What we learned – Sunday 23 November
That’s where we’ll wrap up for today – but first a quick recap:
We’ll be back with the news blog bright and early tomorrow.
Key events
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Tropical Cyclone Fina intensifies into a category 4 system
As predicted, Tropical Cyclone Fina has intensified into a category four system as it moves southwest towards the northeast Kimberley coast.
In its latest update, the bureau of meteorology described the intensity of the cyclone as category four with “sustained” winds near the centre of 165km/h with wind gusts to 230km/h.
The warning zone extends from Wadeye to Dundee Beach in the Northern Territory and NT/Western Australian border to Troughton Island, including Kalumburu in WA.
Updated at 23.17 EST
Update on Morton Bay house fire death
Police have released new details on the house fire north of Brisbane which has claimed the life of a person inside this morning and four other people taken to hospital.
Emergency services were called to the property at Moreton Bay about 5.35am after neighbours reported the fire. Police say:
A person was located deceased inside the residence.
Other occupants, a man, woman, and two teenagers, were treated at the scene and transported to hospital.
A crime scene has been declared, and the cause of the fire is yet to be determined.
Investigations are ongoing.
Updated at 22.58 EST
(A)manda Parkinson has captured some of the scenes in Darwin today with giant trees have been ripped from their roots and shops closed to the public.
Giant trees have been ripped from their roots in Darwin CBD as Cyclone Fina tracked just north on 22 November 2025. Photograph: (A)manda Parkinson/The GuardianDarwin CBD shops closed to the public, just three convience stores remained open prior to midday on Saturday November 22 as Cyclone Fina made her way towards the top end city. Photograph: (A)manda Parkinson/The GuardianGiant trees have been ripped from their roots in Darwin CBD as Cyclone Fina tracked just north on 22 November 2025. Photograph: (A)manda Parkinson/The GuardianShare
Finocchiaro paid tribute to the community spirit:
In true Territory spirit, neighbours are coming out with chain saw and gardening snippers, and everyone’s chipping in behind each other. And I think that’s really special and important.
Updated at 22.35 EST
‘Business as usual’ at Royal Darwin hospital after ceiling collapse
Lia Finocchiaro said it was now “business as usual” again at Royal Darwin hospital despite damage to a ceiling in the building:
Royal Darwin hospital last night had a four by four meters square area of its ceiling collapse. There were no injuries to staff or patients and it did not impact patient outcomes or our ability to look after the people in our care in hospital, we’ve had engineers making assessments, and I don’t have any further updates, other than to say it is business as usual at Royal Darwin hospital and that one incident has not had an operational impact.
Updated at 22.30 EST
Finocchiaro said preparedness meant there has been “minimal impact”, with the greatest brunt felt by the community of Wurrumiyanga, on the southern coast of Bathurst Island:
This cyclone saw a territory that was united and prepared for what was to come. And as a result, we’ve seen a largely minimal impact and no injuries. As a result, Wurrumiyanga experienced the greatest brunt of Cyclone Fina and Darwin expect winds of up to 109 kilometers an hour. So it’s understandable that there is damage. Wurrumiyanga is likely to have longer periods of power outages. However, there is some diesel redundancy on the island that we can utilize, and we will communicate more directly with the people affected over there.
Updated at 22.44 EST
Principals asked to assess whether schools safe to return
Lia Finocchiaro said school principals have been asked to visit their schools to see if it will be safe for students to return:
Of course, families are really keen to understand whether or not they’ll be sending their children to school tomorrow, and we very much want to make sure that we are returning to a business as usual in a safe and measured way. And so principals have now been asked to go and visit their school. It’s safe for them to do that and make those assessments school by school, on whether or not they’re fit and ready to be welcoming students back in their doors first thing tomorrow morning, that will then be communicated to all parents across the afternoon, so that all families have certainty around what tomorrow looks like.
Updated at 22.27 EST
NT residents now able to leave home for essential purposes
Finocchiaro said warnings have now been reduced:
We want Territorians to be going back to their business as usual. Now, obviously there remains to be significant debris, trees down and even power lines, but Territorians who need to move about for essential reasons, such as restocking their fridges, having to take items to dump points and other necessary travel are encouraged to do so safely.
Northern Territory chief minister Lia Finocchiaro. Photograph: (A)manda Parkinson/AAPShare
Updated at 22.29 EST
Over 19,000 homes and businesses without power after Cyclone Fina
Lia Finocchiaro, the chief minister of the Northern Territory, is giving an update after Cyclone Fina. She says:
There are around 19,500 homes and businesses that lost power over the last 24 hours, and our crews have been out on the ground, tirelessly working through what that footprint looks like and how we restore power as soon as possible.
