Aussie towns saved from floods

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Floodwaters are being channelled into vast storage dams on the NSW-Queensland border, saving towns there from major flooding.

Rivers at Narran, Hebel and Hungerford are rising and the weather bureau expects this to continue, with flooding developing during the remainder of the week.

The Bureau of Meteorology says storage dams that service large rural properties are soaking up much of the water, saving towns such as Hebel from widespread inundation.

"We are not seeing the rises as much at Hebel," bureau spokesman Paul Birch said.

"There seems to be a lot of capture and storage from irrigation properties."

The nation's biggest irrigator, Cubbie Station, is north of Hebel near the town of Dirranbandi and is benefiting greatly from the flood.

In southwest Queensland, a major clean-up continues in Roma and Charleville where floodwaters have all but disappeared.

South of Roma, floodwaters are slowly receding at St George but several homes remain inundated.

The Department of Communities has set up a community recovery centre at the St George Cultural Centre to help flood-affected residents and property owners.

Downstream from St George, the Dirranbandi township has escaped inundation with its levee banks holding.

The bureau says floodwaters have peaked at 5.3 metres at Dirranbandi and are expected to hold steady, remaining above five metres until early next week.

In central Queensland, floodwaters are concentrated in the Lower Dawson River between Moura and Baralaba.

Floodwaters have steadied at 13.38 metres at Theodore, west of Bundaberg.

Queensland Rail (QR) officials, including chief executive Lance Hockridge, on Wednesday inspected damaged lines in the Roma and Charleville areas.

Dozens of rail line sections have been damaged in the floods, but Mr Hockridge said QR had still managed to deliver about 150 tonnes of freight by road to Roma, Mitchell, Charleville, Cunnamulla and Quilpie.

Meanwhile, flood-hit residents have been warned to beware of dodgy handymen and charity collectors trying to make a quick buck during the cleanup.

Fair Trading Minister Peter Lawlor said homeowners should beware of door-to-door traders and fake charities who often preyed on people's hardships and generosity during natural disasters.

"They seem to use natural disasters as an opportunity to take advantage of people's good will and good intentions," he said.

- AAP