Great Northern Highway - Hazards

Hazards

The Great Northern Highway presents several major hazards to travellers. Stray cattle and other grazing animals are particularly dangerous and prevalent throughout the Kimberley and Pilbara as potential roadkill. Kangaroos and wedge-tailed eagles, although smaller, are also very dangerous, with wedge-tailed eagles particularly immobile after gorging on other roadkill. Driving at night is best avoided; being equipped with a good frontal roo bar and driving spotlights can help slightly, but is still very dangerous.

Flooding is another hazard, as the Kimberley and Pilbara receive periods of torrential rainfall between November and May. The 'dry causeway' Willare Crossing of the Fitzroy River is designed to withstand enormous floods. However, in the early 1980s, seasonal flooding washed away major sections of the 'causeway' several times. To alleviate the problem, two new bridges were built in 1985 to enable more water to flow through the crossing without overtopping the 'causeway'. Then, less than six months later, Cyclone Hector produced 70% more water than the crossing was designed to handle, and washed away 4 or 5 km of the newly rebuilt section and left one of the bridges without its abutments. It was again rebuilt, and although it has overtopped since, it has not again washed away as disastrously as in 1986.

At other locations, it is not unusual for the road to be underneath metres of water. However as little as 100 mm of water is sufficient to cause a major accident if driven into at high speed.