In his 12 years of living in the middle of outback Australia, Ben Olschewsky has never seen anything like it — eerily still cattle stations engulfed by floodwater.
Key points:
- The Georgina River peaked at 3.5 metres, trapping hundreds in remote Queensland and NT communities
- Flooding in the region was triggered by the same weather system causing flooding in the Gulf of Carpentaria
- Sixteen people were evacuated from the Queensland town of Urandangi
"The homestead has been inundated, the entire footprint of the station is basically covered in water," he said.
Five hundred kilometres south of the Gulf of Carpentaria flood emergency, the same weather system is causing another crisis for graziers along the Northern Territory-Queensland border.
The Georgina River, which snakes through the Channel Country and Central Australia, has peaked at 3.5 metres, causing water to seep into nearby stations and communities.
The historic Lake Nash station, which stretches 1.2 million hectares along the border, is only just visible in the steadily rising water.
Its homestead is all but abandoned.
"It's just bigger than anything in our lifetime," Mr Olschewsky said.
"The people, especially the older ones, are just really heartbroken at what's happening. They're seeing it as a tragedy."
Mr Olschewsky works as a mustering contractor in the Indigenous community of Alpurrurulam, which has a population of about 400 people and sits adjacent to Lake Nash station, owned by Georgina Pastoral Company.
He has been capturing the flood crisis through photos and video.
He said he had spoken to staff at Lake Nash who had been flown to higher ground.
"The station is highly professional, they operate a fairly complex array of stock. They're used to mobilisation and there's been no panic," he said.
But he said the feeling in the wider community was sombre.
"There's a very long history between the community and the station," Mr Olschewsky said.
"A lot of people were born in and around the homestead. It's devastating."
'No chance' to save some livestock
The full extent of stock losses across the Gulf of Carpentaria and the territory border will not be known until the water recedes, and some properties still remain underwater.
Graziers and helicopter pilots have reported troubling scenes of animal bodies floating on an "inland sea".
"People are trying to make sure stock get out of pastures here," Mr Olschewsky said.
"But further up past Camooweal, there's just no chance to save cattle when that water is coming down."
Loading...Across the border, 16 people were evacuated from the tiny town of Urandangi over the weekend.
The town is now completely isolated and could remain that way for weeks.
The nearby Austral Downs and Headingly properties are also facing weeks of isolation.
Mr Olschewsky said while people in the outback were used to remote living, there was some concern over food supplies.
"The local storekeepers are doing a sensational job and are just getting on with it," he said.
"They have huge stores of food but eventually things start running out.
"There have been appeals for help from the authorities."
Rivers to flow south
A moderate flood warning is in place along the Georgina River, with the Bureau of Meteorology saying combined flows will cause prolonged river and creek level rises.
Emergency management coordinator for the northern region, Elliott Dunn, said the water would continue to flow south.
"There will be a lot of water that we have seen inundate Camooweal that will now flow down through the Georgina River catchment and into the Lake Eyre basin," he said.
"We're already seeing massive flooding at Lake Nash cattle station and that will proceed down through Urandangi and eventually pass Boulia and enter Bedourie."
The bureau said while rainfall has eased across the catchment, moderate flooding will continue along Eyre Creek at Bedourie and Glengyle.