The evacuations of residents inundated in the remote community of Borroloola in the Northern Territory is slowly continuing with 100 flown to Darwin by the ADF yesterday evening with another 116 flying out today.

As flights departed emergency services said the town, about 50 kilometres inland from the Gulf of Carpentaria, was preparing for a “one-in-100-year” flood.

Two more RAAF aircraft were scheduled for evacuation flights later on Thursday evening.

Authorities in the Territory have revised down the expected flood peak of the McArthur River to between 15.5 and 16.5 metres- yesterday it was expected to hit a record 18 metres.

“We are still forecasting that the expected peak will be between 3pm and 6pm this evening, so hopefully quite soon we’ll start to see that river subside at Borroloola, Weather Bureau forecaster Shenagh Gamble told the ABC.

“It’s very important that with the rain that we’ve seen in the last 24 hours within that catchment, and the forecast rain in that McArthur River catchment, we still can’t rule out a much higher peak of 18 metres at Borroloola.”

NT Police Acting Assistant Commissioner Matt Hollamby said there were no plans to evacuate other communities but that the ADF was on stand-by.

“There are emergency plans to evacuate other communities only if necessary, and as part of that planning we have asked the military for aerial support in those activities should they be required,” he said.

“There are no other evacuations at this point in time.”

*Photos courtesy RAAF