The Northern Territory has detected nine new COVID-19 cases as an outbreak spreads to a second remote Indigenous community.

November 21, 2021

Nine new COVID-19 cases have been detected in the Northern Territory, as an outbreak spreads to a second remote Indigenous community.

It brings the current cluster to 31 cases with five men and four women diagnosed in Binjari, about 330km south of Darwin, late on Saturday.

All are Indigenous Territorians aged between 17 and 78 with a lockdown extended to the nearby Rockhole due to “mingling” between the two communities.

“This information has only just come in this evening and tracing and all other work is happening now,” Chief Minister Michael Gunner said via social media.

“Significant work will continue overnight, and we will provide more detail on all the cases and any new cases tomorrow”.

Earlier, a 31-year-old woman from Robinson River, 1000km southeast of Darwin, was diagnosed with the virus.

She’s the sixth person infected in the remote community after a 30-year-old woman spread the virus from Katherine, where 16 cases have been detected.

Katherine and Robinson River are also locked down, however, a territory-wide health order to wear face masks has been lifted.

The outbreak was triggered by an infected woman who illegally entered the NT in late October.

The 21-year-old lied on her border entry form before travelling from Cairns to Darwin after visiting Victoria, where she had contracted the virus.

She infected a man in Darwin before the virus spread to Katherine, 320km south of Darwin.

Meanwhile, unvaccinated travellers will no longer be able to enter the NT from Monday, under sweeping changes to the territory’s border rules.

The only exception will be essential personnel and Territorians returning from jurisdictions where COVID is not present, called green zones.

Fully vaccinated arrivals from red zones where the virus is present will be able to quarantine at home for seven days.

But they’ll need to have a rapid antigen test upon arrival in the NT and return a negative PCR test within 72 hours.

They’ll also have to get re-tested five, eight and 14 days after leaving quarantine and stay in a high vaccination zone away from aged care facilities and remote communities.

The home quarantine requirement is scheduled to end on December 20 with rapid antigen testing extended to all arrivals.