Boat occupants on a surfing trip found clinging to the hull as more than 110mm of rain falls over the outskirts of Cairns in 24 hours
Seven seafarers are lucky to be alive after their boat capsized in rough seas as monsoonal weather brought flooding to rivers across Queensland.
Heavy rain persisted across the state’s drenched far north on Sunday as towns near the Victorian-New South Wales border faced their own flooding concerns.
Continue reading...BoM forecasts heavy rain for south-east Queensland and northern NSW, while across the far north temperatures will remain in the 40s
Parts of south-east Queensland are being battered by heavy rain in a soggy start to the new year, with dangerous flooding predicted.
Intense falls in some areas could lead to life-threatening flash flooding, the Bureau of Meteorology warned on Monday afternoon.
Continue reading...Illegal use of fireworks can lead to thousands of dollars in fines and even jail. Here are the rules around the country
Hefty fines and even jail time are on the cards for those who set off illegal fireworks this New Year’s Eve.
People right across the country used to partake in the annual “cracker night” festival, setting off fireworks in their backyards, but most states and territories began banning this practice in the 1980s.
Continue reading...Conditions 8C to 12C above average across large parts of Australia’s north, with little reprieve for storm-ravaged areas
A severe heatwave is expected to affect parts of Queensland, the Northern Territory and Western Australia heading into the new year.
Large swathes have been put on alert, with conditions 8C to 12C above average.
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Tasmanian yacht Alive is in the box seat to take out Sydney to Hobart yacht race’s overall honours, with skipper Duncan Hine confident the 66-footer has a winning time on the board.
Hine and his crew finished the 628-nautical-mile blue water classic yesterday afternoon as clubhouse leaders on handicap time.
It’s a waiting game. We’re looking good, though. I believe we could do it again, but the reality may be different. Now we wait with bated breath to see if anyone can beat our time.
Continue reading...Fyles quit after it was uncovered she owned undisclosed shares in a mining company with interests in the territory
The current treasurer of the Northern Territory, Eva Lawler, will be the territory’s new chief minister.
Lawler will replace the outgoing chief minister, Natasha Fyles, who resigned after it was uncovered she owned undisclosed shares in a mining company with interests in the territory.
Continue reading...Peak motoring body demands end to governments’ data secrecy as road death toll reaches 1,253
This year was the deadliest on Australia’s roads in five and a half years, with the road death toll reaching 1,253 – the highest since 1,270 people were killed in the 12 months to March 2018, according to the nation’s peak motoring body.
Upon releasing the data, the Australian Automobile Association accused governments of kicking road safety “down the road” after federal, state and territory transport ministers met a fortnight ago to discuss their next five-year partnership on road infrastructure projects but failed to make progress on data transparency when it comes to road deaths.
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‘Climate change a threat to people’s health as well as to our environment,’ Albanese says amid heatwave
Speaking at a press conference in Sydney, prime minister Anthony Albanese said the current heatwave is “a reminder that there just might be something in this climate change stuff”.
We have experienced 2023 as the hottest year on record. We continue to break these records, and that’s why my government’s determined to act on climate change.
Today, with the high heat levels, I do say that it’s a time to ensure that we look after each other and stay safe.
We need to have our migration levels brought to a sustainable level and we will be releasing details of that this week.
Continue reading...La Niña, invasive grass and land management practices are all factors in the larger-than-average bushfires that have burned an area bigger than Spain. This interactive map shows the total area burned, overlaid on different capital cities
Huge bushfires have burned a significant amount of northern Australia in recent months, with the collective area burned larger than many countries, including Spain.
Experts say the massive fires are primarily due to a higher-than-average fuel load built up over the recent wet La Niña years, with an invasive grass species also contributing to more intense burns.
Continue reading...Grattan Institute says Australia’s regional roads are a ‘dangerous disgrace’ due to paltry federal funding
Regional Australian roads have become a “dangerous disgrace”, according to a new report that warns they will get worse due to paltry funding that favours cities and forces poorer regional councils to waste repair money erecting signs in tribute to government grants.
In a new report, the Grattan Institute has found that roads across the country have become riddled with potholes and other hazards because inadequate federal and state government funding has left councils under-resourced and without sufficient knowledge or data to maintain the roads they are responsible for.
