NEWS.COM.AU REPORT- GENEROUS Australians swamped phone lines with about 12,000 calls within the first minute of last night's Flood Relief Appeal.
Many Queenslanders were bracing for more pain today as floodwaters continued to threaten the state.
Last night celebrities, sports stars and politicians came together to man the phones for the "Flood Relief Appeal Australia Unites" at a Brisbane call centre.
By show's end, $10,278,552 had been donated.
The support was so huge there were more than 12,000 calls within the first minute, crashing the phone system.
News Limited led the way for corporate donors, tipping in $500,000, a figure matched last night by the AFL.
The Commonwealth Bank, David Jones, Qantas and Holden also made major donations.
The largest donations came from the New South Wales and Victorian Governments, which each pledged $1 million.
And music promoter Michael Gudinski last night pledged to repeat the Black Saturday Sound Relief events to raise money for flood victims.
Hosted by Eddie McGuire, Leila McKinnon and Karl Stefanovic, the two-hour telethon included appearances from Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Terri and Bindi Irwin.
Country music star Troy Cassar-Daley, who performed at the telethon along with fellow artists Jessica Mauboy, Altiyan Childs, Kasey Chambers, Tina Arena, David Campbell and Lee Kernaghan, said those affected by the floods were doing it tough.
"It's not going to be an easy fix, so we need to do what we can to help these people," Cassar-Daley said.
Every dollar raised last night will go directly to victims of the devastating floods.
Co-host McGuire said there was much more to the telethon than the cash.
"To see the whole of Australia get behind Victoria (over the bushfires) was overwhelming," he said.
"As much as raising money is important, the big thing is for people who are stuck out there. . . to really know we are supporting them," he said.
The Socceroos pledged their support to flood victims, auctioning a signed Socceroos jersey on E-bay.
Star player Tim Cahill is understood to have offered return flights to England for two people to be his special guests at an Everton match.
All proceeds will go to the appeal.
Read more: http://www.news.com.au/national/deluge-of-donations-as-11m-in-pledges-pours-in-at-telethon-event-for-flood-victims/story-e6frfkvr-1225984693827#ixzz1AZZSEThm
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