Queensland town of Sapphire evacuated as downpour sees creek rise nine metres in hours

Residents of a rural Queensland town have been evacuated as a huge downpour saw a nearby creek swell by nine metres in just a matter of hours.

An emergency flood alert was issued for Sapphire, a four-hour drive west of Rockhampton, at 4.44am this morning.

By 10.30am, 216mm had fallen on the region, causing Retreat Creek to rapidly rise from less than a metre deep to a peak of 9.85 metres.

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Homes in low-lying areas of the town were evacuated before dawn, and a number of people had to be rescued from the roofs of homes and cars.

Anakie-Sapphire Road has been closed and the town's caravan park had been evacuated.

Showers and storms are lashing much of the east coast of Australia today with the downpour set to continue into next week.

Parts of drought-affected central and southern Queensland are receiving some welcome rain, with some areas collecting their best falls in three years.

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The high-pressure system responsible for the downpur currently sitting in between New Zealand and Tasmania is expected to remain largely stationary into Sunday.

Weatherzone meteorologist Ben Domensino said the high is feeding moisure-laden air into eastern Australia, colliding with a number of low pressure troughs.

"These features will combine to create the perfect ingredients for widespread and heavy rain and thunderstorms inland parts of NSW and Queensland, as well as along the coast," Mr Domensino said.