‘The biggest fight of our lives’: the battle to contain Covid in the Northern Territory’s remote communities

When the small remote community of Binjari went into lockdown late last year, the Northern Territory’s emergency Covid plans kicked in hard.

Police set up a roadblock at the turnoff 18km south-west of Katherine. Nobody was allowed in or out. Defence personnel arrived to deliver food and essentials to people in their homes. Floodlights were installed at the edges of the community and stayed on all night, apparently to deter escapers. Residents reported drones flying overhead, checking they were obeying the stay-at-home orders.

The heavy police presence felt like an invasion, says Olivia Raymond, pictured with her husband, Peter, and sons Jaykon and Alfred, outside their Binjari home. Photograph: Isabella Moore/The Guardian