Stranded driver found clinging to ute roof in raging floodwaters in Bull Creek, Belyando

A North Queensland man is lucky to be alive after being swept off the road and stranded on the roof of his ute in raging floodwaters for hours — until heroic swift water firefighters came to his rescue. WATCH THE VIDEO.

A North Queensland man is lucky to be alive after being swept off the road and stranded on the roof of his ute in raging floodwaters for hours — until heroic swift water firefighters came to his rescue.

The terrifying ordeal unfolded at Bull Creek, Belyando — about 200km south of Charters Towers — when a man attempted to drive through floodwaters while on his way home on Thursday morning.

His four-wheel-drive got washed off Gregory Developmental Road by a surging torrent, but he managed to clamber onto the roof and make a desperate triple-0 call at 9.20am.

Queensland Fire and Rescue’s swift water team raced to the remote location from Charters Towers, battling torrential rain and flooding along the way before arriving at 11.30am.

Swift water rescue crews rescued a driver stranded on his ute's roof after his vehicle was swept of the roadway at Balyendo crossing. Image: QFD

Station Officer Matt Dillon said the man was stranded 200 metres from dry land, with the water rising up to his windscreen and moving at over 2km per hour.

“He’s extremely lucky,” Mr Dillon said. “If he hadn’t had phone reception, it’s likely no one would’ve found him out there for a long time.”

Swift water rescue crews rescued a driver stranded on his ute's roof after his vehicle was swept of the roadway at Balyendo crossing. Image: QFD

“Driving there, we went through a heap of rain as well. And the BOM river gauges we were monitoring were saying that the water was rising in that area.”

“Luckily, he’s been caught up on a couple of trees there. It stopped the ute from going any further down into any deeper sections.”

Swift water rescue crews rescued a driver stranded on his ute's roof after his vehicle was swept of the roadway at Balyendo crossing. Image: QFD

Firefighters navigated the dangerous currents using a motorised swift water rescue craft while a drone monitored the situation from the sky.

After reaching the vehicle, they secured the stranded man with a life jacket and safely ferried him across the floodwaters.

Cold but unharmed, he was handed over to police waiting on the road.

Mr Dillon said since the floods began, his team has done over 20 evacuations during different jobs.

Swift water rescue crews rescued a driver stranded on his ute's roof after his vehicle was swept of the roadway at Balyendo crossing. Image: QFD

He emphasised the importance of heeding warnings and not attempting to drive through flooded roads.

“If it’s flooded, forget it,” he stressed. “It’s just not worth the risk to your life or putting our rescue crews in harm’s way. We’d much rather people wait it out and call for help if needed.”

Tragically, two people have already lost their lives during the recent floods in North Queensland.

Dillon stressed the devastating impact these incidents have, saying, “The people that we did lose didn’t wake up thinking that they wouldn’t be here in the afternoon. Everyone has a choice when they get to flood water. Stop. Wait it out. It’s not worth going into flood water. It’s not worth your life.”

Originally published as Stranded driver found clinging to ute roof in raging floodwaters in Bull Creek, Belyando