Updated at 22.20 EST
Cyclone Fina also stirred up a rare swell on Darwin beaches, Parkinson reports:
Despite the crocs and stingers, some surfers braved the conditions to catch a wave.
Brad Cosway was out with his friend Craig Dawson on Sunday for a kite surf at Windsurfers Corner in Nightcliff. He said:
I don’t want to surf with the crocs, but they aren’t feeding in the saltwater.
Plenty of these guys have been out surfing here for 30 years and no one has ever been taken.
Darwin residents inspect damage after Tropical Cyclone Fina
(A)manda Parkinson has been reporting from Darwin for Guardian Australia, speaking to locals waking up to inspect the damage from Cyclone Fina.
On Nitsa Kotis’s street a 10m palm tree fell – away from homes – on to power lines, blocking the road and cutting power. Kotis said:
I haven’t even been out the back of my place yet to see the damage, I’ve been too busy socialising with the neighbours.
Neighbours spilled out on to the street on Saturday morning to inspect the damage, some charging phones and devices from their car batteries, others just milling over their nights.
A palm tree has come down on Nitsa Kotis’s street in Darwin’s north. Photograph: (A)manda Parkinson/The Guardian
You can read the full story here:
Updated at 22.28 EST
Experts call for animals to be at the core of infrastructure planning
An estimated 10 million native animals are killed on Australian roads every year, AAP reports.
Though there are measures known to make roads safer for wildlife, new research has warned those optional design standards are often overlooked.
Wildlife could be protected through underpasses, canopy bridges and exclusion fencing, but their construction was usually left to the discretion of budget-conscious developers, according to a Griffith University-led analysis.
Queensland and Victoria are the only states with wildlife-sensitive guidelines embedded in their road designs, although their standards are voluntary.
The study called for biodiversity to be at the core of infrastructure planning, rather than being left open to interpretation.
Updated at 21.49 EST
Firefighting operations continue in Tasmania’s north-east
A large fire continues to burn in Lefroy in Tasmania’s north-east since it was reported yesterday afternoon.
Tasmania Fire Service incident controller Paul Beechy said that crews from Tasmania Fire Services, Tasmania Parks and Wildlife Service, and Sustainable Timbers Tasmania were responding to a large vegetation bushfire.
The fire has burnt approximately 660 hectares, and there are several firefighting appliances currently being used including fire trucks, five aircraft and machinery.
Firefighting crews have worked through the night and are continuing to work to contain the fire today. To date, no structures have been lost but as usual, resources will be positioned to protect assets in the area.
Beechy said that conditions were expected to be changeable today, and urged residents in the vicinity of the fire to stay informed and be ready for any changes in the fire threat.
A watch and act warning is in place for people in Lefroy to monitor conditions as they are changing, as well as a bushfire smoke alert for George Town and surrounds to avoid smoke.
Some Telstra services in Darwin and surrounds may not be restored until Tuesday
Telstra’s website is showing several locations in the Top End are experiencing outages and the estimated restoration won’t be until Tuesday evening in some locations.
Telstra’s map states:
A severe weather event is affecting some mobile, nbn, landline services in NT. We’re on the case and working to get you back online ASAP.
For some locations in Darwin and surrounds such as Humpty Doo, Weddell, Fly Creek, Daly, Berry Springs and Mcminns Lagoon, Telstra states the estimated restoration won’t be until 7:30 pm on Tuesday.
Updated at 21.06 EST
Coalition not signing up to EPBC changes yet
Josh Butler
James Paterson also said the Coalition would not support the government’s environmental laws in their current form, setting up a major standoff in the last week of parliament.
As we brought you earlier, the Greens are still hesitating in backing the laws, saying they don’t do enough to protect the environment and would pave the way for new fossil fuel projects. Paterson, the shadow finance minister, says the opposition is still not signing up either. He told Sky:
Where it stands today, we certainly couldn’t support the proposed legislation. It is deficient in a number of areas, and the business community has been very vocal about that.
Paterson said the Coalition was still sticking to its previous position of seeking seven changes to the legislation, in line with what the business community has requested.
So the ball is in the government’s court. If they’re willing to compromise, if they’re willing to deal with the concerns of the business community, then we are up for acting in a bipartisan way in the national interest. But if they’re pursuing ideology over Australia’s national interest, then they are welcome to go and do a deal with the Greens and they will wear the consequences of that.
Updated at 21.55 EST