Victims included an innocent householder, a prison guard, a policewoman and two inmates.

The former licence holder of a pub in Newcastle has been banned from holding a liquor licence for two years after an intoxicated patron was served the equivalent of more than 35 standard drinks.

Liquor and Gaming NSW found that a customer at the Gladstone Hotel in Stockton was served 22 schooners of beer and one shot, over six and a half hours on March 6, 2021.

The man collapsed and had to be carried unconscious from the venue.

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Liquor and Gaming NSW executive director Jane Lin said the behaviour of bar staff at the hotel posed a serious risk of harm to the patron.

"It was caused by the licensee's failure to ensure that the responsible service of alcohol was practised at the hotel and that appropriate practices, procedures, training and supervision were in place to prevent intoxication," Lin said.

"Apart from breaking the law, the actions of hotel staff put the patron at risk of significant harm.

"As this case shows, venues that fail to abide by responsible service of alcohol requirements can expect to be caught and face significant consequences."

CCTV footage reviewed by ILGA found that the male patron had "exhibited signs of intoxication", including stumbling, swaying and falling over.

The footage showed the man drank 23 alcoholic beverages between about 11.50am and 5.25pm.

NSW Police investigated the incident and concluded the patron suffered from a medical condition and did not show signs of intoxication until his collapse.

Yesterday's decision banned Tracey Keegan, the former licensee, from holding a liquor licence or being a close associate of a venue's licensee for two years.

The venue's liquor licence has been transferred to a new licensee since the incident.

In a separate decision, Liquor and Gaming NSW also imposed a CCTV and management plan conditions on the hotel's liquor licence following ongoing complaints and investigations relating to noise, intoxication and antisocial behaviour at the pub.

Tense letters between Grant Robertson and KiwiRail’s chairman have been revealed.

One girl who ran to escape returned into danger to help her screaming sister.

The circumstances surrounding the crash remain under investigation.

The Crown says ‘it takes two’, while the defence says only one person is culpable.

But, a jury wasn’t buying it – defendant guilty of multiple charges.

A decision to close an ANZ branch in the Blue Mountains in New South Wales has outraged some locals, with an online petition launched to keep the bank open.

"We live in Mount Victoria, and if the Katoomba branch closes, we face a 1.5-hour drive either east or west to reach the nearest ANZ branch," the petition reads.

"This is not just an inconvenience; it's an outrageous disregard for customers from a bank that reaps significant profits."

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So far, the petition has gathered 131 signatures out of a goal of 200.

The Katoomba ANZ branch will shut its doors on October 23 this year, at 1.30pm.

Those in Penrith and Bathurst will remain open.

"Australians are adopting digital methods as their preferred way to bank, with around 99 per cent of ANZ customer transactions conducted digitally or via an ATM," ANZ district manager Rohini Agnihotri said.

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"We are working closely with our customers to ensure they are well supported and aware of all the ways they can complete their banking."

He pointed customers to the ANZ App, internet banking, and phone banking as replacement options.

"We also have a team of community-based bankers, such as mobile lenders, who meet with our customers to discuss their banking needs at a location that best suits them," Agnihotri said.

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The claimed "real life Martha" depicted in hit Netflix series "Baby Reindeer" has spoken publicly for the first time, denying she ever stalked show creator Richard Gadd.

Scottish woman Fiona Harvey, 58, was interviewed at length by UK journalist Piers Morgan on his YouTube show Uncensored on Thursday.

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The Netflix drama "Baby Reindeer", released in April to rave reviews, is promoted as being an autobiographical story depicting real-life events.

In the seven-part series, comedian Richard Gadd portrays Donny, who is stalked by a woman called Martha after he serves her a cup of tea in a pub.

Viewers quickly connected Ms Harvey to the on-screen character Martha following the show's release due to their physical similarities and posts she had made on social media.

Ms Harvey, who claims she is identified as the stalker, said she received death threats over the show, which she labelled as "defamatory" and "a work of fiction".

"I think that anyone going along and being in that play and doing this to somebody, I find the behaviour outrageous," she told Piers Morgan.

