Plan ahead for Lock Five’s temporary closure in 2026

SA Water is advising boat users along the River Murray in South Australia’s Riverland of a temporary closure to Paringa’s Lock Five next year, while the lock chamber undergoes essential maintenance.

Commencing in late April 2026 and continuing for up to 23 weeks, the refurbishments will include upgrading the 12 valves used to raise and lower water levels inside the 120-metre-long lock chamber, resealing and refurbishing the lock’s large hydraulic gates, and other required concreting and maintenance.

Vessels will be temporarily unable to navigate through the lock until the work is complete.

SA Water’s Senior Manager of River Murray Operations Garry Fyfe said this follows the completion of similar maintenance at Overland Corner’s Lock Three earlier this year.

“Our network of 9 locks we manage along the River Murray play a vital role in the daily lives of communities every day and is why we continue to periodically undertake maintenance to ensure they continue to operate into the future,” Garry said.

“The sheer size of river structures such as our locks and weirs means refurbishment work requires careful planning, with the lock chamber needing to be completely drained in order for our team to safely access the bottom of the site.

“We recognise Lock Five is among our busier sites for boats, kayaks and other river users, and is why we have proactively scheduled this work to commence directly after the April school holiday period, and continue throughout winter when river traffic is at its lowest.

“We thank the community in advance for their understanding as we look to complete these works as quickly and safely as possible.”

On behalf of the Murray-Darling Basin Authority, SA Water manages Locks One to Six in South Australia as well as Lock Seven at Rufus River and Lock Eight at Wangumma in New South Wales, and Lock Nine at Kulnine in Victoria. The utility also operates Lake Victoria in NSW, and barrages at Goolwa, Mundoo, Boundary Creek, Ewe Island and Tauwitchere.

For more information on SA Water’s network of locks and weirs, visit sawater.com.au.