Forecast

Australian Government Bureau of Meteorology, National Water Operations

Minor Flood Warning For The Suttor River
Issued at 09:13 AM AEST on Thursday 19 March 2026
Flood Warning Number: 11

MINOR FLOODING OCCURRING AT ST ANNS
Moderate rainfall during last week over parts of the Belyando and Suttor River catchments caused river level rises in the upper catchment. As flows arrive from upstream, minor flooding is occurring along the Suttor River at St Anns.

Belyando and Suttor Rivers to Burdekin Falls Dam:
Minor flooding is occurring along the Suttor River.
The Suttor River at St Anns is currently at 4.00 m and steady, with minor flooding.
The Suttor River at St Anns is likely to peak around the minor flood level (4.00 m) Thursday morning.

Flood Safety Advice:
Don't drive, walk, swim or play in floodwater because it is dangerous.
Stay away from flooded drains, rivers, streams and waterways.
Obey road closure signs. Plan ahead so you don't drive on flooded roads.
Check the ABC and local media for updates. The situation can change quickly, so stay informed.
For local emergency management warnings and advice visit www.disaster.qld.gov.au/warnings.}
For emergency assistance call SES on telephone number 132 500. In life-threatening emergencies, call 000 (triple zero) immediately.

Next issue:
The next warning will be issued by 12:00 PM AEST on Friday 20 March 2026.

Latest River Heights:
Burdekin River at Mt Fullstop,3.00,steady,8:00 am Thu 19/03/26
Paluma Dam,0.08,steady,8:39 am Thu 19/03/26
Star River at Laroona,1.90,steady,8:00 am Thu 19/03/26
Burdekin River at Gainsford,3.42,steady,8:00 am Thu 19/03/26
Keelbottom Creek at Keelbottom,1.37,steady,8:00 am Thu 19/03/26
Burdekin River at Sellheim,2.70,steady,7:15 am Thu 19/03/26
Alpha Creek at Rivington,0.27,steady,8:53 am Thu 19/03/26
Belyando River at Albro Station,6.50,falling,11:15 am Sun 15/03/26
Belyando River at Belyando Crossing,6.09,steady,8:00 am Thu 19/03/26
Suttor River at St Anns,4.00,steady,8:00 am Thu 19/03/26
Cape River at Pentland,1.98,steady,8:00 am Thu 19/03/26
Cape River at Taemas,1.91,steady,7:27 am Thu 19/03/26
Burdekin Dam,0.91,steady,9:00 am Thu 19/03/26
Bowen River at Myuna,1.44,steady,8:00 am Thu 19/03/26
Burdekin River at Dalbeg,3.98,steady,6:38 am Thu 19/03/26
Bogie River at Strathbogie,1.67,steady,7:47 am Thu 19/03/26
Burdekin River at Millaroo,4.45,steady,6:27 am Thu 19/03/26
Burdekin River at Clare,4.10,steady,7:16 am Thu 19/03/26
Burdekin River at Inkerman Bridge,3.50,steady,8:34 am Thu 19/03/26
Burdekin River at Rita Island,-3.50,steady,8:32 am Thu 19/03/26
Burdekin River at Groper Creek,1.79,rising,8:51 am Thu 19/03/26

This advice is also available by dialling 1300 659 219. Warning, rainfall and river information are available at http://www.bom.gov.au/australia/flood.

Australian Government Bureau of Meteorology
Queensland

Marine Wind Warning Summary for Queensland

Issued at 09:00 AM EST on Thursday 19 March 2026
for the period until midnight EST Friday 20 March 2026

Wind Warnings for Thursday 19 March
Hurricane Force Wind Warning for the following areas:
Peninsula Coast and Cooktown Coast
Strong Wind Warning for the following areas:
Cairns Coast

Wind Warnings for Friday 20 March
Hurricane Force Wind Warning for the following areas:
Peninsula Coast and Cooktown Coast
Storm Force Wind Warning for the following areas:
South East Gulf of Carpentaria and North East Gulf of Carpentaria
Strong Wind Warning for the following areas:
Cairns Coast

The next marine wind warning summary will be issued by 3:00 pm EST Thursday.
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Check the latest Coastal Waters Forecast or Local
Waters Forecast at http://www.bom.gov.au/qld/forecasts/map.shtml for information on wind,
wave and weather conditions for these coastal zones.
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Australian Government Bureau of Meteorology
Tropical Cyclone Advice
Tropical Cyclone Warning Centre

Media: The Standard Emergency Warning Signal should NOT be used with this warning.

TOP PRIORITY FOR IMMEDIATE BROADCAST

TROPICAL CYCLONE ADVICE NUMBER 11
Issued at 07:49 AM EST on Thursday 19 March 2026

Headline:
Severe Tropical Cyclone Narelle expected to bring severe impacts to Far North Queensland during Friday.

