Flood Risk in South Lismore, NSW: 2026 Assessment

South Lismore, located in New South Wales, has a notable flood risk profile based on available data including proximity to waterways, elevation, and historical flood events. The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) maintains river height and flood warning data for catchments across New South Wales.

South Lismore has experienced several major floods in recent history, including the 2017 and 2022 floods. The Wilsons River regularly inundates parts of the suburb during periods of heavy rainfall.

South Lismore is highly vulnerable to flooding due to its location on the floodplain of the Wilsons River. The area has a history of significant flood events, and climate change is expected to increase the frequency and intensity of heavy rainfall, exacerbating the risk.

For a comprehensive property-specific flood assessment including address-level elevation data, flood overlay mapping, and insurance cost estimates, use the ClimateNest full analysis tool. General suburb data cannot replace a site-specific evaluation.

South Lismore sits within ClimateNest's suburb-level hazard model for flood risk. 10.9% of the suburb's land area is mapped in high-risk flood zones and 80.3% in moderate-risk zones, based on the national hazard overlay. Exposure at this scale varies street by street, which is why an address-level check matters before you buy or insure a specific property in South Lismore.

South Lismore (postcode 2480) is tracked in ClimateNest's suburb hazard model, which maps the share of the suburb's land exposed to each hazard at high and moderate levels. The suburb's highest high-risk exposures are bushfire (18.3% of land in high-risk zones), riverine flood (10.9% of land in high-risk zones), surface flood (5.6% of land in high-risk zones). Exposure is not uniform across South Lismore — individual properties can sit well above or below these averages, so an address-level check is recommended before buying, selling or insuring.