Macquarie River just outside Bathurst hits 3.95 metres, Bells Line of Road closed

THE Macquarie River at White Rock, just south of Bathurst, has hit 3.95 metres and is rising as water from heavy rainfall in the catchment works its way through the system.

The river at White Rock was at 1.0m at around 11am on Saturday, April 6, but has jumped almost three metres since.

It has risen about a metre in just the past hour.

The Bureau of Meteorology said in a new alert just before 6pm that the Macquarie at Bathurst is likely to peak near the minor flood level (3.0m) overnight Saturday into Sunday.

As of just before 6pm, the river at Bathurst was at 0.4m.

Meanwhile, Bells Line of Road remains closed due to flooding at the bridge at North Richmond over the Hawkesbury River and traffic between Sydney and Lithgow is being sent via the Great Western Highway.

Also in the Blue Mountains, Megalong Road is closed due to a landslide and there is no access to the Megalong Valley.

12.30PM UPDATE:

THE Great Western Highway is likely to be carrying all traffic between Bathurst and Sydney for some time after Bells Line of Road closed due to flooding on the Hawkesbury River.

Bells Line closed at around 4.30am on Saturday, April 6 due to flooding at the bridge at North Richmond and traffic between Lithgow and Sydney is being sent via the Great Western Highway.

The Hawkesbury at North Richmond was 9.64m just after noon on Saturday and the Bureau of Meteorology says it is likely to reach the major flood level (10.50m) early Saturday afternoon and may reach around 11.5m late Saturday afternoon.

In the Bathurst region, the bureau says Rockley received 60 millimetres in the 24 hours to 9am on Saturday, April 6, Perthville 50mm, the Campbells River upstream of Chifley Dam 67mm and the station at Oberon on Jenolan Caves Road received 88mm.

Hampton, between Bathurst and Lithgow, received 102mm.

The heavy, concentrated rain led to the Fish River at Tarana (which joins the Campbells River just outside Bathurst to form the Macquarie) jumping from 0.4m to 2.39m in just over 24 hours.

As of 12.15pm, the Fish was 2.06m and the Macquarie River at White Rock, just outside Bathurst, was 1.18m.

The bureau says minor flooding (3.0m) is possible at Bathurst from Saturday afternoon.

As of 12.15pm, the river at Bathurst was only 0.25m.

EARLIER:

ONE of the region's two main routes to Sydney is closed and a minor flood remains a possibility for the Macquarie River in Bathurst after 24 hours of heavy rain.

Bells Line of Road has been closed at the Hawkesbury River bridge at North Richmond due to flooding in the Sydney basin and traffic between Lithgow and Sydney is being advised to use the Great Western Highway instead.

It's just the latest closure for Bells Line or the Great Western Highway, which are regularly affected by crashes or natural disasters.

The latest advice from the Bureau of Meteorology, meanwhile, was that rainfall totals of up to 100 millimetres had been recorded in the catchment in the Bathurst region since 9am Friday and showers are forecast through the catchment during Saturday, easing during the day.

The bureau says minor flooding is possible at Bathurst from Saturday afternoon, April 6 and the situation is being closely monitored.

As of 11am on Saturday, the Fish River at Tarana was 2.24 metres and falling (having reached 2.39m at around 10am).

The Macquarie was 1.05m at White Rock and was 0.27m in Bathurst, with the elevated flow from the Fish River still to reach the city.

The minor flood level for the Macquarie at Bathurst is 3.0m.