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Stuart Highway to reopen to trucks and emergency vehicles after outback flooding

The Stuart Highway has been closed between Glendambo and Coober Pedy due to flooding. (Supplied: Ken Cross)

The Stuart Highway will reopen to trucks and emergency services vehicles at 7am tomorrow, restoring the main road link between South Australia and the Northern Territory.

The South Australian government says four-wheel drives and other high-clearance vehicles will be able to use the road from Tuesday.

Initially, it will only be open to one vehicle at a time during daylight hours, travelling down the middle of the highway with a police escort.

It has been almost a fortnight since the road linking Adelaide and Darwin was cut due to flooding.

The outback town of Coober Pedy has been left isolated, with supplies having to be flown in from Adelaide.

More than 1 metre of water has been slowly receding since heavy rains fell around Glendambo in South Australia's north more than a week ago.

Work remains ongoing to fix the rail tracks between Adelaide and Perth, and Adelaide and Darwin, after 18 sections were washed out.

"[But] there is good news in terms of the Stuart Highway. That has been impassable immediately north of Glendambo.

"As of 7 o'clock tomorrow morning, we will start some restricted travel across the Stuart Highway north of Glendambo for heavy vehicles and emergency services vehicles only.

"As of Tuesday next week, we will expand that to also include high-clearance four-wheel drive vehicles."

RAAF flight made emergency landing, Premier confirms

The RAAF has been conducting flights to and from Coober Pedy, dropping supplies and collecting stranded tourists and locals with appointments in Adelaide.

SA Police, State Emergency Service members and RAAF personnel unload a cargo plane in Coober Pedy. (ABC News: Michael Clements)

Yesterday, one of those flights was forced to make an emergency landing at the Edinburgh RAAF base after one of its two engines failed.

"We were obviously very concerned when we heard about the emergency landing back at Edinburgh, but we've been advised that all is good," Mr Marshall said.

"They were allowing some passengers to travel back on those empty planes for people [who] were stranded."

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