Areas Affected:
Warning zone: Lockhart River to Cape Tribulation.

Watch zone: Western Cape York Peninsula between Weipa and Kowanyama, and adjacent inland areas of the Central Peninsula.

Cancelled zone: None.

Details of Severe Tropical Cyclone Narelle 34U at 7:00 am AEST:
Intensity: Category 4, sustained winds near the centre of 185 kilometres per hour with wind gusts to 260 kilometres per hour.
Location: within 30 kilometres of 13.4 degrees South 148.7 degrees East, estimated to be 440 kilometres east northeast of Cooktown and 600 kilometres east of Coen.
Movement: west southwest at 25 kilometres per hour.
Severe Tropical Cyclone Narelle (34U) is currently at category 4 intensity in the northern Coral Sea and is moving westwards towards the Queensland coast. Narelle is forecast to cross the Queensland coast between Lockhart River and Cooktown on Friday morning. A severe impact is likely.
After crossing the northeast Queensland coast, Narelle is forecast to continue tracking westwards. Narelle is likely to temporarily weaken as it crosses Cape York Peninsula, however it is expected to remain a tropical cyclone. Narelle will then continue to move west across the Gulf of Carpentaria, and is forecast to intensify to a severe tropical cyclone before impacting the Northern Territory over the weekend.

Hazards:
VERY DESTRUCTIVE WIND GUSTS in excess of 250 km/h are possible near the centre of Severe Tropical Cyclone Narelle as it crosses the coast.
DESTRUCTIVE WIND GUSTS to 160 km/hr are likely from Lockhart River to Cape Flattery from Thursday night and may extend south to Cooktown if Narelle takes a more southerly path. DESTRUCTIVE WIND GUSTS are possible near the centre of Narelle as it moves further inland across Cape York Peninsula during Friday.
Gales with DAMAGING WIND GUSTS to 120 km/hr are likely between Lockhart River and Cooktown from Thursday evening, and may extend south to Cape Tribulation if Narelle takes a more southerly path.
Gales with DAMAGING WIND GUSTS to 120 km/hr will also possibly extend across Cape York Peninsula, including areas between Weipa and Kowanyama from Friday.
HEAVY RAINFALL which may lead to FLASH FLOODING is possible between Cape Melville and Cape Tribulation from Thursday evening, extending northwards and to inland areas west of Coen during Friday. LOCALLY INTENSE RAINFALL is likely in an area of the Peninsula bounded by Lockhart River, Cape Flattery, Pormpuraaw, and Weipa during Friday.
Tides will be higher than normal between Coen and Cape Tribulation as Narelle approaches and crosses the coast. LARGE WAVES may produce MINOR FLOODING of low-lying coastal areas. There is a small risk that tides may approach the highest tide of the year during Friday.
Tides in Princess Charlotte Bay are likely to rise significantly above the normal high tide, with DAMAGING WAVES and DANGEROUS FLOODING. Any coastal residents in this area are specifically warned of a possible DANGEROUS STORM TIDE as the cyclone centre crosses the coast.
Once Narelle moves into the Gulf of Carpentaria, tides on the western Peninsula between Weipa and Kowanyama may be higher than normal. LARGE WAVES may produce MINOR FLOODING of low-lying coastal areas.

Recommended Action:
People between Lockhart River and Cape Tribulation should take precautions and listen to the next advice.
-IF YOUR LIFE IS IN DANGER PHONE TRIPLE ZERO (000) IMMEDIATELY.
People between Weipa and Kowanyama, and adjacent inland areas of the Central Peninsula, should stay informed and listen to the next advice.
- Stay informed by checking your local government s Disaster Dashboards for the latest updates.
- For cyclone preparedness and safety advice, visit the Get Ready Queensland website www.getready.qld.gov.au
- For non-life threatening emergency assistance contact State Emergency Services (SES) online via the SES Assistance QLD App, Apple , Android, online www.132500.qld.gov.au, or call 132 500 from anywhere in Queensland.

Cyclone advices and DFES Alerts are available by dialling 13 DFES (13 3337)

A map showing the track of the cyclone is available at:
http://www.bom.gov.au/cyclone

