Authorities warn of more flooding in Australia

TOWNSVILLE, Feb 05 (AFP): Heavy rain continued to pelt Australia's flood-ravaged northeast on Tuesday, prompting the authorities to warn of further flash flooding in the hours ahead.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison toured the region where "once-in-a-century" floods have inundated thousands of homes and closed airports and schools, leaving cars and houses submerged.
"It's just going to be tough, going to be tough for a while," Morrison said, expressing sympathy for young families who had lost their homes.
"The real work is to make sure that they can get through the clean-up and rebuild their lives."
In hard-hit Townsville, more than 650 people have been evacuated from their homes and about 11,000 houses remained without power Tuesday. Around 9,000 more have asked for help.
Even as stormwaters receded in some areas, there seems little prospect of an immediate respite from what locals call the "Big Wet".
"We expect this active monsoon to remain active for the coming days, potentially easing over the weekend, so there is an end in sight," said Richard Wardle of Queensland's Bureau of Meteorology.