‘A saltwater crocodile on the AFL oval’: worst flooding in decades inundates NT as residents urged to avoid water

The NT health department issued “boil water” alerts to communities including Katherine, pictured, as flooding inundated several communities. Photograph: Gavin Parish

Katherine’s mayor has warned locals to be wary of flood waters inundating the town after a crocodile was spotted on the local football oval, while residents are being warned to boil their water amid the record-breaking deluge.

As rain and storms continued to soak the Top End on Monday, the Bureau of Meteorology issued major flood warnings for thousands of Territorians near the Katherine, Daly and Georgina Rivers and Eyre Creek, with a flood watch covering nearly a dozen river catchments. The bureau also warned of severe thunderstorms and heavy rain in Darwin.