Flood Update | 2/03/2022

Dear colleagues,

Lean Forward – INTENSE RAINFALL EVENT 

Metro North remains on LEAN FORWARD for the intense rainfall event (LEAN FORWARD – Code Brown).

Current situation 

There continues to be MODERATE flood peaks along the Brisbane river today. There are still more than 30,000 people in South East Queensland without power and more than 40 road closures in our catchment.

There were more than 300 people in evacuation centres in our catchment overnight. Metro North is continuing to provide support to evacuation centres, vulnerable facilities and flood isolated communities within our catchment.

The Bureau of Meteorology has issued a flood watch for South East Queensland for renewed water rises and risk of further MAJOR flooding. There is also a risk of localised flash flooding over the next 24-48 hours.

Please keep an eye on updates from authorities and warnings from the Bureau of Meterology. When faced with a flooded road, back it up. Remember – if it’s flooded, forget it.

Some public transport is coming back on line – but many services are cancelled, reduced or diverted. Brisbane River remains closed including ferry services. Stay up to date by visiting Translink. South East Queensland public transport and toll roads are currently free of charge.

The wet conditions increase the risk of mosquito borne and water borne diseases. Please wear protective clothing if you are cleaning up flood damage and debris. Keep clear of creeks, storm drains, fallen trees and damaged powerlines. A plug for the excellent therapeutic guidelines should you be faced with water-immersed wound infections.

Infrastructure 

Unfortunately, Campbell Place (CitiLink) has had significant damage and will be unusable for at least six weeks. Staff who usually work at Campbell Place should talk to your line manager about alternative work locations.

Our Building, Engineering and Maintenance teams continue to assess damage and repair where possible across all Directorates. Please be patient as work needs to be done in the order to ensure the most impact on service delivery.

Access to RBWH, STARS and Herston Health Precinct is still limited with Bowen Bridge Road closed. Teams are working to repair the traffic lights and reopen the road as soon as it is safe to do so. Please expect delays and be patient in traffic.

Preparedness 

We are planning for further flash flooding and potential road closures in the next few days.

Each directorate is assessing its ability to continue planned care this week and discharging as many patients as possible over the next 24 hours. Non-essential meetings and training should be postponed.

Staff are asked to plan for the possibility of needing to stay overnight at work if roads are cut. Please bring a change of clothes, essential medications, and supplies with you. In my few years in the military, I used to call this my “go bag”.

Car parking locations have been affected by flooding already this week. Please be mindful where you park.

Please ensure your contact details are up to date with your supervisor / team leader, and that the details on Streamline are also up to date.

Staffing 

As the providers of an essential service, the community relies on us to be here for them. We know that some staff may not be able to get to your usual workplace due to road closures, flood impact, or as a result of school closures.

If you are not able to get to your workplace for any reason, please talk to your supervisor. Where possible, we are asking staff to work at alternative locations to ensure continued service delivery. Another option that may be considered is working from home if appropriate.

The Queensland Health Chief Human Resources Officer provided information this week about leave options available to staff. This includes Special Leave (flood and storm leave) and Special paid discretionary leave for school, kindergarten and daycare closures due to impacts of weather events. The latter requires details of the school/facility that the children attend and the availability of alternative arrangements and/or remote work. If any line managers have questions regarding individual applications for Special Leave or Special paid discretionary leave, they should contact their local HR team.

Many schools in our area reopened today. Please check Education Queensland’s website for information on school closures to ensure you have up to date information.

Tomorrow Chief Executive Jackie Hanson will be joined by Dr Liz Rushbrook for a COVID-19 and Intense Rainfall Event VIDCAST. This will be at 09:00.

Kind regards,

Louise O’Riordan and Dr Liz Rushbrook
Metro North Health Incident Controllers