An emergency warning is downgraded in northern NSW after an "unpredictable and fast-moving" grass fire had threatened homes, with embers to blowing up to 4 kilometres ahead of the fire front.

MORNING BRIEFING: The Rural Fire Service says it will begin assessing the full extent of the bushfire damage in northern New South Wales today, and a man is charged after a robbery in 2003.

A man is charged with two counts of murder after a woman and a young boy are found dead in a Tamworth house fire that police believe was deliberately lit. Two other people are in hospital with burns.

Free sheds are being built for those with nothing, in a creative approach to disaster recovery that is changing lives and putting a smile back on faces of despair.

Whitehaven's Maules Creek coal mine is being investigated for allegedly unlawfully taking water, after farmers say their groundwater is drying up. The company has already been found to have allegedly unlawfully taken surface water by the NSW regulator.

A man is sentenced to two months' jail after assaulting a student from Hong Kong who says he was targeted because he was wearing a face mask to protect against coronavirus.

If you are hoping to be buried in Launceston's main cemetery, you'll need deep pockets, with the cost of a single plot "skyrocketing" more than 225 per cent in recent years, and it's set to go up again. Why does it cost so much?

The number of people who have tested positive for coronavirus in Tasmania jumps to 16, with five cases being diagnosed on Saturday, the director of public health says.

If you're spending more time at home lately, Gardening Australia's Tino Carnevale suggests you get planting. Here, he gives the drop on what grows best at this time of year, inside and out.

Tasmanian public schools will remain open "for the time being", while pubs, clubs, sporting venues and churches close from midday.

Tasmania records six new cases of coronavirus, with four of those infected being passengers who returned to the state after disembarking the Ruby Princess cruise ship.

Small businesses are struggling across Australia as the coronavirus outbreak unfolds. But there are ways you can help keep them going — and stick to social isolation guidelines.

First it was the panic buying of toilet rolls, then staples like rice, pasta and meat — now it's spread to the nursery industry as demand for edible plants and seeds heats up due to coronavirus.

Health authorities say a person in their 20s is among the latest positive cases of coronavirus detected in Tasmania taking the state tally to 42.

Beauty services are closed, but hairdressers will still operate. Personal training can go ahead, but with no more than 10 people, outdoors, and observing physical distancing rules. You may be confused about the latest announcement on social gatherings. Let us explain.

Some veterinarians in Tasmania are sceptical about suggestions animal ventilators could be used on humans during the coronavirus pandemic, with some warning making them fit for purpose may be too expensive.

Renters in Tasmania could be safe from eviction until at least September under emergency laws to shield them during the coronavirus crisis — with New South Wales tenancy advocates welcoming the development and calling on "all governments" to follow suit.

Authorities say two children are confirmed amongst the latest coronavirus cases in Tasmania, as the Government confirms it will refund public school levies, freeze water prices and cap electricity prices as part of the COVID-19 pandemic response.

Ella Ross and Thomas Edwards were all set to buy land in southern Tasmania and build their first home until coronavirus put a hold on their plans when they were told their casual work "could not be counted".

Australia's smallest regional airlines say their financial survival can be counted in days rather than weeks, as the coronavirus emergency creates heavy turbulence for the industry.

Public health officials are investigating the recent movements of a worker at Latrobe's Mersey Community Hospital, in the state's north, who has caught coronavirus.

Tasmania's economy was just picking up as coronavirus restrictions sent thousands of people out of work — but some help is out there.

All non-essential travellers who arrive in Tasmania after midnight on Sunday will be placed into a Government-operated facility, Premier Peter Gutwein announces.

A continuing investigation into an infectious health worker at the Mersey Hospital in Tasmania's north-west reveals the person was only at work for 30 minutes before they felt unwell and went home.

As Tasmanian health authorities say they are yet to learn how two people in the state's north-west contracted coronavirus, four new cases are confirmed.

No new cases are identified on the day Tasmania records its second coronavirus death, an elderly man in southern Tasmania who was a passenger on the Ruby Princess cruise ship.

For the first time in about a fortnight Tasmania has had no new positive coronavirus tests, but the Premier says that's no reason to relax while warning parents to supervise children not at school.

A new coronavirus case diagnosed overnight takes Tasmania's tally to 72, as authorities release a list of destinations visited by two interstate travellers who later tested positive for COVID-19.

Owners of a Tasmanian equestrian facility say they may have no other option as business evaporates, leaving it with dwindling resources to feed and keep 46 horses.

Sex work, food vans at farmers' markets and race meetings are some of the latest activities banned by Tasmanian Premier Peter Gutwein, as part of the ongoing effort to slow the spread of coronavirus in the state.

Aged care facilities in all Australian states have recorded infections of COVID-19, with four new nursing homes recording cases in the last two days.

If there is anything good to come out of the coronavirus pandemic, it could be that rural Australians end up better connected to essential and recreational services than ever before.

Six new cases of coronavirus confirmed in the last 24 hours has pushed Tasmania's COVID-19 tally to 80, as police warn the public they will on patrol to ensure strict measures are followed.

A teenager pleads guilty to manslaughter, saying he is "honestly sorry for what I have put everyone through" and admitting he fatally punched a university academic at a Hobart nightclub in 2019.

The Tasmanian hospital where two staff members have tested positive to coronavirus will remain open, authorities say, assuring the public they can be "confident about the care they receive".

A ship that sank in 1852 off Rye in Victoria has given archaeologists new insights into early Australian boatbuilding.

Four new cases of coronavirus are confirmed in Tasmania, taking the state's total to 86, after Burnie's hospital shuts two wards to new admissions following staff becoming infected.

Three more cases of coronavirus in Tasmania are confirmed with two of those from the north-west, as investigations into an outbreak at the North West Regional Hospital continue.

Authorities reveal eight of the nine new cases of coronavirus confirmed in Tasmania are linked to the North West Regional Hospital, as the state records its third death.

On the day Tasmanian's north-west coast residents are warned their behaviour will be monitored in the midst of a local coronavirus outbreak, the state's confirmed cases rise by nine to 107.

Tasmania records another four cases of coronavirus, all in the state's north-west hotspot, after Premier Peter Gutwein warned of a statewide Easter police "blitz" and an "effective lockdown" in the north-west.

A Victorian teenager learning to drive was hit with a coronavirus-related fine, sparking this question from parents: Can I take my child for a lesson? Here's where each state stands on learner drivers.

With helicopters in the air, police patrols of holiday destinations and numberplate scanning, leaders around the country warn there will be no tolerance for breaches of the strict self-isolation measures.