Police launch search after two men drove into flood waters near Ollera Creek

Two men who abandoned their vehicle in floodwaters near Ollera Creek have been found safe after a major search and rescue effort this morning. LATEST.

A search is underway near Ollera Creek to find a missing man. Picture: Evan Morgan

Two men who abandoned their vehicle in floodwaters north of Townsville have been found safe following a major search and rescue operation.

Police said the men, who claimed they were on a fishing trip, became stranded after driving into floodwaters near Crystal Creek and Ollera Creek around 9.45pm on Monday.

After escaping their submerged vehicle, the pair split up to find help.

One of the men managed to reach a road, where he was found by authorities at 7am on Tuesday.

He then assisted police in locating the last known position of their vehicle before officers found his companion in bushland at 10am.

The second man was then flown to safety by a rescue helicopter.

Western Patrol Group Acting Inspector Graeme Paterson said police are investigating the circumstances surrounding why the men were in floodwaters in the first place.

While no charges have been laid at this stage, he said police continue to assess whether the men should face penalties for their actions.

“It was reported to police that they had gone out to go fishing, which probably wasn’t a wise thing to do, but an investigation is being conducted by police as to the full circumstances around why they were out in the floodwaters and the rain we were experiencing last night,” he said.

“At this point in time, though, there’s nothing come of that investigation that I can talk about today.”

Inspector Paterson also confirmed that one or both of the men were known to police.

Authorities believe the men were attempting to cross a flooded creek from the southern side, heading north toward Ingham, when they became stranded.

“The wisdom of that decision would be definitely in question,” Inspector Paterson said.

“Look, we’re happy that both people have been recovered safely, but the frustration around events like this is that we had nearly 20 emergency personnel involved in the search and rescue, plus we had to deploy air assets.

“It’s quite an involved process for something that probably didn’t need to occur in the first place.”

Originally published as Police launch search after two men drove into flood waters near Ollera Creek