Professional surfer Caio Ibelli moved his family to outback Queensland, and while he's almost 2,000 kilometres from the nearest surf break, he's happy in the red dirt.

Administrators are appointed to a failed Indigenous housing group and the regular starts an investigation, but for one terminally ill grandmother about to lose her home, the action comes "too late". 

The Northern Territory government is being pressured to reopen a remote police station after the community's only health clinic was shut down amid alleged unrest and threats.

The outback road has been closed for the majority of the past two years, leaving some outback businesses with no choice but to pause operations. 

The Big Red Bash has been a major event in outback Queensland for more than a decade, but organisers say next year will be the festival's final year. 

Burketown airport reopening: ARIA Award-winning band King Stingray headlined a free concert at Burketown Airport over the weekend, alongside Dream Thieves and Doomadgee's DMC Boys. The concert marked the reopening of the town's main runway after repairs following the 2023 floods. During the closure, passengers had to fly into Doomadgee and travel about 90 minutes by bus to Burketown. Burke Shire Mayor Ernie Camp says the airport is a lifeline for Gulf communities, particularly during the wet season. Durack Civil carried out the runway reconstruction with Burke Shire Council, with the concert held as a thank-you to the community.

Pictured: ABC North West Queensland reporters Abbey Halter and Tim Little made the journey to Burketown for the reopening celebrations. Photo credit: ABC North West

Lookout upgrade: A $4.5 million redevelopment of a Mount Isa Lookout has been further delayed after its construction contractor Oka Construction went into voluntary administration. The John Campbell Miles Memorial Lookout had a soft opening during the Mount Isa Rodeo and was most recently due to be completed by the end of September, but council has now taken control of the remaining works. Mount Isa City Council CEO Tim Rose says it is now due by Christmas and is not expected to cost ratepayers more.

North West fertiliser plant: A $25 million phosphate fertiliser plant planned for Mount Isa is awaiting council approval, with finance, land and operators already in place. North West Phosphate managing director John Cotter says the first stage would produce around 30,000-40,0000 tonnes of fertiliser a year, supply agricultural markets across the North West and create 50 -100 jobs over the next two years. He says the project could reduce Australia's reliance on imported fertiliser and expand to around $100 million over five years.

Disaster funding: A North West mayor says councils can plan with confidence after the federal government reversed a proposed cut to disaster recovery funding. On Friday, the government confirmed it would retain its current funding contribution of roughly 64 per cent, rather than move to a 50-50 split with the states. Julia Creek Mayor Janene Fegan says the decision gives councils certainty over spending.

Cloncurry beef conference: North West graziers say they've been left with more questions than answers following government consultations on environmental reforms in Cloncurry on Friday. The industry's main concerns surround new protections for land left uncleared for 15 years, which had previously been largely exempt under state legislation. Cattle board member and North West producer Lloyd Hicks says he is still confused by the changes.

From iPods to TomKat, the 2000s provided plenty of pop culture moments that still resonate today.