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Airdate: Australia’s Great Flood

National Geographic will screen a special on the floods, which devastated Queensland earlier this year and Cyclone Yasi.

National Geographic will screen a special on the floods, which devastated Queensland earlier this year and Cyclone Yasi.

Narrated by Kieren Perkins, this has been produced by 360 Degree Films for National Geographic Channels International, where Head of Global Programming is expat David Lyle.

It will air a year after the terrible disasters.

In early 2011, a freak inland tsunami smashes through towns and cities, bringing widespread destruction across Queensland. Then cyclones batter the coastline, wreaking even further havoc.

Terrified Queenslanders pick up their cameras and film Mother Nature’s fury, posting the unbelievable images and videos on Facebook, YouTube and Twitter.

Now the jaw-dropping footage from those caught in the disaster is showcased in the moving special Australia’s Great Flood, to premiere Sunday January 15 at 8:30pm AEDT on National Geographic Channel.

Having played an active role in flood relief efforts, Australian swimming legend and native Queenslander, Kieren Perkins, brings a unique perspective to his narration of the special.

“I’ve seen firsthand the force with which this flood swept through people’s lives, wiping out their homes and livelihoods. This unembellished look at what Queenslanders went through as the waters rose and the way they came together to help each other in the aftermath, is a powerful tribute to Australians’ bravery and determination in the face of disaster,” he said.

Marty Warburton, whose video appears in the documentary, found himself at the centre of the action, climbing onto the roof of his submerged gas station in Grantham to film the drama unfolding around him.

“You’d honestly think it was a tall yarn. Even being through it, you seen it, you touched it, you tasted it, you felt it but the brain’s saying ‘no that couldn’t have happened’,” he said.

Relief efforts are still ongoing as communities across the state rebuild homes, businesses and public buildings. To donate to the Queensland Premier’s Disaster Relief Appeal, visit http://www.qld.gov.au/community/disasters/floods/donate/

Sunday January 15 at 8:30pm AEDT on National Geographic Channel.

2 Responses

  1. I *thought* there was something weird about that title, “Australia’s Greatest Flood”. The italicised press release calls it “Australia’s *Great* Flood”.

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