Category Archives: Queensland

Australia news live: NSW records 18 new Covid cases as premier announces New Year’s Eve restrictions for Sydney

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Gladys Berejiklian says households will be limited to five visitors as new cases spread to Blue Mountains, Wollongong and Sydney’s inner west. All the latest news and updates, live

The NSW opposition leader has weighed in on the debate around the Sydney Test.

You can go to the cricket but not congregate to view the fireworks. Both are outdoor events, yet different rules apply.

The cricket should be in NSW but with no spectators. Let’s watch both the fireworks and cricket on TV.

NSW Health has released a lit of new venues that have been visited by confirmed cases of Covid-19. This includes a Santa Claus Photo Booth at Westfield Burwood Shopping Centre.

Their statement is below.

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Man found clinging to ocean beacon after falling off boat in Queensland

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David Simpson rescued three hours after his yacht was discovered run aground between Bribie Island and Caloundra

A man has been found clinging on to a marine beacon after he fell from his boat into the sea off Queensland’s Sunshine Coast.

Emergency services scrambled to find the man after his 13-metre yacht was discovered run aground between the northern tip of Bribie Island and Caloundra at about 4pm on Tuesday.

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Australia’s first case of South African virus variant detected in Queensland – as it happened

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More contagious variant identified in returned traveller; three shops in Sydney CBD and two supermarkets in eastern suburbs visited by people who tested positive. This blog is now closed

  • Queensland detects case of South African variant
  • NSW records three new coronavirus cases
  • Sydney New Year’s Eve restrictions explainer
  • Covid hotspots NSW
  • Australia border restrictions
  • Follow our global coronavirus live blog

    • And with that, we’ll wrap up the blog. Here’s a summary of everything that happened today:

    Fairfield City has taken the decision to cancel New Year’s Eve celebrations, due both to the pandemic and the weather.

    Mayor Frank Carbone says in a statement he knows people will be disappointed by the decision, but it is the right decision.

    Council has been closely monitoring the escalating Covid situation in Sydney. The decision was made due to the increasing number of unlinked cases announced in the last few days outside of the northern beaches, which potentially means the virus has not been contained.

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    Australia news live: race on to solve Sydney’s mystery Covid cases; NSW police fine North Bondi partygoers

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    Contract tracers work to find source of five coronavirus cases as more hotspots named outside northern beaches. Follow all the latest news and updates, live

    Good morning, and welcome to the Australia news live blog for 28 December. I’m Elias Visontay. Here’s what’s making news this morning.

    -Health authorities in New South Wales are racing to uncover the source behind a mystery case they hope will shine light on the initial northern beaches outbreak, as further cases with unknown transmission threaten Sydney’s new year’s eve. Five of the nine locally-acquired cases in NSW under investigation are people who live outside the northern beaches.

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    Australia live news: NSW records seven local Covid cases after 70,000 tests as Christmas Day celebrations continue

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    Gladys Berejiklian discourages Sydneysiders from Boxing Day shopping; experts fear Christmas could turn into a superspreading event as ‘Avalon cluster’ rises to 108 and spreads. Follow all the latest news and updates, live

  • NSW Covid hotspots – list of venues and case locations
  • NSW premier calls on shoppers to avoid Sydney’s Boxing Day sales
  • Border restrictions: rules for NSW travellers

    • It has been a whole year since the skies parted and the almighty delivered this gift - Barnaby Joyce’s memorable Christmas message for the ages.

    In the video, the Nationals MP and former deputy prime minister declared “I just don’t want the government anymore in my life”.

    Merry Christmas pic.twitter.com/QGYPv51pTN

    One of the Australian government-facilitated repatriation flights to bring home Australians from India has been cancelled, as about 39,000 Australians remain stranded overseas for Christmas.

    The flight from New Delhi to Brisbane was scheduled to depart on Sunday 27 December, operated by Qantas.

