Australia's third-largest city faces reconstruction efforts "of postwar proportions" after floodwaters devastated thousands of homes.
Meanwhile, the death toll in Brisbane is in danger of rising. At least 22 people have died but dozens are still missing.
It's the worst flooding to hit Australia in three decades, and the worst to ever hit the state of Queensland.
"We've seen three-quarters of our state having experienced the devastation of raging floodwaters and we now face a reconstruction task of postwar proportions," Queensland State Premier Anna Bligh told reporters Thursday.
Brisbane -- a city of two million people that serves as the capital of Queensland State -- was bracing for billions of dollars worth of damage.
About 11,900 homes in Brisbane were completely submerged, along with 2,500 business. Another 14,700 homes and 2,500 business suffered damage from floodwaters.
Though there have been no mandatory evacuations, most residents have heeded the strong urgings of officials to clear out of at-risk neighbourhoods.
As a result, many spent Wednesday packing up their valuables or trying to move them to the top levels of their homes for safe keeping.
The floodwaters reached as high as traffic lights in some low-lying parts of the city. Cars, houses and businesses have all been destroyed by the flooding, with dramatic images emerging of entire buildings being carried away in the river.
People were using boats, kayaks, even surfboards to get around. In some cases livestock could be seen swimming through the floodwaters, searching for higher ground.
Video footage showed several horses resting their heads on a house rooftop as they took a brief break from swimming.
The flooding now covers an area roughly the size of British Columbia.
Perhaps the most dramatic moment in recent days was when a virtual 'wall of water' crashed into Toowoomba, west of Brisbane.
A powerful cloudburst drenched the area, causing what one person called an "inland instant tsunami" on Monday. Twelve people were killed, including at least five children. The toll from that incident could go higher, amid fears that people drowned in their submerged vehicles when the water hit.
"This is a truly dire set of circumstances," Prime Minister Julia Gillard said on Wednesday.
There was some small consolation Wednesday when officials revised their flood level predictions to about 30 centimetres below the 1974 floods that hit the city.
However, Queensland Premier Anna Bligh pointed out the city is much more developed than it was in 1974.
"This is still a major event, the city is much bigger, much more populated and has many parts under flood that didn't even exist in 1974," she said. "We are still looking at an event which will cripple parts of our city."
The flooding is expected to remain at peak levels until the weekend, Bligh said. But it will likely be several days after that before people can return to their homes.
The flooding, which has devastated farmers' crops and shut down the state's coal mining industry, is expected to cost at least $5 billion in damages.
With files from The Associated Press
