An Auckland suburban street has been shut down this afternoon with officers carrying riot shields and tasers seen on the road alongside six police cars.Police responded to a family harm incident at a property on Richmond Rd, Ponsonby…

Queensland beach-goers were given a scare this morning, as three sharks closed down a Gold Coast beach.

The sharks were each over a metre long, spotted between swimmers at Burleigh beach.

"We were sitting on the beach and we heard the sirens go off, the jet skis the helicopter and then everyone getting out of the water pretty quick," one beach-goer said.

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Lifeguards ushered everyone out of the water.

"It was sort of out in the back break, about 100 metres in deep water and they swam out to sea," lifeguard Chris Maynard said.

Swimmers said they were glad to be far from the water when the sharks were seen.

"I'm glad we were on the sand, we were about to go into the water," a young girl said.

READ MORE: Queensland on tenterhooks after flight sent into isolation

Shark expert Daryl McPhee said while shark attacks are incredibly rare, shark sightings do increase in Summer.

"More rain typically means more active bull sharks particularly in surf zones around the river mouths," Mr McPhee said.

He said bull sharks were the most common species of shark spotted on east coast beaches.

Coastal residents are advised not to panic if they see a shark on the beach, and to exit the water calmly.

Sharks sighted in swimming spots should be reported to life guards.

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Police have found $7 million worth of methylamphetamines in a pot plant, after intercepting a truck crossing the New South Wales border into Queensland.

Police footage showed the find, which included 10kg of methylamphetamine and two cash-counting machines located on a truck filled with hay.

READ MORE: Every NSW COVID-19 restriction that just changed

Police had been notified of the truck travelling into Queensland and yesterday at 4pm stopped the vehicle in Yatala, on the Gold Coast, conducting a search.

Upon examining the pot plants, a bag containing the methylamphetamine was found in the soil.

READ MORE: Queensland on tenterhooks after flight sent into isolation

"The seizure and arrest was the result of an investigation by multi-agency Taskforce Sentry, involving officers from the Drug and Serious Crime Group, Australian Federal Police, Australian Border Force and Department of Home Affairs," Queensland Police said.

The driver of the vehicle, a 23-year-old Gold Coast man, was arrested and charged with multiple alleged offences, inlcuding for possessing dangerous drugs.

He is in custody and is expected to front Southport Magistrates Court today.

READ MORE: 'Exceptionally hot air' will cause temperatures to soar

Western Australia has tightened its border with New South Wales, declaring the state an "extreme risk jurisdiction" as COVID-19 cases surge.

NSW today recorded 1360 new infections, up from 804 yesterday.

In response to today's numbers, Health Minister Brad Hazzard warned NSW could see up to 25,000 cases a day as Omicron variant spreads.

READ MORE: What you need to know about the COVID-19 booster roll-out

WA Premier Mark McGowan said the situation is "extremely concerning", announcing his state's border will be tightened to entrants from NSW from Saturday, December 18 at 12.01am.

"Case numbers are rising rapidly following a number of super-spreader events," Mr McGowan wrote on Twitter.

"The NSW Government has eased restrictions on the unvaccinated, and their Health Minister is now predicting 25,000 cases per day by the end of January."

https://twitter.com/MarkMcGowanMP/status/1470986359552630784

Under the "extreme risk" category, travel from New South Wales to WA will not be permitted unless approved under the strictest of conditions, the WA Government said in a statement. NSW was previously classified as "high risk".

Approved travellers must provide proof of a negative COVID-19 PCR test in the 72 hours prior to departure, undergo hotel quarantine for 14 days, and be re-tested on days 1,5, and 14.

The State Government will also move to halve the international arrivals cap from December 23, amid the heightened risk of Omicron.

WA is currently receiving 530 arrivals each week.

The Ministry of Health has confirmed a person who died last week of Covid-19 was in their late 30s, making this the youngest person to die of the virus in the country.”The patient who passed away at Auckland City Hospital last week…

Opposition parties have fired volleys at a new gun control bill introduced on Parliament’s last sitting day.Minister of Police Poto Williams said the new Firearms Prohibition Order Legislation Bill will tackle firearms violence…

National leader Chris Luxon will not exempt his party’s promise to cut the top tax rate from 39 per cent from his summer policy review. Luxon has inherited a handful of policies from the former National leadership, including a pledge…

Some 16 flight crew and two pilots currently in isolation after coming into contact with an Omicron-infected person will find out tomorrow if they have tested negative for the variant. The group came in contact with a person who…

Ōpōtiki Mayor Lyn Riesterer has made an official complaint about councillor Barry Howe, saying he is in breach of the council’s Code of Conduct.Howe took to the Ōpōtiki Community Notices Facebook page last week,…

The towns and suburbs with the luckiest lottery punters around the country have been revealed by The Lott.

Victoria has won the most major prizes in 2021, with 131 division one winners.

Combined, Victorians have won more than $358 million in the lottery this year, including a North Melbourne dad who won $80 million in August.

READ MORE: US man wins lotto twice after forgetting he bought ticket

But the NSW and ACT (counted as one area) have won more money, taking $397 million in division one prize money, split across 127 winners.

Queensland has had 100 division one winners, Western Australia 63, South Australia 37, Tasmania 16 and the Northern Territory six.

Two postcodes in Australia have had four division one lottery winners in the past year, the beachside town of Port Macquarie in NSW, and the western Townsville postcode that includes Kirwan and Thuringowa in Queensland.

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The latter postcode includes Queensland's luckiest lottery winner for 2021, a person who had a $60 million prize.

The four winning tickets at that Queensland postcode were split between two different newsagents.

In Victoria, the postcodes for Altona Meadows, Sunbury and Melbourne have all won three division one prizes this year.

In NSW, Wentworth Point and Penrith have had three division one lottery winning entries, while the Queensland suburbs of Gladstone and Mackay both sold three.

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In South Australia, Kilkenny was the only postcode to sell two division one prizes, compared to Devonport and Burnie in Tasmania, which each sold two.

Albany in Western Australia has sold three division one prizes in the past year.

There were no postcodes in either the Northern Territory or the Australian Capital Territory which had more than one division one prize winner.