Reported diphtheria death denied by health authority

Lloyd Jones | May 25, 2026

Reports that a second person with diphtheria has died in an outback town have been rejected by a territory’s public heath authority. 

The Northern Territory is at the centre of Australia’s worst diphtheria outbreak in decades, with cases of the potentially deadly disease also reported in Western Australia, South Australia and Queensland. 

There has been one possible death related to diphtheria in the territory as of Monday, with NT Health saying it was still awaiting a formal autopsy result to confirm.

But a spokesperson confirmed that the reported death of another patient in central Australia on Sunday was “in no way related or linked to diphtheria”.

That followed a report by the ABC earlier on Monday that a second person, aged in his sixties with pre-existing heart issues, with diphtheria had died at Alice Springs Hospital on Sunday.

NT Heath was the appropriate source for confirmed information about diphtheria-related deaths in the territory, the spokesperson said.

NT Health said there had been 163 cases of diphtheria reported in the territory since the start of the year.

The Australian Centre for Disease Control has recorded at least 242 diphtheria cases across the nation so far in 2026.

The federal government has announced $7.2 million in funding for vaccines, antibiotics and a surge in health staff to affected communities.