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Gadd claims he received 41,071 emails, 744 tweets and 106 pages of letters from a woman who inspired the creation of Baby Reindeer.

In the interview, Ms Harvey initially told Piers Morgan "I don't think I sent him anything" before acknowledging on further questioning that there were likely "a couple of emails", "18 tweets" and "one letter".

Harvey also denied ever sitting outside Gadd's house, attacking his girlfriend or contacting his parents.

"You're 100 per cent sure it's not you?" Piers Morgan asked her.

"Yes," Ms Morgan replied.

Ms Harvey says she is considering legal action against Netflix and Richard Gadd over the show's depiction and the criticism she has faced since its released.

A Brazilian horse nicknamed Caramelo by social media users garnered national attention after a television news helicopter filmed him stranded on a rooftop in southern Brazil, where massive floods have killed more than 100 people.

About 24 hours after he was first spotted and with people clamouring for his rescue, a team in Brazil's Rio Grande do Sul state successfully removed Caramelo, providing a dose of hope to a beleaguered region.

The brown horse had been balancing on two narrow strips of slippery asbestos for days in Canoas, a city in the Porto Alegre metropolitan area that is one of the hardest-hit areas in the state, much of which has been isolated by floodwaters.

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"We found the animal in a debilitated state," Captain Tiago Franco, a firefighter from Sao Paulo deployed to lead the rescue, was quoted as saying in a statement from that state's security secretariat. "We tried to approach in a calm way."

Firefighters and veterinarians climbed onto the mostly submerged roof, sedated and immobilised the horse and then laid him on an inflatable raft — all 350 kilograms of him. The operation involved four inflatable boats and four support vessels, with firefighters, soldiers and other volunteers.

The rescue was broadcast live on television networks that filmed from their helicopters. Social media influencer Felipe Neto sent out updates to his almost 17 million followers on X as the rescue was underway. Afterwards, he offered to adopt him.

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"Caramelo, Brazil loves you!!! My God, what happiness," he wrote.

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva's wife, Janja, posted a video of herself sharing the good news with the Brazilian leader, whispering into his ear at an official event. He smiled, gave a thumbs up and hugged her to him. Rio Grande do Sul's Governor Eduardo Leite also celebrated the rescue, posting on X: "All lives matter, we stand firm!"

Caramelo is recovering at a veterinary hospital affiliated with a university.

Mariângela Allgayer, a veterinarian and professor at the institution, said Thursday afternoon on social media that he arrived very dehydrated.

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He is about seven years old and, based on his characteristics, was likely used as a draft animal for a cart, Bruno Schmitz, one of the veterinarians who helped rescue and evaluate Caramelo, later told television network GloboNews. He's also very gentle, Schmitz added, which greatly helped with the administration of sedatives.

"It was a very difficult operation, well beyond the standards even for specialised teams. I think they had never been through something like this before, but thank God everything went well," he said, then showed Caramelo standing up.

The stranded horse is just one of many animals rescue workers have been striving to save in recent days. Rio Grande do Sul state agents have rescued about 10,000 animals since last week, while those in municipalities and volunteers have saved thousands more, according to the state's housing secretariat.

Animal protection groups and volunteers have been sharing images of difficult rescues and heartwarming scenes of pets reuniting with their owners on social media.

One video that went viral shows a man crying inside a boat, hugging his four dogs after rescuers went back to his home to save them.

Heavy rains and flooding in Rio Grande do Sul have killed at least 107 people. Another 136 are reported missing and more than 230,000 have been displaced, according to state authorities.

There is no official tally for the number of animals that have been killed or are missing, but local media have estimated the number is in the thousands.

Not far from where Caramelo was rescued, pet owners in Canoas celebrated as they waited in line to get donations at a makeshift animal shelter organized by volunteers.

"So much bad news, but this rescue does give people here some more hope," said Guilherme Santos, 23, as he sought dog food for his two puppies. "If they can rescue a horse, why not all dogs that are still missing? We can definitely do this."

Carla Sassi, chairwoman of Grad, a Brazilian nonprofit that rescues animals after disasters, said she is meeting with state government officials in Canoas to discuss emergency measures to rescue pets.

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