Tourists travelling outback Australia issue grim warning: 'So many horror stories'
One British woman has warned other travellers about an alarming trend in remote parts of Australia.
A British woman travelling through the outback with her partner has warned other travellers to "be cautious", suggesting ongoing youth crime in regional Australia can leave caravaners and backpackers feeling unsafe.
The woman named Ash, who's been sharing her adventures on social media, warned it's particularly troublesome in northern Western Australia around Fitzroy Crossing, a small outback town in the Kimberley region popular with tourists travelling through the area.
She said travellers have reported issues "from Derby all the way through to Darwin".
Fitzroy Crossing, like most Kimberley towns, has struggled with juvenile crime in recent years. "You basically have to stop here for fuel," she explained in a clip on TikTok this week, sitting locked in her car at a petrol station in Fitzroy Crossing.
"You should stop at every station for fuel in the outback because it is so rural, but just travel safe and be cautious". She said she'd heard "so many horror stories from friends".
Recalling one friend's ordeal, she claimed "they went to get fuel. She was in the car whilst her partner went to pay, and some kid came up to the window and tried to break into the car.
"We're being super cautious and I have literally locked myself in the car," she said. "If you're stopping anywhere, just be super careful".
Caravanning couple reveal how to stay safe in regional towns
Retired couple Steve and Leoni, who've been travelling Australia in a caravan for 13 years, echoed Ash's concerns, admitting there are a few things to look out for to ensure your safety when travelling through the Top End of Australia.
"I always say to people, if you do decide to stay at a roadside camp, there are a couple of things to look out for. If there are skid marks or broken glass, don't stop, keep going," Steve previously told Yahoo News Australia.
"That means the kids from the town come out and muck up a bit. Always stay 30, 40 kilometres away from town because usually, you don't get people coming that far out to muck up," he added.
Alice Springs troubled by youth crime
The couple noted it's particularly problematic in Alice Springs at the moment where youth crime has soared in recent years. In March this year, a temporary curfew was put in place by the NT government to ban young people from the Alice Springs CBD between 6pm and 6am. The aim was to help combat anti-social behaviour in the area. Alcohol bans were also put in place.
In recent years, there's been an uptick in break-ins, burglaries and violence, not just in Alice Springs, but in regional towns across Australia.
Steve and Leoni claim many of the caravan parks in remote town have fences surrounding them, in an attempt to stop youths from getting in. "They're high, barbed wire fences," Steve said. "But they still get in and steal everything".
"We were lucky enough to visit all those places in the early days when it wasn't so bad," his wife and travel partner Leoni added. "But it's certainly not somewhere we'd like to visit anymore."
Police resources stretched with authorities desperate for a solution
Earlier this year, Northern Territory's Acting Police Commissioner Travis Wurst said the force's resources were stretched as a result of the steep increase in youth crime. "At times we are challenged by simultaneous commissions of crime in certain pockets of the NT, and that does stretch our resources," he said.
The number of violent offences committed by children in the territory has skyrocketed over the past four years, with nearly 2,000 violent offences by youths reported in the year to November, 2023. These figures represent a 50 per cent rise on 2019-20.
Meanwhile, in WA's Kimberly region, a major crackdown was announced in 2022 called Operation Regional Shield which saw dozens of extra officers deployed to the area. At the time juvenile offending was up 54 per cent in the Kimberley, compared with the previous two years, the ABC reported.
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