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    Australia border restrictions: here are the state and territory Covid rules for NSW travellers

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    New border measures have been introduced as Sydney’s northern beaches Covid cluster continues to grow. Here’s what we know about the current rules

    As the coronavirus cluster on Sydney’s northern beaches grows, other states and territories have introduced border closures and restrictions.

    Here are the current border restrictions as of Sunday 20 December.

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    Australia coronavirus live: NSW records nine new Covid cases as ‘Avalon cluster’ grows to 104 cases

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    Gladys Berejiklian urges people to ‘limit your mobility’ as new rules kick in for Christmas Eve in Sydney; medical experts says New Year’s Eve fireworks should be cancelled. Follow all the latest news and updates, live

    Today’s seven cases linked to the Avalon cluster brings the total number of cases there to 104.

    Chant says all people onboard a Qantas flight from Darwin to Sydney on 17 December have been considered close contacts and have been asked to self-isolate.

    A Qantas crew member contracted Covid-19 who was onboard the flight subsequently tested positive. Chant says they are investigating another potential case but the current data is preliminary.

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    Australia coronavirus live: NSW reports eight more Covid cases as premier modifies Christmas restrictions in Sydney

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    Sydney to keep 10-visitor rule but from 24-26 December children under 12 not counted; lockdown continues in half of northern beaches, but small Christmas gatherings allowed. Follow all the latest news and updates, live

    The Northern Territory has revoked its categorisation of New South Wales region Illawarra as a coronavirus hotspot.

    Health minister Natasha Fyles made the announcement this afternoon following an emergency cabinet meeting, saying the decision was made because there were no cases from the northern beaches there.

    This is based on the evidence that they’ve had no cases from the northern beaches coronavirus cluster. I know people are anxiously awaiting other local government areas, but the advice from our chief health officer Hugh Heggie ... is that it is safe to remove that hotspot declaration for the Illawarra Shire local government area. The others will remain in place.

    Victoria is reminding people from greater Sydney, the Central Coast or the northern beaches to not attempt to enter Victoria, just in case you might have forgotten.

    If you have been in Greater Sydney, the Central Coast, or Sydney's Northern Beaches since Dec 11 please do not attempt to enter Victoria. Only people who have exclusively visited or travelled through other parts of NSW can apply for a Border Crossing Permit to enter Vic. (1/2) pic.twitter.com/bad8irfvqn

    As soon as it’s safe to open back up to NSW, we will. For now, we’re making sure Victoria can stay safe and stay open.

    For more information on the NSW outbreak and a map of locations in each zone, visit: https://t.co/sDimRWNc6F (2/2)#COVID19Vic #COVID19nsw

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    Australia coronavirus live: NSW records eight new Covid cases as Gladys Berejiklian gives update

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    Victoria reports one Covid case as the number of new cases in NSW falls for a second day. Follow all the latest news and updates, live
    • NSW Covid hotspots – list of venues and case locations
    • Border restrictions: the new state and territory rules for NSW travellers
    • Australia’s Covid restrictions and lockdown rules – state by state
    • Follow the global liveblog

    Police have charged four men with unlawfully lighting fires on K’gari/Fraser Island that started the blazes which scorched more than half of the World heritage-listed tourism drawcard.

    Queensland Police and and Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service carried out a joint investigation and detectives yesterday charged the four men in their 20s who are all from the Warwick area, 130 kilometres southeast of Brisbane.

    Related: Fighting for Fraser Island: how tourism and climate change put an ancient environment at risk

    Berejiklian says she is frustrated with other premiers who are closing borders to the whole of NSW.

    “There are parts of New South Wales completely unaffected by this current outbreak and yet everybody in New South Wales is suffering because other state leaders made decisions,” she says.

