Australian Weather News

Sunday 12 March 2000

Today's weather extremes

Highest rainfall, 24 hours to 9am

Other heavy NSW falls:
63.4 Kenebree Collerina
53.0 Mudgee AP
50.0 Nullo Mountain
49.2 Mudgee Town
45.8 Gulgong

Flood graphs for the Fitzroy River at Fitzroy Crossing (above) and the Gascoyne River at 9 Mile Bridge, south of Carnarvon (below). Both rivers spent close to 3 days within a few centimetres of their peaks. 10.0m should be deducted from the river heights to obtain true measurement.

Widespread flooding continues in northern, western and southern WA. In the Kimberley, Kununurra has been cut off by road for several days and is being supplied with essentials by air. The Fitzroy River at Fitzroy Crossing began to fall this afternoon after remaining close to peak for 3 days. The flood peak is expected to reach the sea at King Sound, near Derby, at the weekend.

In Carnarvon, on the west coast 800km north of Perth, the Gascoyne River has also been slow to drop from its peak yesterday afternoon. Electricity was restored to the east of the town today, but power has not yet been restored to the town's water bore pumps. A state of natural disaster was subsequently declared on 15 March, with $2.5m allocated to a Carnarvon flood recovery scheme. Some of the money was to restore top-soil washed from affected plantations and market gardens, and $200,000 to help owner-operated transport drivers stranded by floodwaters.

In the south, the South Coast Highway remains impassable at the Dalyup, Dalyup West and Lort River bridges between Esperance and Munglinup, and local flooding continues along the Great Eastern Highway between Southern Cross and Kalgoorlie-Boulder. Rain in the Dalyup area west of Esperance was heavy enough to remove topsoil and soil fertilizers from paddocks. Fences have been damaged and the crop-seeding program, due to begin in the area in six weeks, will be delayed.

In the NT, the 400 residents of Daly River community, 160km south of Darwin, began evacuation today as heavy overnight rain caused river banks to break. The river began flooding 10 days ago after heavy rain from TC Steve, but the see-sawing water level has made the decision to evacuate difficult. Police and defence force personnel are assisting the evacuation, with the Daly River expected to continue rising for another two days and water already a metre deep in low-lying houses.

In Queensland, flooding continues across the west of the state. In the south, heavy rain from Cunnamulla south and southwest into NSW has caused the Paroo River to rise again from yesterday's moderate flood peak to major flood levels at Humeburn. Moderate flooding is occurring on the Bulloo River between Quilpie and Thargomindah, on the lower Georgina River around Glenormiston, and moderate flooding on the lower Diamantina is approaching Birdsville. Floodwaters in Cooper Creek have passed Windorah and are approaching the SA/Qld border, fanning out over a labyrinth of channels. Moderate flooding is approaching Nappa Merrie station and is expected to continue into April. Moderate to major flooding is also easing in the lower Thomson River from Bogewong to Jundah.

In NSW, people in the lower Namoi River valley are preparing for moderate flooding in the Pilliga area. The Wee Waa to Pilliga road is closed by inundation and debris on the road, and helicopter drops of emergency supplies have been made to about 25 properties isolated by the flooding. The Warrego River peaked at Barringun, not far from Enngonia, at noon today with moderate flooding.

Highest & Lowest Temps

Greatest variations from normal

Wind gusts:
Cape Grim Tas: 96km/h at 11pm

Flood peaks:
Paroo at Humeburn Qld: 5.0m at 3pm with major flooding
Warrego at Barringun: about 3.1m at noon with moderate flooding

• Times stated are the clock time in force in the relevant state or territory

• Stories, including those in the archives, are as new and corrected information becomes available, with updates underlined

• Australian Weather News gratefully acknowledges the Bureau of Meteorology as the collector and main source of meteorological data in Australia, along with the thousands of observers who record the weather and rainfall daily. I also thank Don White and the many contributors to the Aussie Weather mailing list who routinely provide much appreciated information. River height graphs courtesy WA Water & Rivers Commission