Thousands of Australians evacuated as floodwaters rise

Thousands of residents in the town of St. George in southern Queensland of Australia have left their homes as floodwaters quickly rise, local media reported on Monday. Police are now going door-to-door encouraging the last remaining residents to take up the offer of air evacuation later on Monday morning, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) reports. Most of the residents in St. George left the town on Sunday night, but 400 people have stayed their homes despite the mandatory evacuation order. The town's Balonne River, which has already passed 13.8 meters, above the previous record set in 2010, is expected to pass 14 meters on Monday and rise above 15 meters on Tuesday before it peaks on Wednesday. Weather bureau spokesman Peter Baddiley says it is possible the Balonne River could exceed 15 meters. Queensland Premier Anna Bligh said she was happy with the way that St. George's residents had responded to the evacuation order and said authorities always expected some people to stay behind. "There will be more planes and we expect to take about another 400 out today, so in a town of just under 3,000 people we don't expect to see very many people stay," Bligh said on Monday.