Lismore Mayor Steve Krieg has been a rock for his community.

But behind the scenes, he is grappling with the same devastating loss as many people in his community.

Mr Krieg returned to his home and business to discover he had lost almost everything to floodwaters.

LIVE UPDATES: Thousands evacuated as rain bomb unleashes on Sydney

When he first walked into his food business, he was hit by a strong smell, which was the result of a lack of power to his coolroom and freezers.

"It's just heartbreaking," he said.

"Only five years ago to the month that we were affected by a major flood.

"We thought we had done everything right to prepare for this one.

"You think you're doing the right thing.

"A lot of bad things happen to pretty good people."

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Mr Krieg said he would have a "good bawl for half an hour or so to take it all in".

He is one of the many who have been reduced to tears as they process their losses and the road to recovery that lies ahead.

"You've got to absorb what's happened, you've got to realise what's happened," he said.

"I'm just one of many, many thousands and thousands of people.

"There are hearts broken like mine all over this city, but we'll come back, we'll bounce back."

'Completely unimaginable' few days

Olivia Brown "can't even put into words" what the last few days have been like for her and her neighbours in the NSW town of Coraki.

"Monday was honestly the most traumatic day of all of our lives, saving what we could, leaving behind what we knew and just getting to safety," she said.

"Just trying to save ourselves, really.

"But we are alive and that is all that matters."

Ms Brown was up all night watching the local river.

Her mother is a vet and she was away at work.

As a result, Ms Brown was home alone with her two younger siblings and the many animals on the property.

"Come Monday morning, our banks broke," Ms Brown said.

"Within half an hour I was up to waist-deep water trying to save what animals I could because we do have a lot of animals.

"We were stuck for roughly five hours, just waiting, trying to call (for help). We had no reception to call Triple Zero or SES or anyone really.

"We just honestly didn't think we would survive but luckily a nearby SES boat saw us.

"We had 15 adults on the boat and around 10 animals.

"We eventually got to Coraki to an evacuation centre on a little strip of land that nearly went under. I was there for three days."

Clean-up continues

The clean-up is underway in Lismore as floodwaters recede, with the death toll expected to rise as crews search ravaged homes.

Four people are confirmed dead after the town experienced the worst flooding in its history.

There are currently half a million people across the state who are subject to evacuation orders and warnings.

There are 76 evacuation orders in place in NSW, impacting 200,000 people.

An additional 18 evacuation warnings are also in place, affecting nearly 300,000 people.

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The Clarence Valley town of Maclean is urgently preparing to be impacted by floodwaters.

Engineers have indicated there is a chance the town's levee wall will fail, causing large-scale inundation throughout the town.

NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet said many people were waking up today to see "much of the state underwater".

"It has been an incredibly difficult evening," he said.

"I want to acknowledge the trauma and suffering that many people have gone through, throughout the evening, having to leave their homes in the middle of the night.

"But my message to you is that we will get through this."

READ MORE: Evacuation orders in Sydney and across NSW as rain continues

Where you can get help

As flooding continues to hit homes and businesses, there are ways you can get help.

The following are support services for flood-affected individuals:

• Triple Zero (000) for police, fire and ambulance in an emergency
• State Emergency Service on 132 500 for flood assistance
• The Agriculture and Animal Services Hotline on 1800 814 647 for stock or animal welfare issues
• Red Cross on 1800 733 276 to connect with the service to register, find and reunite people after an emergency
• Services Australia on 180 22 66 to find out if you are eligible for disaster recovery payments
• Resilience NSW on 13 77 88 to find out if you're eligible for a disaster relief grant in New South Wales
• Community Recovery Hotline on 1800 173 349 for information and support in Queensland
• Lifeline on 13 11 14 for mental health support

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Parents in south-east Queensland have been urged to collect their children from schools, as the Bureau of Meteorology warns of more incoming storms and wet weather in the flood-hit region.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said more wet weather and severe storms were expected in the south-east over the next two days, urging residents to stay home where possible.

Ms Palaszczuk encouraged parents in the Northern Moreton Bay region, the Sunshine Coast, Gympie and Wide Bay to Bundaberg regions to collect their children from school and take them home.

READ MORE: When will it stop raining in NSW and Queensland?

