Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Hansard source

We do continue to see severe weather occur in many parts of Australia with the high-risk weather season not yet over. Even today, we see bushfires in some parts of Western Australia and floods in some parts of Queensland. But, of course, most focus is on the situation in the Northern Territory. In Borroloola, the McArthur River, already at the record-breaking height of 17.6 metres, is likely to peak between 3 pm and 6 pm today.

In response to requests from the Northern Territory government, the Commonwealth has worked quickly to activate the ADF, and we have now improved a number of requests for additional assistance over the past four days. Around 200 vulnerable community members have been evacuated from Borroloola to Darwin in the past 24 hours, with planning underway for possible evacuations at Timber Creek, Lajamanu, Kalkaringi and Pigeon Hole. The level of flooding in Borroloola and across the Northern Territory is extremely concerning. I encourage all community members to heed the advice of officials and take decisive action early. We will continue to work with the Northern Territory government to keep people safe. (Time expired)