An emergency warning has been issued for a blaze burning at Sandy Creek, east of Armidale, which has closed roads and is threatening several properties where residents have been told it is "too late to leave".

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.

Business owners in Tenterfield say tourists will be the key to the rural town's recovery, as bushfires and drought take their toll on the local economy.

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.

The remains of a 77-year-old man and a 68-year-old woman are found on a property destroyed in the bushfires which ripped through northern NSW earlier this week.

With towns facing "zero day" water crises National Party MPs are frustrated not enough dams are being built, but states are spending billions to fix a system ill-prepared for crisis.

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.

As Australians start to set up their home offices and practice social distancing, we've assembled 10 simple steps every Australian can take to keep safe amid the COVID-19 panic.

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.

As Tasmania brings in tough new controls to limit coronavirus infections, tourism and hospitality industries are "hanging on by a thread" and operators are urging locals to support them.

Australia won't run out of things to eat and drink, and shoppers have no reason to panic about any shortages as a result of coronavirus, food growers and manufacturers say.

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.

Rowena has been in and out of jail a handful of times — she says she is doing her best to stay out, but adds "when something bad happens on the outside, you just want to run back to jail and be safe".

There are now 22 people in Tasmania who have tested positive for coronavirus, with five people being diagnosed today, the director of public health says.

Gaming business Federal Group says it will not have jobs for about 1,500 of its 1,930 Tasmanian workers because of restrictions on the operation of hotels and casinos introduced to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

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.

Authorities say Tasmania is one of the last remaining jurisdictions in the country not to record any confirmed cases of coronavirus via community transmission. Has the state been spared and will it remain that way?

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.

Tasmania confirms eight more cases of coronavirus, bringing the state's tally to 36, as another college ends classroom teaching, citing "mixed and uncertain medical health advice within the community and from various public health authorities".

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.

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.

At least 1 million Australians are facing unemployment as a result of the coronavirus outbreak, and those with a mortgage are particularly worried. Here's some information on what the big four banks are doing.

Nigel Lazenby always dreamed of owning a house with river frontage, but that turned into a nightmare when a landslip wrecked his and other homes along the Tamar River in 2016. Now, Nigel is one of a group of owners who just want "fair" compensation.

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.

Australians are being urged to roll up their sleeves and give blood and plasma despite stricter measures on social interactions in the coronavirus pandemic.

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".

Tasmania's Premier has warned the public they face fines of up to $16,800 if they gather in groups larger than 10 people in public or private, from 6:00pm tonight.

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.

With many Australians facing the prospect of long-term unemployment, many have found themselves in a situation they never thought they would be in — applying for Centrelink.

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

Derek Benson says at 90, "you look around and you've lost all your good friends", and that he'll keep volunteering at the Youngtown City Mission near Launceston "for as long as I can stand up and do it".

Once a destination for grey nomads and bus tours, Australia's island state has built its brand into something clean, green and edgy. With 10 per cent of its economy hinging on tourism, Tasmania has a lot to lose.

Allison Davies says when she uploaded a cheerful ditty about wellness on her Instagram page she had no idea it would strike a chord with families worldwide.

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.

The deliberate concealment of objects throughout history has been linked to superstition, but for a patient at this notorious psychiatric asylum it was an act of resistance.

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.

A young Tasmanian father is dead and five people are in custody after police are called to an altercation in Ritchie Avenue in Burnie early on Sunday morning.

The former Children's Commissioner is calling for school-based care services to stay open for vulnerable students, even if tougher lockdown measures are introduced.

Four men and one woman appear in court charged with murder over the death of a 23-year-old man in Burnie, in Tasmania's north west, early on Sunday morning.

Tasmanian Premier Peter Gutwein has announced the state's first coronavirus related death.

Defence force personnel will help Tasmanian Police conduct spot checks to ensure people are observing new rules restricting their movements for at least the next four weeks.

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.

Campbell Remess has been making teddy bears for sick children since he was nine, now in isolation due to coronavirus, the teen is streaming lessons online.

State borders are closed, but has the time come to cordon off the shires from visitors too? Some rural and country leaders think so.