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    ‘It’s 2020 being 2020’: Sydney Covid outbreak disrupts Christmas plans across Australia

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    A week ago, Australia was shaping up to celebrate. Now state and territory borders are slamming shut to NSW and many are planning ‘a quiet Christmas’

    Just one week ago, things were looking rosy. There were no known active locally acquired coronavirus cases in Australia. State borders were mostly open. Christmas hams had been ordered. While many other countries were facing extended lockdowns, the festive season in Australia was in full swing.

    But things never stay good for long in 2020.

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    Coronavirus Australia live update: NSW records 10 new Covid cases on northern beaches as Qld and Victoria border restrictions outlined

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    Christmas travel plans up in the air after Sydney cluster grows to 28 and Qld, WA, Victoria and Tasmania announce new border restrictions and quarantine measures

    When asked why he isn’t implementing a hard border with NSW, Mcgown says it’s because the outbreak is not as “spread out” as the Adelaide outbreak, when the state did implement a hard border.

    “It’s based upon the number of cases and the spread of the cases. So if the cases are out from their existing location to other parts of Sydney or New South Wales, if the numbers grow as they have, or even more, then there may well be a requirement to go to a harder border arrangement.”

    WA health minister Roger Cook has announced one additional case in the state overnight, which takes total cases to 844.

    In relation to the clinics, he says all travellers who have arrived in WA from NSW between 11 and 17 December are required to immediately self-quarantine and be tested at a Covid clinic. They will have to remain in quarantine until they receive a negative result.

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    Australia news live: federal government takes China to WTO over barley tariffs

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    Plus: aircrew driver tests positive for coronavirus in Sydney, and heavy rain and flash flooding forecast for northern NSW. Follow the latest updates

    • Aircrew driver tests positive for Covid in NSW
    • Follow coronavirus global news live

    A severe weather warning has been issued for Wagga and much of the Riverina for flash flooding this afternoon.

    Severe thunderstorms have been forecast for the entire region, all the way from Hay in the west, right across to the east coast, and from the Queensland border down to Tumbarumba.

    ⚡SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING⚡ for HEAVY RAINFALL. Warning current for much of central and eastern NSW and the ACT.
    2hr Obs: 92mm @ Lismore.
    30min Obs: 26mm @ Glen Alice, 25mm at Mt.Werong & 22mm @ Lake Burley Griffin.
    ⚠️Warnings: https://t.co/30woSZ6O2x#ifitsfloodedforgetit pic.twitter.com/L8OXMiSlAz

    Victoria police commissioner Shane Patton has sought to differentiate between the police approach during the Black Lives Matter protest in Melbourne in early June and anti-lockdown protests that were broken up during the second wave, with many more fined.

    Patton told a Victorian parliament Covid-19 committee on Wednesday that at the time of the BLM protest, the spread of Covid was not as big as it was later on in the second wave, and there weren’t the severe restrictions at the time that were seen later – in June, groups of up to 20 people could assemble.

    We eventually made a decision to reluctantly allow that Black Lives Matter to go ahead, because of the emotion that was in the community, because of the emotion that was being displayed across the world.

    And that’s what we did.

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    Australia news live: New Zealand agrees to travel bubble; wild weather hits south-east Queensland

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    Jacinda Ardern says New Zealand’s cabinet has agreed to a proposal for a trans-Tasman travel bubble; storms forecast to continue in parts of south-east Queensland and northern NSW. Follow the latest updates

    If you were hoping to grab some of the Victorian government’s vouchers for travelling into regional Victoria for a holiday, you have missed out on the second round, AAP reports 30,000 vouchers sold in 31 minutes.

    An extra 30,000 Regional Travel Voucher Scheme vouchers, worth $200 apiece, were snapped up within 31 minutes of becoming available from midday on Monday via a new-look state government webpage.

    AAP reports the extreme weather in northern NSW and southeast Queensland will continue to intensify overnight.

    Sites in NSW’s Northern Rivers District had about 400mm of rain in just a few days, the Bureau of Meteorology’s Jane Golding told reporters on Monday.

