<p>[Police</a> sent in as flood death toll rises - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)](<a href=“ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)”>ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation))</p>
<p>]</p>
<p>Looking at the map of the affected towns in Queensland, I can’t believe the extent of this disaster. I grew up in Toowoomba which is about 80 miles from Brisbane…the distances to other areas are huge, inland and north of there. It’s absolutely shocking.</p>
<p>I have friends who are being transferred to Brisbane from the US. I was surprised the other day when they finished packing up and it sounded like the company was still sending them as scheduled this week. But yesterday they found out their rental house in Brisbane is flooded so now they are on hold for a while.</p>
<p>The charity link wasn’t allowed, however, if you poke around on this newspaper site you should find it.</p>
<p>Aussies have the sense of humor.
[‘At</a> least it keeps the rabbits down’](<a href=“http://www.smh.com.au/environment/weather/at-least-it-keeps-the-rabbits-down-20110107-19hsu.html]'At”>'At least it keeps the rabbits down')</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Dh and I were watching news coverage of the flooding that related the area inundated to being roughly the size of Texas and New Mexico combined. That’s mindboggling. It’s hard to imagine how long recovery will take.</p>
<p>If you search for the Premier’s Disaster Relief Appeal you can go to a govt. site where donations can be made via credit card. The conversion rate is nearly 1:1, btw.</p>
<p>The conversion rate is nearly 1:1, btw.</p>
<p>I noticed that- I made a donation & then went OOPS I should have checked the conversion rate first. But it’s all good.</p>