User:Daniel/Sandbox/1893 Brisbane flood

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Queen Street, one of the major roads in Brisbane, after the 1893 floods. Residents are seen rowing boats to move about due to the flooding.

The 1893 Brisbane flood, occasionally referred to as the Great Flood of 1893 or the Black February flood, occured when the Brisbane River burst its banks in early February, 1893. The river, which runs through the centre of Brisbane in the Australian state of Queensland, was flooded due to a deluge associated with a tropical cyclone.^[1][2] The water surge was recorded on the Port Office gauge (now the City gauge) as being 8.35 metres (27 feet, 5 inches) above the low tide level. This is the second-highest height ever recorded at the City guage, the highest being the January 1841 flood at 8.43 metres (27 feet, 8 inches).^[3]

The southern regions of the city were most affected by the flood. The total damage caused by the flooding has been estimated at A$4 million (1893 figures), although no official figures exist.^[4][5] The flooding was responsible for eleven deaths, seven of them workers at a colliery in the north Ipswich which was flooded by the Bremer River, a tributary of the Brisbane River. The floods also forced the hospitalisation of 190 residents.^[4][6]

The 1893 event was preceeded by two notable yet less severe floods in 1887 and 1890. Both were caused by high levels of summer rainfall; however the rainfall around this period (with the exception of the two summers) was described as "very low".^[7] The major 1893 flood, which occured between Thursday, February 2 and Tuesday, February 7, was then followed by two more floods of the Brisbane River within a fortnight: on February 13 and then again on February 17-19.^[6][8]

[edit] History

[edit] Development of the flood

[edit] Thursday and Friday

(Feb 2 and Feb 3)

Feb 2:

• (Previous day) Cyclone hit Yeppoon causing damage. causes the floods due to downpour.[5]
• Flooding at Maryborough Gympie Bundaberg (map?) [2]
• Brisbane Courier published suggestion about circumstances being bad [4]

Feb 3:

• Lower part city submerged. Water still rising. [1]
• Two boats, Elamang and Paluma, carried onto Botanical Gardens, and other one Natone onto Eagle Farm flats [I] ---> refloated in one of the later feb floods [3]
• Rainfall 24 official record [1]

[edit] The weekend

{caption}

(Feb 4 and Feb 5)

Feb 4:

• 8 feet water in Edward St. [2]
• houses @ Ipswich Brisbane Gympie Maryborough washed down Brisbane and Mary rivers. [1]
• communication N and W "disrupted". [2]
• Flood peaked [7]

Feb 5:

• Indooroopilly Railway Bridge (Albert) washed away. [4]
• Heaviest flooding in history in Brisbane and suburbs. [1]

[edit] Monday and Tuesday

{caption}

(Feb 6 and Feb 7)

Feb 6:

• North end Victoria Bridge destroyed. [1]
• Houses floated off stumps down river and crashed into Victoria Bg. [3]
• Crowds lined bank, 8-10mi/hour down stream, houses, furniture - crashed into bridge, made very loud sounds when stuff crashed into it, only fragments continued past bridge. [4]
• [IMAGE] Sth Brisbane end of bridge still standing. Bridge originally opened in 74. [7]
• Lower part Sth Brisbane totally submerged. [1]
• 23 ft 9" flood surge (approx four ft < than peak) [2]

Feb 7:

• Waters subside/recede.

[edit] Second and third floods

[edit] Aftermath

[edit] Notes

[edit] References