NT

Territorians can expect faster scanning speeds with new and improved Banned Drinker Register (BDR) devices to be rolled out across the Territory from this week. The BDR is a valuable tool to assist in reducing alcohol related harm in the Northern Territory and Territorians are well used to providing photo identification to purchase takeaway alcohol.

Kate Foran. How many people get to say “I tickled the toes of an echidna at work today”? Local neighbouring households recently observed an echidna burrowing around their back yards ... Echidnas are tricky creatures to pick up, digging their spikes into the surrounding dirt and anchoring themselves solidly to the ground, to protect their soft underbelly.

Fancy dresses and suits were the order of the day last Friday evening as the students of the Tennant Creek High School attended their annual Formal. School shirts were put aside as the students made every effort to look their best, and succeeded, in most cases to look like they could have easily attended New York Fashion Week.

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Four Deadly Darwin comedians are travelling down the guts of the Territory stopping in Tennant Creek next Wednesday to bring “blak humour to change blak minds”. The Deadly Darwin Goes Walkabout Tour will bring its hilarious show and free stand up comedy workshop to town with the mission of spreading healing through humour.

Pam Dillon. Rainy weather did not deter the 11 schools who participated in the first ever Barkly region inter-school soccer carnival recently. There were beautifully sunny skies on the first day of great competition out at Purkiss Reserve. In between games, teams attended health clinics run by Anyinginyi Health. Students still keen to be out on the field at the end of competition, helped their teachers from remote schools complete a mini roos coaching course run by John Moriarty Foundation.

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The Lake Nash Bats could be kicked out of the AFL Mount Isa competition after officials and fans assaulted umpires on Saturday. The violence escalated after the final siren of the grand final, won by the Tigers in an upset, however the trouble was brewing well before then.

Ten Territory nurses will spend the next 12 months building their skills and providing services to remote communities under the Transition to Remote Practice Program. This year is the first time the program recruited a second cohort of participants. They will join the 12 nurses who commenced the program at the beginning of 2022.

Teachers in Tennant Creek took to Peko Park to protest against the national crisis in education. Around 16 staff from the both Primary and High Schools who are members of the Australian Education Union NT (AEU-NT) were armed with placards to promote the cause ... Teachers who took part in the strike were not paid on the day. The AEU-NT says around 75 per cent of schools in the Territory are understaffed with 59 per cent planning to leave the profession.

Kate Foran. Dogs make fantastic companions and provide such unconditional love, many believing that they exist solely to protect us, be loyal to us, and comfort us. It’s hard to find a better friend than a good loyal dog! They intuitively know our moods, and make the most enthusiastic welcome-home fuss at the end of a long day! ... Being responsible for your dog in Tennant Creek involves a few priorities.

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One hundred and fifty years ago, our communications with the rest of the world underwent a startling change that allowed Australia to communicate with the rest of the world in mere hours instead of the months it had taken previously, when the Overland Telegraph commenced operations. Around 130 people including dignitaries, historians, descendants of workers, and community members have gathered at Frew Ponds to honour the construction of the Overland Telegraph Line that crossed the continent from Adelaide to Darwin.

A Tennant Creek nurse has won a major category in the NT Health Professional of the Year Awards. Tennant Creek Primary School Nurse Rebecca (Beck) Way was awarded Nurse of the Year for her efforts in preventative care and positive health messaging which have helped raise health literacy in the next generation around mental health, drugs and alcohol issues, sexual health and respectful relationships.

Pam Dillon. This year’s Borroloola show and Campdraft/Rodeo was a big success with various stands at the show and a big three-day event at the Rodeo grounds ... Big crowds turned out to witness an exciting schedule of events that included Campdraft, Bareback cutting, Gymkhana, Barrel Race, Bull ride, Station Buckjump, Steer Ride, Bullock ride, Poddy ride, Saddle Bronc ride.

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Provaris’ $4.5 billion Tiwi H2 (Hydrogen) Project has the potential to be a first-mover in the world’s transition from fossil fuels to zero-carbon energy, and will demonstrate the commercial advantages of compressed hydrogen production and export from the Northern Territory to markets in the Asia-Pacific region.

Tennant Minerals has announced its latest drilling results at the Bluebird Copper-Gold Prospect near Tennant Creek revealed a discovery of a rich new gold shoot with bonanza grades. The company says the results highlight Bluebird’s potential to rival other high-grade copper and gold deposits including Peko and Nobles Nob, located just 20 kilometres west of Bluebird.

Ten juniors from Canteen Creek and five from Arlparra travelled to Darwin last week for the third National Indigenous Tennis Carnival. The children were treated to an unforgettable experience, which included a first plane ride and a use of an escalator for some of the children.