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2 weeks ago | 
abc.net.au | Christopher Testa |Sophie Mcmanus
The PM arrives in the far north promising half the funds for a $490 million replacement bridge over the Barron River near Cairns. Locals say the funding is needed but governments should consider a new highway over the mountain range to the Atherton Tablelands. Neither side of politics has committed to investigating an alternative route over the Kuranda Range.
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1 month ago | 
abc.net.au | Sharnie Kim |Sophie Mcmanus
One of the few Queensland regional councils still providing fluoridated water has voted to stop adding the tooth-strengthening mineral to its water supply. The Cook Shire, which covers much of the vast Cape York Peninsula in Far North Queensland, voted four to three on Tuesday to stop fluoridating the water of its largest centre, Cooktown, which is home to about 3,000 people. Of the state's 77 local government areas only 24 will continue to fluoridate the water.
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1 month ago | 
abc.net.au | Sophie Mcmanus |Conor Byrne
Three teenage boys accused of raping a woman at knifepoint during a home invasion in Cairns have been ordered to undergo disease testing. Two 15-year-olds and a 16-year-old are facing about a dozen offences each, including rape, armed robbery and deprivation of liberty.
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2 months ago | 
abc.net.au | Jessica Black |Sophie Mcmanus
A third teenager has been charged with five counts of rape after an alleged home invasion in Cairns on Friday morning. 1800 Respect National Helpline: 1800 737 732Men's Referral Service: 1300 766 491Lifeline (24-hour crisis line): 131 114: 1800 819 817Full Stop Australia: 1800 385 578The 15-year-old boy was arrested on Friday afternoon and charged with 13 offences, including armed robbery, deprivation of liberty, possessing dangerous drugs and obstructing a police officer.
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2 months ago | 
abc.net.au | Conor Byrne |Sophie Mcmanus
A tour guide says warming waters in northern Queensland mean crocodiles are spending more time hiding from the heat. University of Queensland scientists agree, and say in hot years the reptiles' increased internal temperatures adversely impact their behaviour. The long-term health impacts of the warmer waters on crocodiles will be studied in the next phase of research.
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2 months ago | 
abc.net.au | Sophie Mcmanus |Holly Richardson |Conor Byrne
Cases of a deadly soil-borne bacterial disease have exploded in Queensland’s far north, including two people who have died since the start of the wet season. The Cairns and Hinterland Hospital and Health Service has recorded 36 cases of melioidosis since November. "It's a very big number of cases for the Cairns and Hinterland region, and we've only just started seeing the effects from the rain," Tropical Public Health Services director Jacqui Murdoch said.
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2 months ago | 
abc.net.au | Sophie Mcmanus |Christopher Testa
One of Australia's longest running Indigenous festivals won't take place this year. The biennial Laura Quinkan Dance Festival attracts thousands of people to Cape York but costs and organisational delays have led to this year's event being ruled out. Organisers say planning is under way to revive it for 2026 with a "more homegrown feel". One of the country's longest-running Indigenous festivals won't go ahead this year but organisers say planning is underway to bring it back in 2026.
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Dec 20, 2024 | 
abc.net.au | Christopher Testa |Sophie Mcmanus
Scientists have calculated the cost on the Great Barrier Reef a year after Cyclone Jasper and a devastating rain depression resulted in record floods. Cyclone Jasper crossed the coast north of Cairns in December last year with a subsequent rain system. They resulted in widespread flooding, landslides and more than 1,400 homes being inundated.
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Dec 13, 2024 | 
abc.net.au | Brendan Mounter |Sophie Mcmanus
The remote Indigenous community of Wujal Wujal was one of the worst affected by the catastrophic flooding which followed ex-Tropical Cyclone Jasper. While the physical scars are still evident in the landscape and damaged property, the psychological scars may take longer to heal. Wujal Wujal will receive $14 million as part of a $206 million joint state and federal funding package to help Far North Queensland with the ongoing flood recovery.
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Nov 26, 2024 | 
abc.net.au | Sophie Mcmanus |Adam Stephen
Deanna and Alan Henderson's lives are consumed with "all things buggy". From providing "bug wrangling" services for international wildlife documentaries to running education programs, even sending live insects in the mail, the Far North Queensland couple and business partners live and breathe invertebrates. Their business, Minibeast Wildlife, posts about 3,500 parcels every year using Australia Post's automated measuring system.