"Children are safe at school but you should collect your children when it is safe to do so," Ms Palaszczuk said.

Children of essential workers may remain at school.

Across Queensland, 106 schools have been closed due to flooding, including Rocklea State School, Ipswich State High School and Waterford State School in Logan.

LIVE: Thousands told to evacuate in parts of Sydney

"The conditions are going to be unstable for the next 24 to 48 hours all the way across the south-east. I'm urging people to stay home if they can," Ms Palaszczuk said.

"These are unprecedented times. We will get through it together but it is of course a very concerning time.

"We do not want to be sending people to rescue you at midnight tonight when we expect those storms to come in."

The Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) said severe conditions would continue in the state's south-east today, with ongoing wet conditions causing already saturated rivers to rise.

In Brisbane, 48mm of rain was recorded in 30 minutes.

"This is a very dangerous and potentially life-threatening situation for south-east Queensland," the BoM said.

"Any rainfall that falls in the south east will renew these river rises and creeks will respond very quickly.

"They do not have the capacity to take on any more water.

"That's why today it is a very serious and dangerous situation."

https://twitter.com/BOM_Qld/status/1499171466407026705

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Residents of south-east Queensland have been urged to follow weather broadcasts and the warnings of their local councils, and to download the Bureau of Meteorology app.

Brisbane's north and low-lying areas near creeks and rivers are of particular concern, with all urged to avoid floodwaters and stay indoors.

Those inundated by floodwaters and conducting clean-ups are also advised to get their tetanus shot if not up do date, due to the high risk of infection from floodwaters.

Storms to hit Queensland

Two dangerous storm cells are lashing Queensland as the state embarks on a mammoth flood clean-up operation.

The BoM earlier issued warnings for "giant hailstones", intense rainfall and damaging winds as storms hit Ipswich and Brisbane this morning.

Brisbane, Gold Coast, Toowoomba, Sunshine Coast and the Scenic Rim have been placed on alert, with the areas not yet out of the woods regarding wild weather.

Queensland Fire and Emergency Services Deputy Commissioner Mike Wassing said there were three types of operations concurrently being carried out.

"We've got the large floodwater operations … we've still got a number of tasks of support and resupply occurring with those areas and those communities," he said.

"Then we have a massive clean-up."

A significant storm has hit Beerwah and Landsborough areas, with roads saturated and a number of trees uprooted.

Fallen powerlines have scattered roads and several properties are without power.

Residents have attempted to chainsaw their way out of their homes as trees fall across driveways.

Father-of-two Sean told 9News he sheltered his two children under the doorway when the storm cell hit early this morning.

"It felt like a cyclone, it was a little scary," he said.

"We got the kids up and put them under the biggest doorframe we had.

"We can see the massive trees behind us, which just missed our bedroom, so lucky we got up when we did."

Giant hail up to six centimetres in size has pelted down in the rural town of Dalby, north-west of Brisbane, with wind gusts of 93km/h recorded.

Brisbane is expected to have about 100mm of rain bucket down as the storm cell hits throughout today.

READ MORE: Queensland girl found after Amber Alert issued

Garbage and debris can be seen floating down the streets of the Brisbane suburb of Auchenflower, with residents in disbelief over the disaster.

Today reporter Jessica Millward said the south-east was being smashed by separate, violent storm systems.

Millward was in Auchenflower when water started pouring from stormwater drains lining the street.

"There's separate systems popping up. One slammed into the Sunshine Coast this morning, and we're hearing reports that homes have been destroyed in Landsborough and there's huge hail there," she said.

She said bone-dry streets were flooded in just half an hour after a fierce storm tore through, with 48mm falling in just 30 minutes in Brisbane.

READ MORE: When is it going to stop raining?

"These streets were completely dry. There were piles of people's belongings that they've spent hours and hours picking out from their flooded homes," Millward said.

"They were all lined up ready for the council to collect as they were arriving here, council were getting ready with their bobcats then the rain came teeming down, and these properties were flooded once again."

Floodwaters were seen rushing into homes, with one family only moving into their new home just last week.

They were forced to evacuate as floodwaters rose.

"I can't believe this is happening again," the woman yelled from her balcony.

Residents have been told to stay on alert and listen out for evacuation warnings.

READ MORE: How you can help with the flood crisis in Queensland and NSW

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