WARNING: disturbing content.
The Nauiyu community is located on the banks of the Daly River, more than 200 kilometers south of Darwin.
For Phillip Morgan it is home.
He was just 19 when the worst ever flood swept through Nauiyu in 1998, peaking at 16.25 meters at the Daly River Police Station gauge station. It remains the highest level recorded to date.
Now there are warnings this could happen again as the Daly River continues to rise after a deluge of rain across large parts of the Northern Territory.
“It’s a big wet season this year,” the 47-year-old told NITV News.
“We’ve been a little concerned about our homes since we left the community.
“It will be a lot of work when we return to the community.”
Communities evacuated to safety
Phillip is one of hundreds of residents evacuated to Darwin this weekend.
Remote communities of Nauiyu/Daly River, Palumpa, Beswick and Jilkminggan were evacuated, most airlifted by helicopter.
It is the second time in a month that Daly River residents have been evacuated to Darwin after flooding forced their evacuation in early February.
The flooding is more severe this time and damage to homes and the community has yet to be assessed.
Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) NT manager Shenagh Gamble said the Daly River was expected to “continue to rise throughout the week”.
Ms Gamble said while current water levels were not expected to exceed 1998 Daly River flood levels, it was still a wait-and-see scenario.
Nauiyu resident Simon Wade Jones told NITV it was “quite shocking” to be evacuated just two weeks after returning from Darwin due to February’s flooding.
“We had to jump on helicopters and stuff, the water came up really fast,” the 17-year-old said.
Katherine’s cleanup begins
The clean-up has begun in Katherine, about 300 kilometers south-east of Darwin, as major flooding continues to recede.
Flooding reached its highest level in almost three decades on Saturday night, at around 19.2 meters.
Katherine Mayor Joanna Holden said residents have remained positive in light of the upcoming major clean-up.
“The sense of community is so strong here,” Ms Holden said.
“Together we will get through this and hold each other up.”
Disaster Assistance payments for Katherine have been activated with support from the federal government.
The financial assistance includes immediate relief payments of $611 per adult and $309 per child, up to a maximum of $1,537 per family. Reparations of $8,843 are also available.
Darwin’s water supply is at risk
From Monday evening, Darwin residents have been urged to reduce their water use after damage to water pumps at the city’s main dam due to flooding.
Power and Water Corporation says the problem was caused by flash flooding and a heavy wet season that has resulted in the dam being at more than 110 percent capacity.
Electricity and Water are working to resolve the problem and are considering using generators to get the pump station working again.
It comes after shoppers were confronted with empty shelves in supermarkets across the Top End this weekend.
NT Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro says the rail lines opened on Sunday evening to allow two trains of food to reach Darwin on Monday.
NT Emergency Service (NTES) on 132 500
13YARN 13 92 76
Aboriginal Advisory Services 0410 539 905
Lifeline 13 11 14
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