Already flood-ravaged communities are bracing for intense daily falls of up to 250mm and renewed river level rises from later today, with a severe weather warning still in place from Tully to Ayr.

WELLINGTON, New Zealand -- Monsoon rains unleashed flooding in Australia’s Queensland that have claimed the lives of two people as the week-long deluge dropped months of rainfall in a few days, devastating small rural towns on the state’s north coast.

Record-breaking rainfall causes chaos in eastern Australia - with more bad weather on the way.

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