The Peel River is falling in Tamworth after peaking in the dead of night, while Gunnedah is bracing for major flooding on Friday.
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The Peel has fallen to minor flood levels after hitting 4.91m with moderate flooding at the Tamworth Bridge about midnight on Thursday.
The Peel broke its banks in town and flooded parts of the Riverside sporting ovals and Gipps Street playing fields, as well as the carparks under the main bridge in the city.
Jewry Street and Scott Road are open for traffic, after shutting on Thursday as the floodwaters moved through town.
At 10am, the river was at 4.2m and falling.
Gunnedah braces for major flooding
In the latest update, the SES has warned of major flooding for downstream as floodwaters move closer to Gunnedah.
At 11am on Friday, the SES said a major flood peak is possible at Gunnedah Friday night into Saturday, before the flood peak approaches Boggabri on Sunday and Narrabri on Monday.
Major flooding is expected to continue into next week for the Wee Waa area, before Bugilbone and Goangra will be hit by the peaks on Wednesday and Friday.
The New England SES said locals were preparing for the worst and hoping for the best.
"The Mooki River has seen a steady peak well above the major flood level for close to 24 hours at Breeza Station and is currently 5.61m and steady," a local spokesperson said on Friday morning.
"Local NSW SES Gunnedah Unit volunteers and management continue to plan for heights above the new forecast 8.1m peak - we still believe it will closer to the peak experienced last week of 8.16-8.2 metres, and perhaps just a little higher, based on the water still in the upper catchment."
The spokesperson said some locals had chosen to sandbag their homes to protect them from an 8.5m flood peak, just in case.
"Flood affected residences and businesses have been door knocked over the past two days and many of these have been sand-bagged ahead of the renewed river rises, where requested," the local SES spokesperson said.
"Our volunteers will again be out in the community today conducting patrols and inspecting river heights."
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The Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) said the minor flood level of 7.3m for the Namoi River will be reached in Gunnedah about midday on Friday.
It's expected to hit the moderate flood level of 7.60m by Friday night, and could hit 8.10 overnight into Saturday with major flooding in the town.
The SES said, at this height, Gunnedah airport may be impacted by floodwater, while low-lying areas and properties along the following roads could be cut off and affected by flooding:
- Kelvin Road;
- Blue Vale Road;
- Wean Road;
- Boggabri Road;
- Chandos Street;
- Marquis Street;
- Conadilly Street;
- Little Conadilly Street;
- Maitland Street;
- Bloomfield Street;
- Tempest Street;
- Rosemary Street;
- Warrabungle Street;
- Henry Street;
- Finch Street;
- Talibah Street;
- Old Tamworth Road;
- Orange Grove Road
Low-lying areas along the Namoi River including sporting fields, the tennis courts and racecourse may remain impacted by floodwater, the SES warned.
Minor flooding predicted for Boggabri and Narrabri
The BoM said the Namoi River at Boggabri is likely to reach about 7.40m by Friday afternoon, but the water level should ease for a short time.
It expects the river level to peak about 7.60m on Sunday, and should it hit that level, then Gunnedah Road, Barbers Lagoon Road, Manilla Road, Maules Creek Road and Bostons Street Bridge may all be impacted by floodwaters.
The SES said low-lying areas along the Namoi River may also be affected by floodwaters.
In Narrabri, the Narrabri Creek should pass the 4.90m minor flood level overnight on Saturday and could reach 5.30m on Monday.
If the water hits that level then it could inundate low-lying parts of Cameron Park.
Low-lying areas along the Namoi River may become impacted by floodwater too, the SES said.
Wee Waa isolated after roads go under with major flooding
The town of Wee Waa is isolated after all roads in and out of the shire went under.
Major flooding is continuing across the shire after the Namoi River at Glencoe peaked at 7.20m on Thursday morning. It's still at 7.11m on Friday morning and falling slowly.
The SES does not expect it to fall below the major flood level of 6.70m before Wednesday.
The SES said access to Wee Waa airport could be cut off, but Vera's Creek, Garden Roads, the Kamilaroi Highway at Glencoe, and towards Burren Junction were impacted by flooding.
Veras Leap Road and Culgoora Road at Wee Waa Lagoon, as well as the Narrabri Road and Yarrie Lake Road are also closed because of flooding.
Avoid travel to parts of the North West
The SES warned motorists to avoid any travel to the following areas while floodwaters posed a risk.
"Travelling on flooded roads is extremely dangerous and should be avoided," a spokesperson said.
"Road conditions can change without warning and motorists should reconsider travel plans in areas impacted by flooding."
People working or camping along the Namoi River have been urged to move to higher ground in case of sudden river rises.
"Never drive, walk or play in floodwaters. Floodwater may be deep, fast flowing and may contain hidden snags and debris," an SES spokesperson said.
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