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Parts of Australia lashed by heavy rains, floods triggered by Cyclone Jasper

Anadolu Agency AUSTRALIA
Published December 18,2023
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A car inundated with water nearby the Barron River in Cairns, Australia, 16 December 2023. (EPA Photo)

Tropical Cyclone Jasper has triggered floods in northern parts of Australia.

Australia Bureau of Meteorology said Monday heavy rainfall has waterlogged areas of Queensland's Far North, forcing people to evacuate.

In Wujal Wujal area of the region, patients and staff were stranded on the roof of the hospital as authorities were working to evacuate locals from the flooded Indigenous community, ABC News reported.

In Brisbane, body of a seven-year-old boy was found by police, 9News reported.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese described footage of the disaster as "quite horrific" and said he will visit the Far North "when it is feasible and appropriate."

According to SBS News, floodwaters have closed Cairns Airport while roads have been extensively damaged.