Court next stop after mess over toilet roll

Australian police have charged two Sydney women involved in a brawl over toilet rolls as major grocers restrict supplies to one pack per person amid panic buying.

New South Wales police said two women, aged 23 and 60, were issued court notices for affray following a row at a supermarket. They are due to appear in court on April 28.

A video shows the women yelling and fighting over a shopping trolley brimming with toilet paper, forcing floor staff to intervene.

One woman yelled: "I just want one packet." Another, who had the toilet paper-filled trolley, retorted: "No, not one packet."

Staff intervened and called police.

Toilet paper has emerged as the unlikely No 1 stockpiling target for people worried that the spread of the virus will lead to supply shortages.

In lighter news, Australian newspaper NT News earlier jokingly printed eight blank pages for readers to use it as toilet paper.

"Runt out of loo paper? The NT News cares. That's why we've printed an eight-page special liftout inside, complete with handy cut lines, for you to use in an emergency," the newspaper's ad read.

The number of cases in Australia has topped 70, including three deaths.