Rain is easing in the north of the state, while central Queensland communities are now bracing for downpours as the system widens.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese – who is currently in Townsville visiting flood-ravaged communities – has described the situation in North Queensland as “tough”.

Queensland’s flood watch zone has been extended as the state’s north prepares for a more rain, which could hamper recovery efforts in the already hard-hit and waterlogged parts of the coast.

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Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is expected to visit Far North Queensland today with plans to visit the flood-affected communities. Two people have died, and hundreds of properties, businesses and farmland have been hit with a deluge of rain in a catastrophic wet weather event.

More extreme rainfall and higher frequencies of flooded rivers and flash floods around the world have a clear link to climate change and ongoing global heating.

The atmospheric factors behind north Queensland's deadly floods are very similar to recent floods in the region — and climate change is likely playing a role.

There was no destructive cyclone, yet a set of unfavourable ingredients caused a fairly common weather system to wreak havoc in northern Queensland this week. So what happened to make it so severe? And should we be more heightened to the risks of tropical lows?