Major Flood Warning Issued for Waterhouse and Roper Rivers in Northern Territory
This alert is no longer in effect.
BOM issued it on April 6, 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 major flood warning for the Waterhouse River at Beswick Bridge, where water levels are expected to peak near 9.50 meters on Friday.
Read this weather record in 30 seconds
- Record type
- Flood Warning
- Affected area
- Northern Territory
- Issued
- April 6, 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 Northern Territory.
Alert Details
The Australian Government Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) has issued a Major Flood Warning for the Waterhouse River and a Flood Warning for the Roper River. This update (Warning Number 6) was issued at 11:52 am ACST on Friday, March 6, 2026, following significant river level rises caused by recent heavy rainfall.
Affected Areas
The primary impact zone includes the Waterhouse River catchment, specifically around Beswick Bridge, and the Roper River catchment below Elsey Creek. Elevated river levels are being reported throughout the broader Roper River catchment in the Northern Territory. A Flood Watch also remains current for parts of the Bonaparte, North West Coastal, and Carpentaria Coastal River catchments.
What You Should Do
Residents and travelers in the affected regions are urged to take the following safety precautions:
- Do not drive, walk, swim, or play in floodwaters as they are extremely dangerous.
- Stay away from flooded drains, rivers, streams, and all waterways.
- Strictly obey all road closure signs and plan travel to avoid flooded routes.
- Monitor the ABC and local media for further updates.
- For emergency assistance, contact the SES at 132 500. In life-threatening situations, call 000 immediately.
- Visit www.securent.nt.gov.au for local emergency management advice.
Expected Conditions
Major flooding is currently occurring at Beswick Bridge. As of 11:45 am Friday, the river level at Beswick Bridge was recorded at 9.24 meters and rising. Forecasters expect the river to reach approximately 9.50 meters late Friday afternoon or into the evening. Meanwhile, the Waterhouse River at Diljin Hill was recorded at 5.78 meters and falling as of 10:45 am Friday. Further rainfall is forecast over the next several days, which may lead to renewed river level rises.
Timeline
The major flood peak at Beswick Bridge is expected from late Friday afternoon, March 6, 2026. The Bureau of Meteorology will continue to monitor the situation closely and expects to issue the next warning update by 9:00 PM ACST on Friday evening.
Original source: BOM Official Notice ↗
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