Brisbane is now headed for its worst flood since 1893, with thousands of properties to be inundated.
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A disaster declaration had been made for the lower half of the state, including the greater Brisbane area, giving authorities forced evacuation powers if necessary.
Queensland Premier Anna Bligh said flood levels in Brisbane would reach 3m tonight, but go far higher tomorrow, eventually exceeding the level of the 1974 floods, the city's worst of the 20th century.
"By Wednesday high tide, tomorrow afternoon at about 3 o'clock, we will see it at 4.5 metres and the current predictions indicate that the river will continue to rise into Thursday, with flood levels expected higher than the 1974 peak.
"The flood reached a peak of 5.45 metres in 1974. Our current modelling shows that with continued rain into Thursday, we will see the levels of the river reach higher than that."
Lord Mayor Campbell Newman also warned that the worst of Brisbane’s flooding was yet to come, with Thursday likely to be "devastating".
Cr Newman said latest flood modelling suggested 6500 properties could be inundated, with 16,500 to be only partially affected by floods.
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Ms Bligh said authorities would be holding two-hourly media conferences from this afternoon to keep the public informed of the changing situation.
‘‘We are facing one of our toughest ever tests,’’ she said.
‘‘We will only pass this test if we are calm, if we are patient with each other ... and if we listen carefully to the instructions we are being given.
‘‘Now is not a time for panic, now is the time for us to stick together.’’
Today, Caboolture became completely isolated while Ipswich was warned that up to one third of the city could go under water.
Brisbane's road network became clogged as CBD employers sent their workers home, in a large-scale self-evacuation.
Cr Newman said the rain had continued and the forecast for the expected flood impact had worsened since yesterday.
"The situation has obviously demonstratively deteriorated significantly," Cr Newman said.
"Today [the flooding] is very significant, tomorrow is bad and Thursday is going to be devastating for the residents and businesses concerned."
Earlier today, authorities pleaded for people not to panic as commuters rushed to leave the CBD on employers' orders.
In surrounding areas, Ipswich mayor Paul Pisasale said up to one-third of that city could be flooded when the Bremer River peaked.
Caboolture has been completely isolated, with cuts to the Bruce Highway between the Sunshine Coast and Brisbane.
Cr Newman said the operators of the Wivenhoe Dam were facing a "huge challenge".
"They have a dam that is essentially full for flood mitigation purposes," he said.
"And they now have to discharge that water ... because more is on the way.
"Wivenhoe has protected Brisbane over the last few weeks from flooding.
"Unfortunately the big shock absorber that is that dam is now full.
"Whatever happens in that upper catchment is going to have a significant impact on Brisbane."
