When boats eventually returned to sea, operators were unable to drop their catches in Broome, where volumes are typically sent by road to Perth.

"The highway was cut off just south of Broome," Western Australian Fishing Industry Council chief executive Darryl Hockey said.

"What that meant, as a knock-on, was that the boats then travelled around to Darwin to unload and that therefore those fish will not be coming into the West Australian market.

"It's a reminder of how precarious supply chains are."