Check your risk
Understand your risk from flooding, storms, bushfires and heatwaves, and access tools and information to help you prepare.
.jpg/_jcr_content/renditions/cq5dam.web.1280.1280.jpeg)
Everyone living in or visiting Brisbane needs to be aware of the risk of severe weather and natural disasters.
Brisbane is a river city with a subtropical climate. This means you can experience intense storms in spring and in the hot, humid summer months. In winter, you can expect dry and mild conditions.
Brisbane’s climate and unique landscape make it prone to severe weather events. Occasionally, these events cause natural disasters.
Natural disasters and emergencies in Brisbane
The most common types of natural disasters experienced in Brisbane include:
- flooding from heavy rainfall
- severe storms, with the risk of large hail, damaging winds and heavy rainfall
- bushfires
- heatwaves.
Knowing your risk can help you protect yourself, your family, your home and your business.
Use the tools on this page to check your risk so you can prepare for an emergency.
Other types of disasters
Visit the Get Ready Queensland website for information on what to do before, during and after these other types of disaster events:
Check your flood risk
Brisbane is naturally at risk of flooding due to its:
- location on the floodplain of the Brisbane River
- network of creek catchments
- terrain featuring low-lying areas
- subtropical weather patterns, including a storm season which typically runs from October to March.
Flood Awareness Map
Council’s Flood Awareness Map helps you understand your flood risk. It shows the likelihood of flooding on your property from different sources.
The Flood Awareness Map is based on data from the latest flood studies and models endorsed by Council.
The map:
- covers the Brisbane Local Government Area
- shows possible flood extents, based on the best data available to Council
- shows historic flood events.
Understanding flood likelihood and impact
Before using the Flood Awareness Map, it is important to understand the terms 'flood likelihood' and 'impact'.
These terms are used in the map and are how Council explain's the chances of floods occurring and the effect of floods on people and property.
How to use the Flood Awareness Map
- Search your property using your address, lot plan or suburb.
- Toggle the map layers to view the likelihood (very low – high) of different types of flooding.
- Use the map layers to see if your property was affected by past flood events.
- View the legend and definitions to help you understand the map layers.
Visit the Bureau of Meteorology website for general information on floods and flood safety. You can also find warnings and alerts for significant weather events in your area, including floods.
The Bureau of Meteorology has its own terms and conditions of use. Council makes no statements, representations or warranties about the accuracy, correctness, timeliness, completeness of fitness for any purpose or use of information contained on the Bureau of Meteorology’s website.
Types of flooding
There are 4 common types of flooding in Brisbane. Learn about the different flood types to understand:
- causes of flooding in Brisbane
- where and when flooding is likely to happen
- floodwater behaviour.
You can also watch our video on the types of flooding in Brisbane.
Creek flooding is caused by heavy rainfall over or near a creek catchment. Run-off from houses and streets can also contribute by adding to the water already in the creek.
River flooding can also impact creek levels. Floodwater can rise quickly and be very fast moving, and then recede quickly.
Living in low-lying areas located close to a creek can increase your risk of flooding.
River flooding is caused by prolonged rainfall over the river catchment. Floodwater can rise very slowly.
Flooding downstream can happen hours or days after the rain has stopped. High tides can exacerbate river flooding.
Overland flow flooding is caused when excess rainwater flows over land. This usually happens during heavy rainfall in storm season.
Overland flow flooding is less predictable because it’s affected by localised rainfall, the landscape and urban features (e.g. roads, stormwater pipes, fences and other structures).
It generally occurs quickly and lasts for short periods of time.
Storm tide and high tide flooding is caused by rising sea levels associated with storm surges or full/new moon high tides.
Flooding impacts low-lying areas and streets close to tidal waterways (Brisbane River and creeks) and foreshores. The closer you live to these low-lying areas, the higher your risk of flooding.
Other flooding hazards
Flash flooding is flooding characterised by fast-moving and rapidly rising water levels. It’s often caused by periods of intense rainfall and can develop within minutes or hours.
Dams in the Brisbane Local Government Area are designed to spill when they reach capacity. This can lead to localised flooding and road closures. If you live downstream of a dam, you are at a higher risk of flooding from dam spills.
For alerts on dam releases from Seqwater dams, visit Seqwater.
Learn more about Council owned dams.
Backflow devices reduce the chance of water flowing back up stormwater drainage. Flooding from other sources can still occur where backflow devices are in place. This depends on the location and conditions.
Learn more about backflow devices.
Be bushfire aware
The risk of bushfires is highest during the hotter and drier months of the year.
South East Queensland’s bushfire season typically runs from August to December. This can vary depending on the condition of local bushland, long-term climate conditions and other weather events.
You don’t have to live in the bush to be threatened by bushfires, just close enough to be affected by burning material, embers and smoke.
Smoke from bushfires can make it hard for some people to breathe. Learn how to protect yourself from smoke.
Search your postcode
People living in bushland or rural residential areas are at higher risk of bushfires. However, smoke, embers and burning materials can impact urban areas, too.
You can check your area’s bushfire risk using the Queensland Fire Department’s postcode checker.
Planned burns
We conduct planned burns to maintain the health of our bushland and lessen the risk of wildfires.
Planned burns reduce the amount of materials that can fuel fires, such as dead wood. They are sometimes called hazard reduction burns.
Learn more about planned burns in Brisbane.
Be prepared for heatwaves
Heatwaves are Brisbane’s fourth highest priority natural hazard, and the deadliest. They cause more deaths than any other natural hazard and can also increase the risk of bushfires.
Extreme heat in Brisbane is most likely to occur between November and March, though it can occur at any time.
A heatwave occurs when the maximum and minimum temperatures are unusually hot over 3 or more days for a specific location. It's not just about hot days — how much it cools down overnight also matters.
Cooler nights help the body recover from daytime heat. When overnight temperatures stay high, the next day can heat up faster and stay hotter for longer.
During a heatwave, hot nights make it harder for the body to cool down and recover. This can increase stress on your health.
Who is most at risk?
Heatwaves can affect everyone, but some people are more at risk of heat-related health illness. This includes babies and young people, the elderly, pregnant and breastfeeding women, people with medical conditions, and those who work outdoors.
Make sure you are prepared for heatwaves by checking for heatwave warnings from the Bureau of Meteorology.
How to beat the heat
You can get more hot weather health and safety advice from the Queensland Government.
Frequently asked questions
There are steps you can take to prepare your home, family and business for emergencies in Brisbane. These include checking your risk, packing an emergency kit and having an emergency plan in place.
Council’s Flood Awareness Map is updated regularly as new flood studies are completed. Details of recent map updates are provided on the Flood Awareness Map home page.
Changes to Brisbane City Plan 2014 are a regulated process and updating data into the Flood overlay map may take longer to implement.
The Queensland Government has a range of tools and resources to help assess your risk. Visit Get Ready Queensland.
