The coupleâs property backs on to Retreat Creek, which they watched rise rapidly throughout the morning.
âWeâre stranded and we canât go anywhere except up Graves Hill,â she said.
âItâs a little scary. We could be in trouble but weâre prepared to evacuate.â
Mrs Willcott said she woke at midnight to pouring rain, thunder and lightning. The rain gauge was already full at 130mm when she checked it at 3am on Wednesday, March 17.
Retreat Creek floods mining claim at the Gemfields: Sandy Willcott captured the footage from her mining claim at Graves Hill, showing the rapidly rising Retreat Creek after receiving more than 130mm in the early hours of March 17.
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Subscriber only Cars and equipment are sitting in metres of floodwaters after Sapphire received a deluge of rain in the early hours of Wednesday morning, prompting a major flood. Emergency services have spent the morning rescuing people from the roofs of houses and cars, with all rescues successful and no injuries reported. Blue Gem looking across to the Trading Post. Pic: Lorraine Schou. All roads to Rubyvale and Sapphire have now been closed and drivers are being urged to not attempt to drive the roads. The roads are not expected to be open for a number of hours.
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Retreat Creek in the central Queensland town of Sapphire rose rapidly after thunderstorms brought heavy rainfall. Photograph: Twitter/Channel Seven
Residents in the regional Queensland township of Sapphire were told to evacuate to higher ground on Wednesday morning after thunderstorms brought up to 215mm of rainfall to the area â but for some the heavy rain may have a silver lining.
Victoria Bentham, the co-owner of Sapphire Caravan and Cabin Park, told the Guardian
the main road out of town had been completely flooded, trapping residents, but some were using the opportunity to fossick for sapphires unearthed by the heavy rain.
17th Mar 2021 3:01 PM A meteorologist revealed Retreat Creek was unlikely to reach a second peak following initial flash flooding at Sapphire on Wednesday morning - but more rain could be on the way. Bureau of Meteorology meteorologist Matt Marshall said intense rainfall led to flash flooding overnight in areas west of Clermont and Emerald, due to thunderstorms embedded in a broader rain band. River levels at Sapphire rose rapidly to above major flood levels in response to the intense rainfall, he said. An emergency weather alert was issued by Queensland Fire and Emergency Service in response to the intense rainfall and flood situation and Sapphire residents were evacuated.