The eye-opening images that show how desperate the situation is in Townsville.

A new threat has emerged in the Townsville flooding disaster, with supermarkets stripped of all of their fresh produce, water and nappies.

While the majority of Coles and Woolworths stores remain open in the region, their stock is selling out at a rapid pace.

Shelves are starting to look very bare, with fear locals could soon go hungry.

It's forced retailers to take drastic action with 300 tonnes of stock set to arrive on Thursday, on board a barge.

Coles is sending groceries by plane to Cairns which are being trucked into the disaster zone today.

The two charter planes have been packed full of 40 tonnes worth of supplies.

More than 1000 Townsville residents remain holed up in nearby evacuation centres as they await news of their homes which are currently underwater.

Unfortunately, they could be there a while.

The rain is showing no signs of slowing after being unrelenting for nine days. Clear skies not expected until the end of next weekend.

1134ml has already been recorded, which is more than a year’s worth of rainfall.

However the floodwaters are slowly receding which has allowed the Bruce highway to be reopened in some areas.

But while they've been able to reach Townsville, Coles admits getting any higher could prove difficult while the rain persists.

The lack of supplies has led to panicked Queenslanders frantically buying up big of everything that's left, further exacerbating the problem.