The Bundaberg-based RACQ LifeFlight Rescue helicopter crew has flown two men to safety, after they spent the night trapped on a rural property, when flooding cut off their route home.
The pair – aged in their 50s and 60s – had crossed a creek yesterday (Fri 13th) to move horses and equipment, but by the time they attempted to return, the water had risen dramatically.
They radioed back to their homestead and one of the men’s wives called triple zero.
Queensland Ambulance Service (QAS) paramedics couldn’t reach the pair by road, because of flooding, so the RACQ LifeFlight Rescue chopper was tasked to the scene yesterday.
With the ongoing weather conditions making flying unsafe in the area, the search and rescue mission was postponed until this morning. (Sat 14th)
The men were forced to stay overnight in a shack on the farming property, with only two cans of baked beans for sustenance.
The rescue chopper was tasked just after 8:30am today by Queensland Police Service (QPS) and landed on the property in the Wide Bay-Burnett region.
The crew flew the men back to their homestead where they were assessed by the QAS Flight Paramedic.
“Both men did the right thing by staying where they were and not trying to cross the flood waters,” said RACQ LifeFlight Rescue Aircrew Officer Nathan Minett.
“It’s a really great outcome for the men and their families, because situations like this can end in disaster. They were prepared, in that people knew where they were, they had a radio, and of course they had the baked beans.”
RACQ LifeFlight Rescue is continuing to support the flood response across Queensland, with crews available 24/7 to assist.
