Northern Territory authorities say a paramedic is among two women being treated in hospital after a fatal stabbing incident outside an Alice Springs pub on Thursday afternoon.
Emergency services responded to the incident outside the Todd Tavern just after 3pm.
Police said a 22-year-old male victim was transported to Alice Springs Hospital in a critical condition where he died from his injuries.
St John Ambulance emergency communications manager Craig Garraway said a woman involved in the incident was being treated for a facial injury and a paramedic was also injured while attending the scene.
"During that incident, one of our female paramedics was assaulted to the head and was taken to hospital and treated," he said.
"Unfortunately she had to re-present to hospital last night so she's undergoing some treatment there as a result of that assault.
"It's very disappointing in a whole lot of ways for the town."
Chaotic scenes following stabbing
Mr Garraway described chaotic scenes outside the venue when first responders arrived.
"Obviously [there was] a lot of aggression going on at that scene," he said.
"I don't have all the details at the moment ... but things got a little bit out of control.
"My understanding is [the paramedic] has been hit to the head by someone and unfortunately has had to spend some time in hospital last night."
NT Police said a 23-year-old man was in custody and was assisting with inquiries.
Acting Commander James Gray-Spence said initial investigations indicated the alleged offender and the fatal victim were known to each other.
"Police CCTV operators actually live-monitored the event and were able to provide details to attending officers," he said.
"What that vision shows us is that the initial fight started at the intersection of Wills Terrace and Todd Street."
Calls for more action on knife crime
Acting Commander Gray-Spence said it was believed to be an "isolated incident", but it was too early to draw conclusions.
"This is going to be a highly-detailed investigation," he said.
"We need to go with what we know at the moment.
"This seems to us to be an isolated incident in that it was a fight and then very quickly it degenerated into the aftermath that we saw yesterday afternoon, but we're examining this incident in isolation at the moment."
This incident follows a spate of knife-related incidents in Darwin, including two fatal stabbings since March.
In response, the NT government has toughened bail laws for people charged with weapons offences.
The government also announced a review of police powers, and increased police patrols at areas known for crime and antisocial behaviour.
But Acting Commander Gray-Spence said more could be done.
"I think there's probably more to come in that space about what are the tools that we can use as police for people who choose to go armed in public and carry edge weapons in public," he said.
