20/11/2025
NT EMERGENCY SERVICE MESSAGE: Cyclone Advice
LOCATION/S: The Tiwi Islands, and Darwin east to Gunbalanya.
ALERT LEVEL: Advice - An incident has started. There is no immediate danger. Stay up to date in case the situation changes. Please note there are multiple alerts for this weather system.
INFORMATION CURRENT AS AT: Issued at 10:12 am CST on Thursday 20 November 2025
RISKS FACED BY PEOPLE IN THE AREA:
• Damaging winds
• Heavy rain
• Possible flooding
• Possible disruption to essential supplies like electricity, water, and gas
ACTION STATEMENTS:
• Prepare your household emergency plan and kit now
• Stay informed by following SecureNT on Facebook or listen to ABC Local Radio
• Monitor conditions via www.bom.gov.au/nt/warnings
• For emergency service in floods, storms or cyclones call 132 500
ADVICE TO THE PUBLIC:
Intensity
Category 2, sustained winds near the centre of 95 kilometres per hour with wind gusts to 130 kilometres per hour.
Location
Within 35 kilometres of 9.6 degrees South 133.2 degrees East, estimated to be 405 kilometres northeast of Darwin and 185 kilometres north northeast of Minjilang.
Movement
Tropical Cyclone Fina, a category 2 system and is slowly moving towards the south. It is expected to continue on a southward track today, before turning southwest during Friday. Fina is expected to approach the Cobourg Peninsula and Tiwi Islands late on Friday, and continue moving southwest through the Van Dieman Gulf on Saturday. Fina is forecast to maintain category 2 intensity in the coming days, however there remains a slight possibility that it could reach category 3 intensity late on Friday or early Saturday as it moves into the Van Dieman Gulf.
Hazards
GALES with DAMAGING WIND GUSTS to 120 km/h may develop over the Cobourg Peninsula between Cape Don and Warruwi from later today or tonight, possibly extending to Maningrida on Friday morning. Gales are expected to extend further west to include the Tiwi Islands during late Friday and from Darwin east to Gunbalanya during Saturday.
Locally HEAVY RAINFALL which may lead to FLASH FLOODING is possible along coastal areas between the Tiwi Islands and Maningrida from Friday, extending to the coast and nearby inland across the western Top End including Darwin on Saturday.
A Flood Watch is current for areas across the northwest Top End. Tides may be higher than normal about the Tiwi Islands and between Cape Hotham and Maningrida on high tides from today. Coastal residents on the Tiwi Islands, and between Cape Hotham and Maningrida are specifically warned of a DANGEROUS STORM TIDE as the cyclone centre crosses the coast during Friday and Saturday. Tides are likely to rise significantly above the normal high tide, with DAMAGING WAVES and DANGEROUS FLOODING.
Safety advice
NTES advises people on the Tiwi Islands, and Darwin east to Gunbalanya should consider what action they will need to take if the cyclone threat increases.
For more information:
• For all warnings, visit Secure NT website regularly or listen to ABC local radio
• For weather information, visit the Bureau of Meteorology
• For the latest river heights, visit Latest River Heights for the Northern Territory Rivers
• For power outage information, visit the Power and Water website
• For traffic and road closure information, visit the Road Report NT website
The next update will be provided by 5.00pm ACST Thursday 20 November 2025.
