Qld: Police plead for flood safety
21 May 2009 3:09 PM
BRISBANE, May 21 AAP - Queensland police are finding it's not just drink drivers who are bloody idiots as they warn against dangerous behaviour in flood waters.
Children continue to swim in flooded waterways, drivers keep trying to plough through them, and people have even dismantled roadside flood barriers.
"Community safety is a two-way street," said Queensland Police service communications branch manager, Superintendent Brian Codd (Codd).
"Certainly we've been playing our part in meeting the needs of the community when they find themselves in difficulty."
He said drivers continued to make poor choices about driving in flood waters and there had been cases of children playing, swimming or bodyboarding in flooded areas.
Superintendent Codd said such avoidable acts put unnecessary pressure on emergency workers.
Drivers should resist the temptation to enter falling floodwaters because they could not predict the damage hidden below, he said.
"I can't raise the seriousness of the danger that comes with flooded areas and their unpredictability high enough," Supt Codd said.
"There have been a number of incidents ... where we have reports of people actually dismantling road closure signs and then driving through.
"This is not the time for people to be testing their new four-wheel-drive's capabilities.
"The issue is that problem has now necessitated emergency services - fire, ambulance and police - to attend to that when they needed to be directed another way."
The Department of Emergency Services has been called out to 62 swift-water rescues during 48 hours of severe weather.
