Torrential rain from the remnants of Cyclone Alfred flooded swathes of Australia’s east coast on Monday, as workers battled to restore power to more than 200,000 homes and businesses.<\/p>\n
Even as the weather system weakened, authorities issued a string of flood and severe weather warnings across a 400-kilometre (250-mile) stretch of coast straddling Queensland and New South Wales.<\/p>\n
The tropical depression dumped 30 centimetres (one foot) of rain in 24 hours over Queensland’s capital city of Brisbane, the bureau of meteorology said.<\/p>\n
Floodwaters swamped some streets in the city of 2.5 million, stranding half-submerged cars in the worst-affected areas, images published in Australian media showed.<\/p>\n
Emergency services rescued 17 people from fast-moving waters in Queensland overnight, the state’s premier, David Crisafulli said.<\/p>\n
“Rainfall is leading to flash flooding as well as river flooding in parts of the southeast,” he told a news conference.<\/p>\n
“We are urging people to stay connected because of the prospect of more intense flooding during the course of today.”<\/p>\n