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    NSW and Queensland weather expected to worsen: ‘Similar to a category one cyclone’

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    Potentially serious flooding and dangerous surf forecast for Queensland and northern NSW as heavy rain and damaging winds pound coast

    Wild storms battering the Queensland and New South Wales coastline are expected to worsen later on Monday, and authorities have warned the heavy rain and strong winds could be “similar to a category one cyclone”.

    Emergency services in both states have received thousands of calls for help since Saturday, as the conditions cause flash flooding and dangerous waves that have washed away large sections of beachfront.

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    Wild weather continues as flooding expected in Queensland’s south-east and northern NSW

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    Authorities urge people to brace for more heavy rain, gales and dangerous surf as some areas record more than 300mm of rain since Saturday

    Heavy rain across south-east Queensland and the north of New South Wales has prompted flood warnings as authorities urge motorists not to drive into floodwaters.

    Some areas, in the Gold Coast hinterland and northern NSW border, have recorded more than 300mm of rain since Saturday.

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    Atar bungle: Queensland university body accidentally tells 24,000 students they are ‘ineligible’

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    Queensland Tertiary Admissions Centre says incorrect email sent while testing notification process

    The Queensland university admissions body has apologised after it accidentally emailed tens of thousands of year 12 students telling them they were “ineligible” for a university admissions score.

    Due to an IT bungle, 24,000 students in the state received an email at midnight on Friday from the Queensland Tertiary Admissions Centre, a week before official results were due to be released.

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    Fraser Island residents told to prepare to leave as bushfire burns near Happy Valley

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    Fires sparked by illegal campfire on 14 October have destroyed 82,500 hectares of national park on world heritage listed island

    A bushfire burning on Fraser Island could impact Happy Valley village and residents have been told to prepare to leave.

    An update from Queensland Fire and Emergency Services said the fire was burning 3.5km north-west of Happy Valley on Sunday and conditions could get worse.

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    Two men drown and child in hospital in Queensland beach tragedy

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    Men in their mid-30s drown and boy, 9, in hospital, after incident on Australia’s Sunshine Coast

    Two men have drowned and a boy has been taken to hospital after getting into trouble in the surf on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast.

    The men in their mid-30s were pulled from the water at Teewah Beach in Noosa North Shore about 2.30pm on Saturday but could not be revived.

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    Australian politics live: Chinese embassy accuses Canberra of overreacting to tweet on Afghan killings

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    Embassy official dismisses ‘rage and roar’ over tweet; new WA border rules not requiring quarantine to start on 8 December; Paul Fletcher complains to ABC chair about Four Corners program. Follow latest updates

    And that’s where we’ll leave the blog for today. Thanks as always for reading, we’ll be back tomorrow, with Amy Remeikis at the helm in the morning.

    Here’s what happened today:

    And in further weather news, severe thunderstorms are set to hit Sydney in a few minutes. The Bureau of Meteorology has warned of damaging winds and large hailstones.

    ⚡Detailed Severe Thunderstorm Warning⚡
    for DAMAGING WINDS and LARGE HAILSTONES. Forecast to affect Hornsby, Parramatta and Richmond by 7:05 pm and Sydney City, Sydney Olympic Park, Mona Vale and waters off Bondi Beach by 7:35 pm.
    ⚠️Warnings: https://t.co/qF3XejM6Tv pic.twitter.com/qnSGNfqZND

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    ‘Catastrophic’ bushfire burns half of Queensland’s Fraser Island and threatens ecological disaster

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    The fire on the world’s largest sand island, also known as K’gari, has been burning for six weeks and is encroaching on areas with 1,000-year-old trees

    A bushfire has burned across half the World Heritage-listed K’gari/Fraser Island – the world’s biggest sand island, off Australia’s Queensland coast – with potentially catastrophic consequences for its habitats and wildlife.

    The blaze, which has been alight for more than six weeks, is threatening major tourism and rainforest areas after burning much of the island’s north.

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