A driver and his passenger have come close to tragedy as their vehicle was swept away by floodwaters in Queensland.
More than 16,000 head of livestock have been reported lost or missing as Queensland's north braces for further rainfall and river levels continue to rise.
Townsville copped the brunt of the rainfall overnight with more than 200 millimetres recorded in the 24 hours to 9am as the system moved over the north-east coast after dumping more than a metre of rain in some areas of the north-west over the last few days.
In the Cape York town of Laura, a driver and his passenger came close to tragedy as their vehicle was swept away by floodwaters.
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Witnesses watched helplessly as the pair grappled with a grim decision: swim for their lives or be swept under with their vehicle.
They had escaped through the passenger-side door and clung onto the roof as the ute quickly sank.
"We knew that rescue would have been impossible," witness Niki Collins said.
The pair eventually abandoned the vehicle and somehow made a dash to dry land.
"It's lucky it didn't end in tragedy, which it could have easily done," Collins said.
Meanwhile, a man was winched from his motorhome by rescue crews at Dimbulah west of Cairns after also becoming caught in floodwaters.
The state government says about 16,450 head of cattle are lost or missing, and hundreds of kilometres of fencing and roads and crucial equipment have been impacted.
The low-pressure system will move north towards Cape York Peninsula from tomorrow, but flooded communities are bracing for rivers to continue to rise.
Bureau of Meteorology meteorologist Miriam Bradbury said there was flooding across western and northern parts of Queensland, pushing towards the north-east coast.
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"Even in these places where the rain might start to ease off, we will continue to see riverine flooding," she said.
"We are currently seeing major flooding occurring on the Flinders River at Richmond and Walker's Bend, and on the Western River at Winton.
"We may also see possible further rises with the arrival of upstream flows."
Flood warnings were in place for the Georgina, Norman, Gilbert, Nicholson, Leichhardt, Herbert, Western, Diamantina, Tully, Burdekin, Cape, Flinders, Cloncurry and Bohle rivers as well as Eyre Creek.
Another tropical low is tipped to form off the coast tomorrow.
People are urged to stay up to date on the BoM website and the Queensland government's disaster website.
Premier David Crisafulli announced disaster relief for the affected areas last week.
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