Australian state of Queensland hit by deadly flooding

hree people have died and hundreds of homes are under water after heavy rain brought flooding to parts of the Australian state of Queensland.

Bundaberg is expecting its worst floods ever - a mass evacuation is under way in part of the city, but hundreds of people are feared stranded.

In Brisbane, the state capital, almost 5,000 homes and properties are at risk.

The rain was brought by Tropical Cyclone Oswald, which is now affecting the northern part of New South Wales.

Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard has offered her condolences to the families of the flood victims.

More than 200,00 people are without power in Queensland.

In Brisbane, which was paralysed by flooding two years ago, water has been creeping into low-lying parts of the central business district.

Residents of the Lockyer Valley, which was the scene of deadly flash floods in 2011, have also been told to evacuate as creeks and rivers rise.

The town of Gympie has been cut off and dozens of businesses are underwater, ABC News reports, while hundreds of homes are threatened in Ipswich, where the Bremer River is expected to peak later in the day.