Australia Flood Takes Violent Turn

By Rob Verger

The Australian city of Toowoomba was mostly underwater on Monday after massive and violent flash floods crashed across the state of Queensland (nicknamed the "Sunshine State"). The flooding has been described as an “inland tsunami.” The waters reached Brisbane Wednesday, the capital of Queensland and the third-largest city in Australia, and has forced thousands of people to flee. The death toll from the flooding is estimated at about two dozen so far. At least 20,000 homes and thousands of other buildings near Brisbane were expected to be inundated by Thursday morning, when the Brisbane River could approach a record crest of 18 feet.