As floodwaters begin to recede across large parts of western Queensland, the destruction left in its wake is being revealed.Graziers around Jundah, Windorah, Quilpie and Eromanga have begun to assess the damage caused by the widespread flooding.Louise Hoch from Quilpie said a slight easing of floodwaters had brought her some relief, but she fears what it will show."I hate to know what we're going to see once it all goes down, it's going to be a mess," Mrs Hoch said."There's going to be so much destruction. I can't even fathom."It's such a huge area of Queensland and the road to recovery is going to be a long one."

Helicopter pilots have been busy moving cattle to dry or higher ground to get them out of floodwaters. (Supplied: Andrea Speed)

Mrs Hoch said seeing livestock and wildlife affected by floodwaters had been devastating.

"It really hit me when I saw the cattle floating down the lake," she said.

"They weren't our cattle, they were cattle from further north … they'd obviously come quite a way.

"You could just see them bobbing along like matchsticks, the water was roaring so hard.

"When you see them and you can hear them, it's absolutely heartbreaking."

Helicopter has become the only transport option as floodwaters surround Retreat Station near Jundah. (Supplied: Andrea Speed)

Ms Hoch said while that mob of cattle was moved to higher and drier ground by a passing helicopter pilot, other mobs hadn't been so lucky.

"Who knows how many more went past before we saw these ones."

It's not just the loss of livestock that will be hitting producers hard, according to Mrs Hoch.

"The fencing situation doesn't look good," she said.

"The fences are just wrecked … some have fallen over and other are just ripped and torn and gone. There's nothing there."

Thargomindah prepares for flood peak

Floodwaters are starting to arrive in the south-west Queensland town of Thargomindah.

Acting CEO of the Bulloo Shire Council Tamie Warner said parts of the town were seeing early flooding on Saturday afternoon.

"It's coming into area we expected them to come into," Ms Warner said.

A temporary levee has been dug to protect Thargomindah from rising floodwater. (Supplied: Bulloo Shire Council)

"It's started to come up the main street. There are still no houses inundated.

"The football oval is now completely full of water, the old caravan park's got water through there, which is what we were expecting."

The town is busy preparing for the peak in the coming days.

Outback Queensland flooding

South of Thargomindah, Anthony Glasson is waiting anxiously as water from the Bulloo River makes its way towards his property. 

"It [normally] takes about seven days for the water to get here, but the intensity and the speed it's going it will get here quicker," he said.

Producers have been trying to move their livestock to higher ground where possible. (Supplied: Christie Edwards)

"We don't know how big and how serious it's going to be.

"This is such an unknown what's coming at us."

While Mr Glasson had time to shift livestock to higher ground, many of his neighbours upstream did not get the chance.

"The livestock losses are going to be absolutely astronomical," he said. 

Bureau of Meteorology forecaster Jonathan How says more peaks are expected early next week but it could be longer before the water subsides fully.

"There is still a lot of water coming downstream," Mr How said.

"We're talking about even possibly a month or two to reach down into South Australia, Kati Thanda–Lake Eyre.

"It's a very long duration event."

Floodwaters from south-west Queensland will drain into Kati Thanda-Lake Eyre during the coming months. (ABC News: Tom Saunders)

Unprecedented flood event

Standing in knee-deep water while waiting for the State Emergency Service (SES) rescue boat to arrive, Karhlia Smith said it was the first time floodwater had inundated the farmhouse at Hammond Downs, about 25 kilometres east of Windorah. 

Floodwaters surround the outback community of Windorah. (Supplied: OBE Organic)

"I spent last night on the back of my ute in the shed with the dogs because their kennels went under and there's not a lot of dry ground," she said.  

"This flood event is not following any rules. 

"We could expect it to still rise for another, possibly three to four days … I don't really know where it's going to go from here."

It would be weeks before the extent of the losses for properties like Retreat Station, near Jundah, is known.  (Supplied: Andrea Speed)

Now safely relocated with the farm dogs to Windorah, Ms Smith held out hope her livestock would also make it through. 

"My head is telling me that I have to go … but my heart, my heart says I need to stay," she said. 

"I know that I can't really achieve much by staying, it's just home is where your heart is and where your livelihood is and you want to look after it.

"I think we're going to be quite lucky compared to our neighbours … I'm hearing reports of much higher stock losses, 50 per cent or more, which is quite devastating."

SES personnel have been using boats to relocate flood victims. (Supplied: Central Region SES)

But she said it would be weeks before the full impact was known.