Floods on Australia's east coast kill 8 people

• Some east coast areas of Australia experienced record flooding on Monday, resulting in the death of eight people and submerging parts of Brisbane underwater.
• Since 2011, the flooding in Brisbane and its surrounds has been the worst.
• Officials announced that the Brisbane River reached a height of 3.85 meters (12 foot, 3 inches) on Monday.

Some parts of Brisbane, Australia's third-most populous city, were submerged in water on Monday due to intense rainfall that caused unprecedented flooding in certain regions and resulted in the tragic loss of eight lives.

Since 2011, the flooding in Brisbane and its surrounds has been the worst.

A man in his 50s drowned on Monday after driving his car into floodwater in Gold Coast city, south of Brisbane, Queensland state police said.

Hours later, the submerged car that had been washed from the road was discovered, and the bodies of the man and his dog were retrieved, according to a police statement.

Gold Coast is experiencing life-threatening flash flooding, as warned by Queensland emergency services.

Officials stated that emergency crews carried out over 130 swift-water rescues in a 24-hour period.

In Queensland state, all eight flood deaths have occurred, with Brisbane being the capital. A search is ongoing for a 70-year-old solo sailor who fell overboard from his vessel in the Brisbane River near the city center on Saturday.

In addition to searching for a missing man in Goodna, west of Brisbane, police were also looking for a man in Esk, northwest of Brisbane.

In Lismore, New South Wales, on Sunday, police heard a man calling for help in floodwaters and were searching for him on Monday, south of the Queensland border.

Brisbane businesses near the river waterfront were advised to evacuate after a pontoon carrying a crane detached from its mooring and started drifting downstream.

On Monday, Brisbane suburbs experienced emergency flood alerts, with 2,145 homes and 2,356 businesses submerged and 10,827 properties partially flooded above the floorboards.

Officials announced that the Brisbane River reached a height of 3.85 meters (12 foot, 3 inches) on Monday.

In 2011, the flood level reached 4.46 meters (14 feet, 3 inches), which was 61 centimeters (2 feet) above the current flood level, officials stated.

Since November, Brisbane has experienced extraordinary rainfall, alleviating the water shortage concerns that prompted authorities to consider water use restrictions.

In the southeastern area, Palaszczuk stated that the event was still significant and it was unlikely that anyone had witnessed such a large amount of rain in such a brief period.

The 2011 floods were different from the current ones because the rainfall lasted for five days, unlike the 2011 floods where the rain had stopped days before the river peaked and authorities had warned of impending flooding.

Major roads in Queensland have been closed, and train and ferry services in Brisbane have been stopped, announced Transport Minister Mark Bailey.

Localized flooding will persist in several areas for the next couple of days, as Bailey stated.

Lismore was bracing for its worst flooding on record.

On Monday, heavy rainfall caused flooding in downtown Lismore, leading to the evacuation of 15,000 people, according to officials.