New South Wales Mid North Coast flood impact and resilience research

Between 22 - 25 May 2025, an Easterly Trough Low (ETL) triggered severe weather along the New South Wales Mid North Coast, including gale-force wind warnings for the Coffs Coast and Macquarie Coast, as well as intense rainfall and major flooding across the Manning, Hastings, Macleay and Nambucca catchments.

Floodwaters on the Manning River at Taree exceeded the 500-year Annual Recurrence Interval (ARI). The Bureau of Meteorology (the Bureau) reported that much of the area between Taree and Port Macquarie had four times its average monthly rainfall during the May floods. Taree and Wingham more than doubled their previous rain records for May, with both towns receiving more than 700mm.

On 2 June 2025, Risk Frontiers deployed a team of four to the Mid North Coast of New South Wales to observe and report on severe flooding in the area. The survey team spoke with residents, business owners and recovery workers in impacted areas and recorded the observations of impacted residents and business owners. The team also recorded flood depths, noteworthy structural damage to built assets and geomorphic impacts in rural areas. The team visited severely flood-impacted towns and rural areas in several catchments including:

• Taree, Glenthorne, Wingham, Croki (Figure 2) (Manning River catchment)
• Port Macquarie (Settlement Point Drive) and Wauchope (Figure 12) (Hastings River catchment)
• Kempsey, West Kempsey, Smithtown, Sherwood Bridge (Figure 17) (Macleay River catchment).