News

SA's fine line between dry and flooding rain

Source Weatherzone Sun 22 Feb 2026

Much of South Australia's south, including Adelaide, has been teased by sprinkles of rain while the state's north floods in torrential downpours. Before this weekend, much of SA had not recorded any rain for two-to-three months. Some ended the dry spell with less than a millimetre, others ended it with 100mm and resultant flooding. Flooding in the north has been most notable in the Flinders and the adjacent part of North West Pastoral, where in excess of 100mm has been dumped since midnight last night. This has led to flooding not seen in the areas in several years. Dusty creeks turned raging and spilled across paddocks, roads, rail lines and into homes. This was mostly evident in the area between Wilmington, Hawker and Woomera, where 70-to-120mm has fallen today. Almost all of this rain fell in just six hours, 50-to-100mm in three hours and 30-to-60mm in just one hour in some places, including Wirrappa and Bookaloo on the Stuart Highway. Other centres recording big rainfall include some in the Flinders: 100mm at Arkaba  88mm at Hawker  73mm at Quorn, Hammond and Orroroo  Rainfall of this intensity has less than two percent chance of occurring in any year. For Quorn, it has been the heaviest rain in five years and remarkably its first rain in two months. Some flooding was also reported further south, in the Mid North and Riverland, where a few properties recorded as 30-to-50mm. Not too far further south, including Adelaide, the contrast couldn't be more stark. Cricket games went ahead on dusty fields in desperate need of good watering. Take Keith in the southeast, for example. No rainfall recorded today or on any other day since just before Christmas, two months ago. One state, but a boundary line between flooding and dust. Image: Satellite, radar and lightning across South Australia on Sunday, February 22, 2026, indicating the line between wet and not-so-wet. Looking ahead, the low pressure trough bringing this rain will continue moving east, taking rain and storms with it across Tasmania, Victoria and New South Wales. A low connected to the trough will remain near-stationary on the order with the Northern Territory for several days, bringing major flooding to the area and surrounds. More than 400mm in four days has already cut off a remote NT community with more rain to come Remote NT community cops biggest downpour in over a decade. The positive news for the drier parts of SA, the remnants of the low is a chance to draw rain (and storms) across a large part of the state late this week or next weekend. Unfortunately for some, it may mean further flooding. Image: Forecast 7-day rainfall to 10:30pm CDT Sunday 1 March according to ECMWF model. - Weatherzone © Weatherzone 2026