'We are nearly drowning' - dad hears last phone calls

John (left) and Blake Tyson heard evidence on the deaths of Dona Rice and Jordan. Photo / Getty Images

A man who lost his wife and son to the Toowoomba flash flood says he feels like he has buried them twice after hearing their calls for help and the stonewalling of emergency operators.

The Queensland Floods Commission of Inquiry yesterday was played the final phone calls of Donna Rice and her 13-year-old son Jordan who became trapped in a sudden flood in the city's CBD on January 10.

A surviving son, 10-year-old Blake, was in the courtroom to hear the chilling audio, along with his father John Tyson.

Rice told the operator: "I'm stuck and the water is just about ready to come up the door".

Senior Constable Jason Wheeler, asks: "Why did you drive through the flooded water?"

Rice says: "It wasn't this bad then".

Wheeler replies: "Yeah, well".

After hearing some scant details about her location and refusing her request for a tow-truck, Wheeler finishes the phone call by saying: "You shouldn't have driven through in the first place".

Seven minutes later, Jordan called triple-zero and spoke to a Queensland Fire and Rescue operator.

This time, a female operator sounded frustrated, asking the teenager: "Where are you? If you can't tell me, I can't help you".

Jordan says: "We are nearly drowning, please help us".

Blake's frantic cries can be heard in the background, as well as Rice telling them to get on top of the car.

Wheeler said he received only two days of training for his job, and it didn't cover answering emergency calls. He had no appreciation at the time that Rice was in major danger. "There was no panic or distress in her voice, no."

The officer said operators were flat out trying to deal with a barrage of calls as best they could.

They were frustrated by the number of people driving in floodwaters despite repeated warnings in the previous days. "It was mayhem in there," he said.

Tyson said he was allowed to listen to the calls for the first time just days ago, and his sense of betrayal was evident.

"I fail to see what part of any of the triple-zero calls resemble calm and composure," he said. "What gave anybody the right to decide that I have to bury my family twice?

"I can't help but ask the question: If my wife and son had connected with a different operator, would the outcome have been the same?"

- AAP