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BRISBANE - Flood-hit north Queenslanders have been warned to beware of water-borne nasties such as crocodiles and snakes.
As the sting in the tail of tropical cyclone Ellie continues to lash north Queensland, the locals have be told to expect unwelcome blow-ins.
"Crocodiles might move about looking for a quiet place to wait for floodwaters to recede, and snakes may swim into peoples' properties," said Environmental Protection Agency project officer Brian Wright.
"Reptiles are on the move in summer anyway, so it's wise to be wary. All the coastal waterways in north Queensland should be considered as potential crocodile habitat."
Almost 250mm of rain fell in the Townsville area yesterday, flooding rivers and causing chaos on the roads.
The worst-hit area was around Ingham, north of Townsville, where more than 20 low-lying houses were flooded.
Floodwaters peaked at 12.5m at Gairlock, near Ingham, while sections of the Burdekin River were rising fast.
A man and his dog were rescued from the back of a utility in rising floodwaters at McCrossin Park, about 80km west of Townsville.
A family including a 2-month-old baby made it home after a nerve-racking journey in a a dinghy through crocodile-infested floodwaters.
Independent federal MP Bob Katter has told of the family's two-hour plight to get from Normanton to their home at Karumba.
"It was the only way they could get back," Katter said.
"They went through 15km-wide raging floodwaters, with crocodiles, to get back."
Emergency Services Queensland regional director Warren Bridson says the area has been swamped.
"I haven't seen anything like this in Ingham before, "Bridson said. "Water is up to a metre and half and is expected to stay up for a couple of days. There is water everywhere - it really is a sea of water."
Some isolated communities were running low on supplies, he said.
- AAP