Tropical Cyclone Technical Bulletin: AUSTRALIA - Queensland
Issued by Australian Government Bureau of Meteorology TROPICAL CYCLONE WARNING CENTRE
at: 1910 UTC 18/03/2026
Name: Severe Tropical Cyclone Narelle
Identifier: 34U
Data At: 1800 UTC
Latitude: 13.2S
Longitude: 149.4E
Location Accuracy: within 15nm (30 km)
Movement Towards: west southwest (257 deg)
Speed of Movement: 12 knots (22 km/h)
Maximum 10-Minute Wind: 90 knots (165 km/h)
Maximum 3-Second Wind Gust: 125 knots (230 km/h)
Central Pressure: 957 hPa
Radius of 34-knot winds NE quadrant: 90 nm (165 km)
Radius of 34-knot winds SE quadrant: 90 nm (165 km)
Radius of 34-knot winds SW quadrant: 80 nm (150 km)
Radius of 34-knot winds NW quadrant: 80 nm (150 km)
Radius of 48-knot winds NE quadrant: 35 nm (65 km)
Radius of 48-knot winds SE quadrant: 35 nm (65 km)
Radius of 48-knot winds SW quadrant: 35 nm (65 km)
Radius of 48-knot winds NW quadrant: 35 nm (65 km)
Radius of 64-knot winds: 25 nm (25 km)
Radius of Maximum Winds: 10 nm (20 km)
Dvorak Intensity Code: T5.5/5.5/D2.0/24HRS STT:D0.5/06HRS
Pressure of outermost isobar: 1004 hPa
Radius of outermost closed isobar: 170 nm (315 km)

FORECAST DATA
Date/Time : Location : Loc. Accuracy: Max Wind : Central Pressure
(UTC) : degrees : nm (km): knots(km/h): hPa
+06: 19/0000: 13.5S 148.1E: 025 (050): 100 (185): 947
+12: 19/0600: 13.6S 146.8E: 035 (070): 105 (195): 942
+18: 19/1200: 13.5S 145.7E: 045 (085): 105 (195): 941
+24: 19/1800: 13.5S 144.7E: 050 (090): 105 (195): 941
+36: 20/0600: 13.5S 142.7E: 060 (115): 060 (110): 981
+48: 20/1800: 13.4S 140.4E: 065 (120): 055 (100): 985
+60: 21/0600: 13.5S 138.1E: 065 (125): 070 (130): 974
+72: 21/1800: 13.5S 135.8E: 070 (135): 055 (100): 985
+96: 22/1800: 13.7S 131.9E: 090 (165): 030 (055): 999
+120: 23/1800: 14.2S 128.5E: 095 (175): 030 (055): 999

REMARKS:
Severe Tropical Cyclone Narelle (34U) has intensified to a category 4 system and is maintaining a steady west southwest track. Animated IR imagery indicates that Narelle has formed an eye, and the analysis position has been assessed with high confidence. The analysis position also agrees with an earlier OSCAT scatterometry pass at 1346 UTC, and with recent GMI microwave imagery at 1828 UTC. As mentioned, an eye has formed and an eye pattern yields a DT of 5.5 with a surrounding grey shade of CMG, an eye temperature of W and a surrounding ring of CMG. MET is 5.0 based on a D+ trend, with PAT being adjusted up to 5.5. FT/CI are both 5.5. Objective analysis aids for 1800 UTC (1-min means): ADT 79 kt, AiDT 91 kt, DPRINT 105 kt, DMINT (1523UTC) 96 kt and SATCON 99 kt. Intensity is set at 90 kt, based on subjective Dvorak and objective aids. CIMMS wind shear analysis at 1200 UTC indicated 19 kt of shear from the east northeast, however Narelle has continued to steadily intensify over the past 6 hours with lightning activity beginning to occur around the eye. It remains over very warm sea surface temperatures above 28 degrees C, and there has been no indication that dry air to the west has impacted the system. Steady intensification is forecast until the system nears the coast which may be aided by the approach of a new upper trough during Thursday, leading to an increase in upper divergence and poleward outflow. A peak intensity of high-end category 4 is forecast, with further intensification to category 5 possible. There is very good confidence in the westward tracks of Narelle, with the subtropical ridge to the south the dominating steering mechanism. There remains, however, some variation in how quickly Narelle moves west, and Narelle may approach the north east Queensland coast as early as late Thursday evening, which is earlier than the current most likely forecast track. After crossing the east Queensland Coast Narelle is expected to continue to be steered to the west by the subtropical ridge, moving back over waters of the Gulf of Carpentaria, most likely overnight Friday or during Saturday. As Narelle moves across the Cape York Peninsula it is likely to temporarily weaken, before entering the Gulf of Carpentaria as a category 2 system. Re-intensification is forecast in a favourable environment over the Gulf waters, with SSTs around 30 degrees C, sufficient deep moisture, and moderate wind shear. Narelle is forecast to intensify to severe tropical cyclone intensity again before crossing the eastern coast of the Northern Territory over the weekend. After crossing the Northern Territory coast, Narelle is expected to weaken below tropical cyclone intensity and continue to track westwards, moving across the Top End and then the Kimberley as a tropical low. It is expected to move off the Kimberley coast early to mid next week where it is forecast to re-intensity into a tropical cyclone.

Copyright Commonwealth of Australia
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The next bulletin for this system will be issued by: 19/0130 UTC.