Continue reading...After eight weeks of evidence that heard of ‘chronic and shocking’ underfunding, Elisabeth Armitage wraps up landmark inquiry into killings of four women at hands of their partner
The words of a grieving family have brought a coroner to tears in the final day of an inquest examining the killing of four Aboriginal women in the Northern Territory.
“It cannot be normal that men hurt us women. Everyone must do more from the start, not just after women get hurt or killed,” wrote Ngeygo Ragurrk’s sister, Edna.
Continue reading...National Sea Country Alliance Summit told that the agendas of environmental groups do not always align with First Nations priorities
An alliance formed by traditional owners to fight for their “sea-country” rights after court wins against Santos’s $5bn Barossa offshore gas project is set to sideline environmental groups, critics say.
More than 100 First Nations people met in Darwin for a two-day summit this week so traditional owner groups with responsibility for sea-country – particularly country that intersects with proposed offshore oil and gas projects – could discuss their rights and responsibilities “in the face of increased offshore energy proposals”.
Continue reading...Climate Analytics says onshore emissions of proposed fracking understated by up to 84% in ‘a rosy picture that simply doesn’t reflect reality’
Fracking to extract gas from the Northern Territory’s Beetaloo Basin could lead to much larger greenhouse gas emissions than the territory government has claimed, according to new analysis.
The report by Climate Analytics, and commissioned by the Nurrdalinji Aboriginal Corporation, finds the projected emissions associated with proposed gas developments in the Beetaloo basin had been significantly underestimated in government modelling, while the availability of carbon offsets had been overestimated.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Discussion on panel came as federal government was developing reforms to address high rates of youth nicotine addiction
An Australian politician spoke at the tobacco industry’s flagship conference in South Korea, despite the federal government developing reforms to address alarming rates of youth nicotine addiction.
It is the first time in more than a decade that a serving Australian politician has spoken at a tobacco industry-funded conference. Attending such events could breach a World Health Organization (WHO) treaty, to which Australia is a signatory.
Continue reading...Government also presses for removal of imposts on wine ahead of Anthony Albanese’s visit to Beijing next month
Australia is moving to repair ties with China ahead of Anthony Albanese’s trip to Beijing, ruling out cancelling a Chinese company’s lease over the strategically important Port of Darwin.
The move, which is likely to be welcomed by the Chinese government, comes as Australia also prepares to scrap tariffs on imports of Chinese wind towers, potentially defusing one of Beijing’s trade complaints.
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Heavy traffic near Sydney airport after truck crash and fluid spill
Traffic remains heavy near Sydney airport after a two-truck crash caused a fluid spill.
This is one of the most important priorities for us coming out of what’s occurred in the previous days.
Minister Wong is [working] really hard on that. The Australian government will do whatever is necessary to protect [its] citizens.
We’ll do whatever is necessary to make sure we can secure the safety of Australians … We’re working very hard to make sure we protect Australians not just overseas, but here at home.
Continue reading...Two adults and four children won’t be identified until later this week following intense fire when 4WD collided with truck on Stuart Highway on Friday
Very few human remains were found following a horror road crash that killed six people – two adults and four children – in the Northern Territory, authorities say.
A four-wheel drive carrying six people was on fire for more than five hours after colliding with a road train near a small town in the Katherine region on Friday afternoon.
Continue reading...At 2am on Sunday the clocks roll forward an hour in NSW, Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia and the ACT. So why aren’t Queensland, WA and the NT onboard?
Depending on who you ask, it’s either the most wonderful time of the year or the bane of their existence.
As most Australians sleep through Saturday night and into Sunday morning, time will skip ahead one hour – but only in some states and territories.
Continue reading...Alleged incident took place at 11.40am on Sunday at Nightcliff markets, close to her electorate office
Police are investigating after Natasha Fyles, the chief minister of the Northern Territory, was allegedly physically assaulted at the Nightcliff markets in Darwin.
Guardian Australia confirmed the alleged incident took place at about 11.40am on Sunday at the markets.
Continue reading...Northern Territory government approval will be contested at a tribunal, with activists arguing the expansion will hurt Indigenous communities
A Northern Territory government decision to approve a doubling of the number of gaming machines in two Alice Springs pubs will be contested by local anti-pokies campaigners who are concerned the move would further exacerbate social problems.
The challenge to the decisions made by the director of gaming machines, Philip Timney, to expand the number of pokies from 10 to 20 at both the Todd Tavern and Gap View Hotel will be heard in the NT civil and administrative tribunal on Friday.
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