UPDATE: The Victoria Hwy remains closed while the Adelaide-Darwin railway line has also been damaged about 50km north of Tennant Creek from floodwaters as the government opened the Stuart Highway temporarily on Monday to allow up to 50 road trains full of fresh produce and other supplies up to Darwin supermarkets.

Supermarket shelves were bare in the Darwin region over the weekend due to the flooded roads and rail, but officials said on Monday morning that they expected shelves to be restocked by Tuesday after contractors had been undertaking repairs to damaged sections of the highway overnight.

“As soon as those trucks roll into Darwin that food will be distributed … onto the shelves as quickly as possible,” NT Road Transport Association executive officer Louise Bilato told ABC Radio.

“Probably by [Tuesday], some of that will be on the shelves and more is coming.”

She warned there could be more freight delays in the coming days.

Secure NT posted on Facebook about 7.30pm on Sunday that a 600km stretch of the Stuart Hwy south of the Carpentaria Hwy turn off was closed. Around 9pm, it posted that the closed area had been reduced to a 45km stretch south of the Carpentaria Hwy turn off to Dunmarra.

The Carpentaria Hwy runs from Daly Waters to Borroloola.

“Further assessment and repair works have commenced. An update will be provided as soon as possible,” the Secure NT websites stated.

At 4pm on Sunday Chief Minister Eva Lawler had announced the Stuart Hwy had reopened for four-wheel-drive and heavy vehicles but it was later closed again.

Secure NT has said almost the entirety of the Victoria Hwy was closed, that being between Manbulloo Airfield access about 14km west of Katherine, to the Western Australian border.

The agency said the highway is likely to remain closed until late this week.

Aurizon, the freight company that operates on the Adelaide-Darwin railway line, said flooding in the Carpentaria and Barkly regions had damaged the line about 50km north of Tennant Creek.

“Initial inspections indicate damage to several areas of track with the worst approximately 500 metres long caused by rising flood waters with significant rain expected to fall throughout the next few days,” a spokesman said in a statement.

“Aurizon crews will undertake a detailed assessment as soon as they can safely access the track section.”

The company told the media it would operate a train between Adelaide and its Alice Springs terminal, to allow freight to be taken north on trucks as soon as the Stuart Highway opens.

The Bureau of Meteorology cancelled a severe weather warning for the Gregory and Tanami districts, as the tropical low moved across the border into Western Australia overnight.

But the agency has a flood warning for the Victoria River, a moderate flood warning for the Daly River and a flood watch for the North West and parts of Central NT remain in place.

The BOM said the river levels in the lower Victoria catchment are likely to have exceeded the 1991 record flooding.

On Saturday, Chief Minister Eva Lawler announced she had postponed her trip to Japan amid concerns about the floods, and pledged to ensure “supplies” get to the Territory, as residents from Pigeon Hole were evacuated to Darwin while several emergency flood warnings were issued Saturday night.

On Monday afternoon, Ms Lawler said no further evacuations would be required while emergency declarations remained for the communities of Pigeon Hole, Deguragu, Kalkarindji, Yarralin and Timber Creek.

The government had readied the Foskey Pavillion at the Darwin Showgrounds for more evacuees but Ms Lawler said weather conditions had improved considerably and more remote residents would not need to be evacuated from communities.

More than 60 medically vulnerable people were evacuated from Kalkarindi, Timber Creek and Pigeon Hole over the weekend to Katherine and Darwin, officials said. Five people were also airlifted via helicopter on Sunday from the Victoria River Roadhouse, 90 km east of Timber Creek, when floodwaters moved in.