Flood Watch Issued for Top End and East Kimberley as Cyclone Narelle Approaches
This alert is no longer in effect.
BOM issued it on April 5, 2026, 4 months ago. Warnings of this kind stay in effect for hours to a few days, so this page is a historical record of what was issued, not a current warning. For conditions where you are right now, check weather.gov (US), weather.gc.ca (Canada), the Met Office (UK), or the Bureau of Meteorology (Australia).
Areazine synthesizes this BoM weather warning directly from BOM's official public data feed. See our methodology for full source attribution and refresh cadence.
The Bureau of Meteorology has issued a flood watch for the Top End and East Kimberley regions, warning of potential major flooding as Severe Tropical Cyclone Narelle moves toward the Northern Territory.
Read this weather record in 30 seconds
- Record type
- Flood Watch
- Affected area
- Top End and East Kimberley
- Issued
- April 5, 2026
- Issuing authority
- BOM
Flood notices turn on location and timing. Treat the named area as this record's scope; do not assume nearby counties, parishes, or waterways were included.
Record status: historical. It was issued 4 months ago; use the issuing agency's live warning service for current conditions in Top End and East Kimberley.
Flood Watch Issued for Top End and East Kimberley as Cyclone Narelle Approaches
Alert Details
The Australian Government Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) has issued a Flood Watch (Number 2) for multiple catchments across the Top End and East Kimberley regions. This alert serves as early advice for possible flooding due to the approach of Severe Tropical Cyclone Narelle.
Affected Areas
The following catchments are included in the flood watch:
- Northern Territory: Katherine River, Daly River (above and below Douglas River), Waterhouse River, Adelaide River (upper and below town), Mary River, Wildman River, South Alligator River, East Alligator River, Goomadeer River, Liverpool River, Blyth River, Goyder River, Buckingham River, Koolatong River, Walker River, Roper River, Tiwi Islands, Groote Eylandt, Moyle River, and Fitzmaurice River.
- Western Australia/Northern Territory Border: East Kimberley Rivers and Victoria River below Kalkarindji (flooding more likely in northern parts).
Major flood warnings are currently in effect for the Katherine, Lower Daly, and Waterhouse catchments.
Expected Conditions
Severe Tropical Cyclone Narelle has crossed the Queensland coast and is forecast to continue moving west across the Gulf of Carpentaria before impacting the Northern Territory over the weekend. The system is expected to bring widespread heavy to locally intense rainfall to parts of the Top End. Because catchments are already wet to saturated, rivers and creeks are expected to respond rapidly, with the potential for additional areas of minor to major flooding to develop starting Sunday.
What You Should Do
Residents in the affected areas are advised to take the following precautions:
- Do not drive, walk, swim, or play in floodwater as it is dangerous.
- Stay away from flooded drains, rivers, streams, and waterways.
- Obey all road closure signs and plan ahead to avoid driving on flooded roads.
- Monitor the ABC and local media for updates as the situation can change quickly.
- For emergency assistance, contact the SES at 132 500. In life-threatening emergencies, call 000 immediately.
- Visit www.securent.nt.gov.au for local emergency management warnings and advice.
Timeline
The flood watch was issued at 10:55 am ACST on Friday, March 20, 2026. Potential major flooding is expected to develop from Sunday as the cyclone impacts the region. The Bureau of Meteorology expects to issue the next update by 1:00 pm ACST on Saturday, March 21, 2026.
Original source: BOM Official Notice ↗
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