.
The evacuation got underway 24 hours after authorities postponed a planned rescue operation Monday amid ongoing dangerous flooding in the far north of the state that had prevented crews from reaching town by land.
"That community has never seen water through Wujal Wujal like that and the pace that that water came through at," Deputy Police Commissioner Shane Chelepy said.
While water levels dropped through Tuesday, several other small communities remained cut off and growing fears for an 85-year-old man reported missing from the neighboring town of Degarra since Sunday.
An extensive land and water search-and-rescue operation had turned up nothing, with emergency crews expressing "grave concerns" for his welfare.
Emergency crews coordinated at least 230 rescues across the region overnight, wading through flood water to reach stranded people. Residents also pitched in to help one another, in one case braving crocodiles lurking nearby to rescue people stranded up in trees.
"These are the stories of which every Australian can be proud," said Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
"The true Australian spirit that we see time and time again."
With flooding easing, Bureau of Meteorology senior forecaster Laura Boekel said the focus of the weather watch was now shifting north to the Cape York Peninsula where rain and storms were forecast.
While all but one of the region's rivers no longer posed a major threat, she warned the potential for significant rainfall from showers and thunderstorms might trigger localized flash flooding on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Many areas in the north of the state have already received between 1 and 3 feet of rain since Thursday, with localized deluges of more than 5 feet between Cairns and Cooktown where Wujal Wujal and Degarra are located.
