Toowoomba mother, son to be buried together

Jordan Rice

About 150 mourners gathered in Toowoomba today for a funeral for a mother and son killed in the flash floods that tore through the Queensland town.

The large gathering is to farewell Donna Rice, 43, and Jordan, 13, who were swept from the roof of their car in the CBD after a rescuer's rope snapped when the flood hit last Monday.

They will be buried in the same grave at the Drayton and Toowoomba Cemetery, together forever, Ms Rice's partner John Tyson has said.

"It's symbolic of him being in his mother's arms," Mr Tyson told The Courier Mail.

"There's no way Donna would have let one of her kids go by himself.

"If there is only one bit of comfort I can take out of the whole situation, it is that neither of them will be alone."

The couple's other son Blake, 10, will be there to farewell his mother and brother, who insisted he was rescued first.

"Jordan can't swim and is terrified of water," Mr Tyson said last week.

"But when the man went to rescue him, he said 'save my brother first'.

"I can only imagine what was going on inside to give up his life to save his brother, even though he was petrified of water."

The graveside service began at 1pm (NZT).

Coloured balloons were handed to family and friends as they gathered for the service.

- AAP