Floodwaters in Queensland's remote channel country have reached Birdsville, turning the outback into an oasis. The water is a lifeline in one of the driest parts of the state and locals say the flood means the region will be looking its best by the start of the tourism season.
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00:00 Outback Queensland, now an inland sea.
00:06 Water stretches to the horizon as it travels south through the Channel Country.
00:10 Here it comes, front of the Diamantina River flood.
00:14 This water is from rainfall hundreds of kilometres to the north, dumped by ex-tropical cyclone
00:19 Kirrilli weeks ago.
00:21 Now it's arrived in Birdsville, moving down the spilling Diamantina River on its way to
00:27 the Katitanda Lake Air Basin.
00:29 "The flood has been sort of coming down each day, several times a day actually, to check
00:34 on the water, on the progress of it."
00:36 The Diamantina River is currently peaking at 7.6 metres.
00:41 In the Channel Country, these floods are welcomed.
00:43 "It's just the most unbelievable sight to have this wonderful flow of water going through
00:49 and everybody knows how good it is for this region."
00:52 After the water comes the wildlife and wildflowers.
00:56 "It's a desert, a transformation I guess, from the dry, dusty heat to I guess the flies,
01:03 the mosquitoes, the waters, the flowers, the bugs and insects that come with it as well."
01:08 There is however severe damage to the region's roads, many may be cut for some time.
01:14 But locals hope that once the water recedes, the tourists will flood in.
01:18 "It really is a lifeline for us, it's nature doing what it was intended to."
01:23 [BLANK_AUDIO]