re: rain... gold coast...flooding
Flooding on Queensland's Gold Coast has shut down the local airport, disrupted hospital services and stranded motorists.
More than 300 millimetres of rain was dumped on the Gold Coast between 9:00 am yesterday and 5:00am today.
Coolangatta Airport has been closed, with water waist deep outside the terminal.
A house was in danger of collapsing at Kirra on the southern Gold Coast but it has since been stabilised.
Police have taken over the search for two people reported missing in the Coomera River at Maudsland.
SES volunteers have responded to more than 600 calls for help.
Elective surgery has been cancelled at the Gold Coast hospital because only half of the hospital's staff have been able to get to work.
"All the elective things such as outpatients, elective surgery, endoscopy, and cardiac catheters will all be cancelled, so it will only be just the emergency department will be opened and emergency surgery," medical superintendent Brian Bell said.
The Pacific Fair Shopping Centre at Broadbeach was also evacuated as a safety precaution.
"We've got road closures in the surrounding area and Little Tallebudgera Creek," marketing manager Donna Rogers said.
"The levels have been rising considerably all morning with the impending high tide, there is possible flooding issues, so we've decided to close the centre for the safety of our customers and we've done that effectively.
"The centre was evacuated calmly and the customers all were very understanding.
"And Pacific Fair will re-open tomorrow morning."
The rain has brought some good news for the city's water supply with the Hinze Dam rising to 79 per cent.
Shaun Cox from Gold Coast water says that is up from 68 per cent just one day ago.
He says the dam has not been full for five years.
"It's now only about 3.7 metres below the spillway and our rangers think there's a chance it could overtop over the next three days with the run-off that'll still continue even after the rain stops," he said.
