True force of deluge revealed as Lockyer Valley flood water recedes

Thousands across the Lockyer Valley have begun the mammoth task of rebuilding homes, businesses and communities as receding flood waters reveal the level of devastation.

The scale of the devastation caused by the 400mm deluge across the Lockyer Valley has been revealed as the water begins to recede from communities in Grantham and Gatton.

Shipping containers, destroyed property and debris has been strewn across the region, evidence of the full force of the storm system that saw water levels rise to nine year highs.

For Floating Cafe owner Tony Woods, his businesses suffered the brunt of a raging torrent of waters, with mud and debris strewn throughout his more than 100 year old building.

“It was underwater for 24 hours,” he said.

“I’ve had the business since 2012 and this is my second one (flood).

Debris is strewn all throughout across the Lockyer Valley. The Floating Cafe became temporary refuge for people seeking shelter when the deluge first poured down on Friday.

Mr Woods said he was touched to see Grantham residents come out and volunteer to help clean his business after the water receded.

“It’s the community spirit,” he said.

In photos: Devastation of floods in Lockyer Valley revealed

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“The community rallies together, they get in and help everyone.

“They don’t want to see their only businesses in town, which there’s only three of, not be here.

“They support it extremely well here.”

Withcott business face lengthy clean-up from flash flood

Despite living in Japan for 10 years, and experiencing multiple earthquakes, Friday’s flash flooding was a first for Umesh Manandhar.

The owner of Foodworks Withcott hardly had time to defend his business against the torrent of water after more than 200mm lashed the region.

Manager of the Withcott Foodworks Umesh Manandhar made a barrier from bottled water to stop flood water. Monday, February 28, 2022. Picture: Nev Madsen.

Using bundles of water bottles, Mr Manandhar made a makeshift barricade, reinforced with a Foodworks advertising sign.

However, it wasn’t enough to repel the deluge.

“I’ve never seen anything like this before,” he said.

“I couldn’t do anything to stop it. There was so much water, it was above my knee and it went straight through the front door.”

Flooding inside the Foodworks Withcott store on Saturday, February 26, 2022. Photo: Umesh Manandhar

Luckily for Mr Manandhar, most of the store’s stock was off the ground, and not much was lost.

“We were closed Saturday but opened Sunday, our staff and their families all helped to clean,” he said.

“I lived in Japan for 10 years and experienced earthquakes but this was my first flood.”

Next door at C&K Property Management, Aimee Wells was supposed to be on a Gold Coast weekend away with husband Isaac Lupin to celebrate her birthday.

Instead, the couple were cleaning mud from their business floor.

“I was stuck on the range heading to Withcott when the flooding started, I had to run down barefoot to get to the store,” Ms Wells said.

“The entire road was just a river.”

Isaac Lappin and Aimee Wells from C&K Property in Withcott finish cleaning their premises. Monday, February 28, 2022. Picture: Nev Madsen.

Farmers left shell-shocked after flooding

Days after a torrent of flood water claimed hundreds of their birds, the Neuendorf family remains shell-shocked.

Trapped by a flood-swollen creek on the farm side of the family property, son Brenton and a number of 9Dorf Farms employees desperately tried to save birds from drowning as water tore through the farm.

“We’ve lost probably a few hundred birds,” Bronwyn Neuendorf said.

“A massive amount went straight through the middle of the farm where the layer birds were – a lot of them got swept away or tangled up in the fencing and drowned.

“My son Brenton and a few employees tried to get as many birds into the caravan where they sleep at night to protect them but it was hard.

“We take great pride in how we look after our animals and to lose so many – we’re shell-shocked.

“We’ve lost animals, fences, equipment, water systems and we still haven’t had a good look at everything – it’s devastating.”

Now the family and the farm’s employees are doing what they can to look after the remaining animals on the farm.

“We have to feed our stock but at the moment we can’t get enough to them because we have to walk it in because of the mud,” Mrs Neuendorf said.

The Neuendorfs are among hundreds of farmers coming to terms with the devastation.

Often referred to as Queensland’s Salad Bowl, the region’s fertile fields are wet and bare right now.

Carpendale farmer Joe Kluck with a sorghum crop damaged from flood waters. Picture: Nev Madsen.

For farmer Joe Kluck, the crops already planted are at risk and the work ahead is a problem.

“We needed rain, but not like this,” Mr Kluck, whose farm is near the Grantham Meatworks, said.

“The sorghum we have already planted is probably shot and we’ve lost a bit of top soil down by the creek.

“The problem now is all the work we have to do to get the ground ready again.”

Lockyer Valley Growers president Michael Sippel said the first day of March was usually one of the busiest times of the year for the region’s farmers as they started planting for the season.

Instead farmers are inspecting fence lines, digging out equipment, uncovering pipes and assessing all manner of damage caused by the weather system that dumped more 450mm of rain since last Thursday.

“The biggest problem is all the soil that has been washed away,” Mr Sippel said.

“You can’t put a dollar value on that because once it’s gone, it’s gone – you can’t get it back.”

Young Florence Farr inspects the damage as her family cleans up the mess after the water receded.

Originally published as True force of deluge revealed as Lockyer Valley flood water recedes