Ingham flooding: Evacuation centres fill fast as town endures historic rainfall

An Ingham woman says she was “hysterical” phoning for help as floodwaters swallowed the home she shares with her elderly mum, saying the town desperately needs reinforcements as more heavy rain is forecast.

An Ingham woman says she was “hysterical” while phoning for help as floodwaters swallowed her home she shares with her elderly mum, saying the town desperately needs reinforcements as rivers continue to rise.

The Hinchinbrook evacuation centre was continuing to fill on Monday morning, although many were unable to make the journey with emergency services stretched to meet demand.

About 1pm, 119 people have registered at the centre at Ingham State High School, up from 109 people just an hour earlier.

The school is closed and essentially cut off from large parts of the inundated town, which like the remainder of the Hinchinbrook is undergoing a horrific flood disaster.

A woman living with disability, who only wanted to be known as Cat, said she had been left emotionally scarred after a long wait for rescue as floodwaters lapped at her thighs of her one-storey home in Dutton Street.

Flooding around Ingham, North Queensland on Monday, February 3, 2025. Photo: Cameron Bates

“I started ringing at 6.30am in the morning (Sunday) and by 2.30pm, they finally got here but I had to ring four times with no response.”

She shares the home with her 86-year-old mother.

“I was crying, I was hysterical, I even had someone hang up on me when I called triple-0, they said ‘we’re busy’.”

Cat said it was time to “bring in the Army” to help with rescue efforts.

She said the floodwaters were severe and “hit so fast”.

Cat said she was forced to swim under the floodwaters in attempts to retrieve her walking canes from her flooded vehicle, which had been destroyed.

She said those attempts fails but the “wonderful” police rescue team had been able to.

Rain, including heavy falls and potential thunderstorms, is projected to continue to batter Ingham throughout the week.

The Bureau of Meteorology said further areas of heavy rainfall was forecast for Monday.

“With this forecast rainfall, higher river levels and renewed rises are likely during Monday,” its 10am update read.

“Major flooding is occurring at Halifax, Gairloch, Ingham Pump Station, Abergowrie Bridge and Gleneagle.”

Flooding around Ingham, North Queensland on Monday, February 3, 2025. Photo: Cameron Bates

A man interviewed near the Ingham Hospital, which had escaped flooding, said he had been biking around the town’s streets and been greeted by “devastation”.

“It’s worse than I appreciate actually, I’m from Burke Street, we are high and dry there, but not in those low-lying areas,” Colin said.

He said Ingham was essentially almost totally cut in half, north to south, by the heavy flooding.

Just the newly built bridge on Dutton Street remains open but rampaging water from Palm Creek is threatening to crest over.

The driver said parts of the Bruce Highway south of Ingham had been washed away and he was unsure when he would be able to get out.

He said there were no warnings given that both Coles and Woolworths as well as the hardware stores would close early ahead of the torrential rains.

Colin said he was without food, water, power and fuel.

“That’s bad.”

Flooding around Ingham, North Queensland on Monday, February 3, 2025. Photo: Cameron Bates

David, a gentleman sitting outside Ingham Hospital said he was rescued from his highset house near the Ingham Showgrounds last night.

“It was just two steps from coming in the top flood and down the bottom the water was running like a torrent.”

He said he had called emergency services multiple times before his eventual rescue.

“We waited about 12 hours and then I got ill … I was having chest pains and after that they arrived, which was fantastic.”

He said the hospital staff and emergency services, including Ingham Police, were “absolutely fantastic.”

David said a cyclone in 2014 destroyed his pub in Cooktown.

“It destroyed it, it took the whole top off of a 130-year-old hotel, it was a category five that dropped down to a category four,” he said.

“That was a pretty serious event but this last night was much more scary to me than that; nothing much scares me but I was getting pretty scared last night.”

The Ingham substation underwater.

Jeremy Dametto, a relative of Hinchinbrook MP Nick Dametto, said he and his family, including wife and kids, were forced to evacuate from Palmer Street late on Sunday night.

“The house was starting to lift (in the floodwaters).”

He said the water was so high it was reaching the second level of the house.

Mr Dametto said his family was allowed into the Hinchinbrook Shire Council building but he was barred as he had a dog.

He said he slept on a public bench outside the council building on flooded Lannercost Street.

“It was a bit hard, a bit cold.”

Mr Dametto said he was hoping to relocate to the evacuation centre on Monday but was still awaiting transport through the flooded water along Palm Terrace and McIlwraith Street.

Originally published as Ingham flooding: Evacuation centres fill fast as town endures historic rainfall