- Updated
- National
- Queensland
- Floods
This was published 3 months ago
Father and son rescued after companions walked 12 hours through outback for help
By Toby Crockford and Matt Dennien
A father and his 10-year-old son were rescued from the roof of their bogged ute in flooded north-west Queensland after their three companions walked 50 kilometres to get help.
The ute became stuck west of Mount Isa on Sunday evening and the RACQ LifeFlight Rescue helicopter reached the stranded man and boy on Monday evening, just before last light.
It was one of two overnight flood rescues in the state.
While Mount Isa itself has only recorded 10 millimetres of rain in the past few days, Cloncurry, 120 kilometres to the east, received 74 millimetres in the 24 hours to 9am on Tuesday.
After becoming bogged late on Sunday, the five occupants spent the night in the ute before three of them set off on their 50-kilometre walk to Mount Isa for help, according to RACQ LifeFlight Rescue.
The father and son stayed with the ute and it took their three companions 12 hours to get to the Mount Isa police station, arriving about 6pm on Monday.
The trio pointed out on a map where their ute was stuck and the Mount Isa-based rescue helicopter was dispatched.
The bogged ute and RACQ LifeFlight Rescue helicopter, west of Mount Isa.Credit:RACQ LifeFlight Rescue
Just before last light on Monday, the rescue crew spotted the man and child sitting on the roof of their bogged ute and landed the helicopter on a dry patch of land nearby.
The father and son were uninjured and flown back to Mount Isa in good spirits.
Pilot Russell Proctor said the pair did everything right in a tough situation.
"They had water with them. Despite having to wait such a long time to be rescued, they remained with their vehicle until help arrived," he said.
The rescue mission came just hours before a second to save a couple stranded between rising floodwater further north. After their car broke down east of Burketown, the pair were forced to set up a makeshift camp on the roadside and await help.
A passerby eventually spotted them and raised the alarm, with the Mount Isa-based rescue helicopter dispatched by police about 11.20pm. The crew on board spotted the car and campfire about 2.30am.
The crew landed, helped the couple push the car further away from the rising water to prevent further damage and flew the pair to Burketown with a handful of their belongings.
In the week to Boxing Day, between 25 and 200 millimetres of rain has been recorded to the east of the isolated regional town.
A further 50 millimetres was recorded in Floraville, about 80 kilometres south-east, in the 24 hours to 9am Tuesday.
A number of minor flood warnings are in place across the state's north-west as a result of the recent rain.
Toby Crockford is court reporter for the Brisbane Times.
Matt Dennien is a reporter with Brisbane Times.