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Sunday 9.50am: Road closures
- Waterfall Way 5km west of Bellingen;
- Bangalow Road between Bexhill and Lismore; and
- Cessnock Road between Gillieston Heights and Cliftleigh
The Bureau of Meteorology has issued the following:
► Minor flooding continues ease at Thora and Bellingen where the river height will fall below minor flood level during Sunday afternoon.
► The Macleay River at Kempsey peaked at 4.84 metres around 6:30 am Sunday morning and is now falling slowly, causing minor flooding.
At Smithtown the Macleay River is expected to peak slightly below its minor flood level (3.4 metres) around 9am Sunday morning.
River levels upstream of Kempsey are all falling.
► Minor flooding continues at Kindee Bridge where the river peaked near 6.9 metres around 7pm Saturday evening.
River level at Wauchope peaked near 3.68 metres around 3am Sunday morning with minor flooding.
►The Nambuc ca River at Macksville peaked at 1.94 metres during Saturday night and has continued to fall since then. The Sunday morning high tide has not produced any further rise and the river has now fallen below minor flood level.
The Nambucca River at Bowraville is also now below its minor flood level.
Saturday
Road closures in northern NSW at 7.45pm Saturday:
- Tamarind Drive near the Pacific Highway in Tintenbar.
- Summerland Way near Mongogarie Road in Leeville. Motorists are advised to divert via the Pacific Highway or New England Highway.
- Bangalow Road at Howards Grass.
- Oxley Highway at O'Neills Creek in Long Flat.
- Orara Way in Nana Glenn.
- Waterfall Way in Fernmount and Bellingen.
- Cessnock Road between Gillieston Heights and Cliftleigh.
BELLINGER RIVER 5.05pm: Rain has eased over the Bellinger River Valley since earlier this afternoon.
The Bellinger River at Thora has peaked at 5.4 metres with moderate flooding.
At Bellingen, the River has peaked at 7.95 metres with moderate flooding.
A minor flood peak is expected at Repton (2,5m at 5pm) and Ur unga (near 1.8m at 7pm) this evening.
MACLEAY RIVER: Up to 84 millimetres of rain has fallen during the past 6 hours to 3pm in the lower Macleay Valley. Rain rates have now eased considerably.
The heaviest falls have been recorded at Bellbrook and downstream.
Minor flooding is expected to develop at Kempsey on Saturday night.
At Smithtown the peak will be near minor flood level (3.4 metres) around 9am Sunday.
At this stage Bellbrook is expected to remain below its minor flood level of 6.5 metres.
HASTINGS RIVER: At the Kindee Bridge it is expected the peak of 7 metres will be hit around 6pm this evening with moderate flooding.
Wauchope exceeded minor flood level [2.5 metres] around 4pm Saturday and will reach 3.5 metres around 1am Sunday morning with minor flooding.
NAMBUCCA RIVER: At Macksville the river will reach moderate flood level (2.1 metres) around 8pm Saturday.
►►SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEOS
Earlier Saturday...
On Saturday morning flood warnings were current for several NSW coastal rivers from the Queensland border to Port Macquarie.
For the remainder of this event there is still a chance of minor flooding in the following river valleys developing during Saturday:
- Macleay River valley: Up to 73 millimetres of rain has fallen during the past 3 hours to 12 noon in the lower Macleay Valley. The heaviest falls have been recorded at Bellbrook and downstream. Minor flooding is expected to develop at Kempsey tonight.At this stage Bellbrook is expected to remain below its minor flood level of 6.5 metres.
- Manning River valley, including Gloucester
- Paterson and Williams River valleys
► Submitted footage of the Wilson River on Saturday afternoon:
►And from the Macleay:
►And, from the Upper Rollands Plains region of the Hastings Valley, this:
► Check out this clip of Dangar Falls at Dorrigo at 8am on Saturday:
10am Saturday: The low pressure centre over northeast NSW has weakened considerably over the past few hours, however a trough remains near the northern NSW coast and will continue to generate areas of rain today.
Heavy rain and thunderstorms which may lead to flash flooding are forecast for the Mid-North Coast, gradually contracting south and easing later in the day.
24-hour rain totals to 9am Saturday include:
Northern Rivers: Alstonville 237mm, Lismore 159mm, Wooli 157mm.
Mid North Coast: Girralong 249mm, Bellingen 246mm, Coffs Harbour 164mm
7am: Heavy rain and thunderstorms that might lead to flash flooding are forecast for parts of the Mid North Coast forecast district on Saturday morning.
The severe weather warning for heavy rain for the Northern Rivers and Northern Tablelands forecast districts has been cancelled, but the situation will continue to be monitored and further warnings will be issued if necessary. Damaging winds and surf are no longer expected.
Rainfall 9am Friday to 4am Saturday: Alstonville: 236 mm, Wooli: 153 mm, Coffs Harbour (Englands Road): 149 mm, Bellingen: 168 mm
Hastings River
Saturday 1pm: Up to 128 millimetres of rain has fallen in the last 24 hours to 9am today. Rainfall intensity has increased in the last 3 hours. An extra 50 millimetres of rain has fallen since that time in the upper catchment. River height predictions at Kindee Bridge have been raised to reflect this higher rainfall.
Some heavy showers are still occurring within the catchment.
Predicted River Heights/Flows:
Kindee Bridge - reach 5.5 metres around 6pm this evening with moderate flooding.
Saturday 10am: Up to 128 millimetres of rain has fallen in the last 24 hours to 9am Saturday.
Further rain is forecast for the next three to six hours.
Minor flooding is currently occurring at Kindee Bridge.
