The Torrent: Toowoomba and the Lockyer Valley, January 2011

Based on exclusive interviews with survivors, rescuers, and with the families and friends of victims of Queensland's catastrophic summer of 2011, this is a powerful account of human courage. Of all the stories to emerge from the disaster the most dramatic and starkly tragic were those that took place in Toowoomba and the Lockyer Valley. On January 10, 2011, after weeks of heavy rain and as floodwaters began to overwhelm much of southeast Queensland, an "inland tsunami" hit the city of Toowoomba, the rural districts of Spring Bluff, and Postmans Ridge, and the towns of Murphys Creek, Withcott, Helidon, and Grantham. For the first time, the extraordinary stories of survival and loss that emerged from that terrible day are told. Official figures state that 24 people died; many escaped death only because they were rescued by members of the community or through sheer good fortune. This book dramatically shows the enduring resilience of ordinary Australians in the face of a devastating force of nature.