A freight train has been derailed at Nelia 60km east of Julia Creek.
The train has been stuck in the floods for week but several of the carriages have been dislodged from the railway track on Thursday as the flood waters rose.
With the site surrounded by hundreds of metres of water if not kilometres, no one can get in to access the site and fix the problem.
QFES Mount Isa Area Director Elliot Dunn said the train was carrying mining product and was not a threat to the public.
“There are two houses in Nelia and they were evacuated early Thursday due to the rising flood waters,” Mr Dunn said.
“With the amount of water there it could be days and days before anyone gets in to repatriate the site.”
Ahead of the derailment Queensland Rail CEO Nick Easy said they were experiencing a number of impacts to its regional network due to the heavy rainfall and flooding in Northern Queensland, with both customer and freight services impacted in affected areas.
“The Mount Isa line, between Townsville and Mount Isa, is closed to both freight and customer services, including the Phosphate Hill branch line,” Mr Easy said.
“Queensland Rail crews will conduct inspections of the affected lines once flooding subsides and it is safe for crews to access the track to assess the damage.”