Predicted River Heights/Flows:
Kindee Bridge - with forecast rain reach 3.8 metres around 4pm this afternoon with minor flooding
Saturday 7am: Up to 100 millimetres of rain has fallen since 9am Friday. Further rain is forecast for the next six to nine hours.
Minor flooding is currently occurring at Kindee Bridge.
At this stage it is not possible to predict the flood peak because of uncertainty over how much more rain will fall.
Predicted River Heights/Flows:
Kindee Bridge - with forecast rain reach 3.6 metres around 3pm Saturday with minor flooding
Nambucca River
Saturday 2pm: Up to 310 millimetres of rain has fallen during the past 48 hours to 2pm today [02/05/15].
Further moderate falls are expected this afternoon.
Moderate flooding is occurring at Bowraville where the Nambucca River is at 7.7 metres. A moderate flood peak is expected at Macksville this evening.
Saturday 10am: Up to 290 millimetres of rain has fallen during the past 36 hours to 9am Saturday. However rain has intensified in the last six hours with up to 131 millimetres falling during this period, resulting in higher than expected flooding at Bowraville and downstream.
Further rain in the order of 20-40 millimetres is forecast for the next three hours.
Predicted River Heights/Flows:
Bowraville (Lanes Bridge) - reach 9.5 metres around 2pm Saturday with moderate flooding.
Macksville - reach moderate flood level (2.1 metres) around 7pm Saturday.
Saturday 7am: Up to 200 millimetres of rain has fallen during the past 30 hours to 5am Saturday.
This rain is expected to cause moderate flooding at Bowraville and minor flooding at Macksville on Saturday.
Predicted River Heights/Flows:
Bowraville (Lanes Bridge) - peak near moderate flood level (5.8 metres) Saturday morning.
Macksville - with forecast rain reach minor flood level (1.7 metres) around 9 am Saturday with the high tide.
Bellinger River
10.40am: Up to 323 millimetres of rain has fallen during the past 48 hours to 10am Saturday.
Rain has intensified in the last 6 hours with up to 137 millimetres falling in this period, resulting in higher than expected flooding. Further rain in the order of 20 to 40 millimetres is expected over the next three to six hours. Flood predictions have been revised upwards to reflect this rain.
The Bellinger River at Bellingen is currently at 7 metres and rising, with moderate flooding.
10am Saturday: Up to 280 millimetres of rain has fallen during the past 48 hours to 9am Saturday. However rain has intensified in the last six hours with up to 107 millimetres falling since 6am, resulting in higher than expected flooding.
Further rain in the order of 20 to 40 millimetres is expected over the next three hours. This forecast rain is expected to cause moderate flooding at Bellingen later on Saturday, and minor flooding at Repton and Urunga.
The Bellinger River at Thora is currently at 4.4 metres and rising, with moderate flooding.
Predicted River Heights/Flows:
Thora - Reach 5.3 metres around 3pm Saturday with moderate flooding.
Bellingen - Reach 7.2 metres around midday Saturday with moderate flooding.
Repton - Reach 2.1 metres around 3 pm Saturday with minor flooding.
Urunga - Kalang River - Reach 1.5 metres around 8pm Saturday with minor flooding.
7am Saturday: Up to 225 millimetres of rain has fallen during the past 27 hours to 7am Saturday. However rain has intensified in the last 3 hours with up to 47 millimetres falling since 4am.
The Bellinger River at Thora is currently at 4.4 metres and rising, with moderate flooding. Minor flooding is expected to continue at Bellingen on Saturday.
Predicted River Heights/Flows:
Thora - Reach 4.8 metres around midday Saturday with moderate flooding.
Bellingen - Reach 6.4 metres around 10am Saturday with minor flooding.
Urunga - Kalang River - with forecast rain reach minor flood level around 9am Saturday.
24-hour rainfall to 3pm Friday:
- Tumbulgum 113mm
- Uki 90mm
- Turners Flat (near Kempsey) 147 mm
- Coffs Harbour 105mm
- Bowraville 97mm
- Bellingen 101mm
- Alstonville 129mm
- Houghlahan's Creek (near Lismore) 135mm
A "flood watch" warning has been issued for a number of Mid-Coast rivers.
At this stage there is a greater than 70% chance of flooding in the following river valleys developing during Friday, Saturday and early Sunday:
- Tweed River valley - moderate to major flooding
- Brunswick River valley - moderate to major flooding
- Richmond and Wilsons River valley - moderate to major flooding
- Clarence River Valley, including the Orara River - minor to moderate flooding
- Coffs Harbour - minor to moderate flooding
- Bellinger and Kalang River valleys - moderate to major flooding
- Nambucca River valley - moderate to major flooding
- Macleay River valley - minor to moderate flooding
- Hastings River valley - minor to moderate flooding
- Camden Haven valley - minor to moderate flooding
- Manning River valley, including Gloucester - minor to moderate flooding
- Paterson and Williams River valleys - minor to moderate flooding
Moderate flood warning for the Bellinger River
Up to 70 millimetres of rain has fallen during the past 12 hours to 3pm Friday.
Further heavy rain in the order of 150 to 200 millimetres is forecast for the next 12 to 18 hours. This forecast rain is expected to cause moderate flooding at Thora and Bellingen overnight.
A Flood Watch for Moderate to Major flooding is current for the Bellinger River valley.
At this stage it is not possible to predict the flood peak because of uncertainty over how much more rain will fall.
Expected heights:
Thora - exceed moderate flood level (4.3 metres) around 6am Saturday. Further rises expected with predicted heavy rain.
Bellingen - exceed minor flood level (3.7 metres) around midnight Friday.