The first case involved an 80‑year‑old man who fell at home on February 7. He called emergency services at 8:12 a.m., but St John NT was down a crew and all available ambulances were already attending higher‑priority incidents. He waited more than six hours before an ambulance took him to Royal Darwin Hospital, where he died later that afternoon.

The second case was an 89‑year‑old woman who fell in a nursing home on the following day. Her call for help was logged at 2:06 p.m., but she was not attended until 7:08 p.m., a wait of about five hours. She was later diagnosed with multiple broken ribs and a collapsed lung and died 11 days after the incident.

St John NT reports that ambulance demand in the Territory has risen 37.7 % between 2020 and 2025 and 61.1 % since 2015, far outpacing the region’s population growth. The service says this surge creates “routine operational pressure” that leaves fewer crews available for new calls.

Because the service is operating with limited crews, even correctly prioritised calls can be delayed when many higher‑acuity emergencies occur at the same time. The coroner’s findings highlight how such resource gaps can turn otherwise treatable injuries into fatal outcomes, prompting calls for additional funding and capacity improvements.