Cape York

Samuel Davis. The legacy of one of Cape York’s most controversial figures is being revisited following a major land handback to traditional owners. Premier Annastacia Palaszcuk returned more than 362,000 hectares to the Gudang/Yadhaykenu, Atambaya and Angkamuthi (Seven Rivers) peoples at Injinoo last week. As part of the agreement, Jardine River National Park has been renamed Apudthama National Park.

Samuel Davis. “Excuse me brotha, can you help me?” A gentle hand touched my arm and a man with a pained expression met my eyes as I turned. Standing with a credit card in one hand and a sheet of paper in the other, he stood next to an ATM inside a Cairns shopping centre ... The only problem was Caleb’s new credit card wouldn’t work. Reluctantly, I leaned in to see if I could help.

Samuel Davis. A proposal to give greater powers to local disaster management groups during public health crises will keep Cape communities safer, a long-time mayor says ... Under Cr Scott’s plan, a health emergency would be treated like a natural disaster, with government agencies working together.

Samuel Davis. Cape York mayor Patricia Yusia doesn’t want to talk about the Indigenous Voice to parliament. Not while a desperate housing crisis is crippling her communities in the Northern Peninsula Area. So, when Cr Yusia met with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Horn Island last Thursday, the discussion was to the point.

Samuel Davis. Sly grog swindlers peddling cask wine and spirits are fuelling a spate of senseless and violent acts in western Cape York, angry community leaders say ... “The sly grog has been bobbing up for the last three weeks. There are people not turning up to work, threatening managers ... What is our community coming to? At the end of the day, it’s about personal responsibility": Pormpuraaw Aboriginal Shire Council CEO Edward Natera.

Samuel Davis. Cape York and Torres Strait residents will fork out more for essential services after northern Australia’s largest shipping company announced it was increasing the cost to ship freight to remote communities. Sea Swift has announced a 14.5 per cent hike for cargo shipments, starting next month.

A woman who helped save the life of her friend on a remote Cape York cattle station has been crowned the 2022 RFDS Local Hero Award winner for the Cairns region ... With Coen more than an hour’s drive away, and the nearest hospital at Weipa unable to be accessed due to flooding, Emma used the defibrillator machine on the property and performed CPR for an hour to help Peter bring his wife back to life.

Samuel Davis. Cape York rangers have narrowly escaped the deadly claws of an angry cassowary – and walked away with footage to prove it. Several Wuthathi Land and Sea custodians were inspecting an overgrown track near Shelburne Bay recently when they came into contact with the angry bird.

Cape York leaders are reserving judgement on a federal government decision to axe the Northern Australia committee which guided growth and community development across the region for almost a decade. Shadow Minister for Northern Australia, Senator Susan McDonald, said the Labor government had “abandoned” the economically diverse region at a critical time.

A team of researchers have come across a female cassowary in a remote section of northern Cape York, making it only the second confirmed sighting of its species in the area in four years. The encounter happened on the first day of a six-day survey that was being conducted by Ipima Ikaya Country Traditional Owners and consultant Wren McLean, facilitated by Cape York NRM.