Australia's flood death toll rises

Thursday, January 13, 2011

Brisbane - The official death toll from Australia's Queensland flood disaster has now reached 15, with 61 still missing.

Police have now discovered another man's body at Myall Creek in the Lockyer Valley region, west of Brisbane, Queensland Emergency Services Minister Neil Roberts told a media briefing on Thursday.

Roberts said the total number of people missing was 61, with fears of another 12.

Earlier on Thursday, Premier Anna Bligh announced the first fatality confirmed in Brisbane. She said a 24-year-old man had been checking his father's inundated property in suburban Durack when he was sucked down a storm drain.

Bligh warned people to obey closure signs because the situation was still dangerous in and around the streets and suburbs of Brisbane and Ipswich.

"Underneath those floodwaters are rapidly moving dangerous, sharp objects. Walking through waters even only up to your ankles can mean that you'll be at risk of serious injury," she said.

The official death toll is expected to rise as searchers finally reach small towns in the Lockyer Valley.