Coastguard crews from Whakatāne and Ōpōtiki are on their way to the boat.
Tag Archives: oceania
Toxic Waiheke beaches: Residents and visitors advised to steer clear of water after tests reveal toxic black algae at three beaches
Testing has revealed black algae washing on Waiheke shores is toxic.
Cyclist who was hit by car 'disappointed' by driver's sentence
A 77-year-old driver who pleaded guilty to hitting a cyclist with his car has been sentenced in a Victorian court.
Paul Walker was cycling home with his wife on Bridge Street in Sandringham when he was hit by a car about 6.30pm on January 23, 2022.
The 44-year-old was riding through a roundabout when he was knocked off his bike by Adam Fourie, who was driving his car.
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Walker sustained injuries and was assessed at the scene by his partner, who is also a paramedic.
Fourie was initially issued with two infringement notices and had his licence reviewed.
But following a police review of the case, Fourie was charged with dangerous driving, careless driving and passing a bicycle at an insufficient distance.
Fourie pleaded guilty to careless driving while the other two charges were thrown out.
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He was given a 12-month good behaviour bond.
The court heard the driver had an "unblemished" driving record and has never been in trouble with the law before.
However, his victim said the sentence wasn't good enough.
"It's disappointing to hear that's all he gets when for me, it's been a challenging 15 months," Walker said.
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Stylish cancer mum’s designer clothes to support other whānau
Heartbroken family selling mum’s designer clothes to raise money for others in need
Figure seen through window before 'at least 25 shots' fired in Hamburg
Shots were fired inside a building used by Jehovah's Witnesses in the northern German city of Hamburg on Thursday evening, with several people killed and wounded, police said.
"We only know that several people died here; several people are wounded, they were taken to hospitals," police spokesman Holger Vehren said of the shooting in the Gross Borstel district of Germany's second-biggest city.
He said he had no information on the severity of the injuries suffered by the wounded.
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Police did not confirm German media reports, which named no sources, of six or seven dead.
In a Twitter update in the early hours Friday, Hamburg police said they believed there was only one shooter and they were gradually rolling back security forces from the area.
"The investigation into the motive behind the crime continues," police said.
The scene of the shooting was the Jehovah's Witnesses' Kingdom Hall, a modern and boxy three-storey building next door to an auto repair shop.
Vehren said police were alerted to the shooting about 9.15pm and were on the scene quickly.
He said that after officers arrived and found people with apparent gunshot wounds on the ground floor, they heard a shot from an upper floor and found a fatally wounded person upstairs who may have been a shooter.
He said police did not have to use their firearms.
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Vehren said there was no indication that a shooter was on the run and that it appeared likely that the perpetrator was either in the building or among the dead.
Student Laura Bauch, who lives nearby, said "there were about four periods of shooting," German news agency dpa reported.
"There were always several shots in these periods, roughly at intervals of 20 seconds to a minute," she said.
She said she looked out her window and saw a person running from the ground floor to the second floor of the Jehovah's Witnesses hall.
Gregor Miesbach, who lives within sight of the building, was alerted by the sound of shots and filmed a figure entering the building through a window.
Shots can then be heard from inside.
The figure later apparently emerges from the hall, is seen in the courtyard and then fires more shots inside.
Miesbach told German television news agency NonstopNews that he heard at least 25 shots.
After police arrived, one last shot followed about five minutes later, he said.
Police had no information on the event that was underway in the building when the shooting took place.
They also had no immediate information on a possible motive.
Vehren said that "the background is still completely unclear".
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Hamburg Mayor Peter Tschentscher tweeted that the news was "shocking" and offered his sympathy to the victims' relatives.
Jehovah's Witnesses are part of an international church, founded in the United States in the 19th century and headquartered in Warwick, New York.
It claims a worldwide membership of about 8.7 million, with about 170,000 in Germany.
Members are known for their evangelistic efforts that include knocking on doors and distributing literature in public squares.
The denomination's distinctive practices include a refusal to bear arms, receive blood transfusions, salute a national flag or participate in secular government.
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Sydney woman jailed for running down and killing boyfriend
A Sydney woman's trauma escaping poverty and war played a role in the violent death of her lover, who she crushed with her vehicle after discovering him with another woman.
Jackline Sabana Bona Musa, 47, has been jailed for a maximum of 20 years after a jury found her guilty of murdering 31-year-old Payman Thagipur with her Toyota Kluger in the car park of his Wentworth Point apartment block.
Feeling cut off from the relationship, Musa sent Thagipur a lengthy text message on June 27, 2020, before searching for him in Granville and then finding him in his underwear with another woman at his home.
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The NSW Supreme Court heard she spontaneously formed an intention to seriously injure Thagipur, driving at him with her car, continuing through a bollard while he was pinned to the bonnet, and crushing him against the car park wall.
"His final ordeal was short, but terrifying, and he surely died in enormous pain," Justice Richard Button said on Friday.
"What occurred was a deeply self-centred imposition of violence on a fellow human being."
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The judge imposed a head sentence of 20 years for the "fatal explosion of emotion", backdated to Musa's arrest on June 27, 2020.
Her 14-year non-parole period will end in June 2034.
"A life was taken simply because a fellow human being was exercising autonomy in romantic matters, as he was absolutely entitled to do. Deplorable violence was inflicted upon him, whereby he was crushed to death," Button said.
The judge said Musa was living with untreated PTSD, anxiety and depression caused by her experiences fleeing poverty and war in Sudan as a child.
She also felt feelings of worthlessness, never having found happiness in romantic relationships and being poorly treated by at least one ex-partner, he noted.
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"I have taken this woman's conditions into account to some degree in mitigation on sentence, not as the slightest excuse for this act of deadly violence, but as some explanation as to why it came to occur," the judge said.
While the tragedy could be described as a "crime of passion", Button said Australian society would see such as term as outdated.
"Modern Australia, I believe, expects a person disappointed and upset by romantic matters to deal with those emotions maturely and certainly without harming others, whether emotionally or physically," he said.
"Australian society and Australian criminal courts firmly condemn domestic violence of any kind, committed by a person of any gender, let alone fatal domestic violence."
He said Musa had shown no remorse or had not even accepted grudging responsibility for what happened.
Button acknowledged Musa had been an upstanding citizen who successfully built a life in Australia prior to the murder, which the judge called "grossly out of character".
"I accept that the incarceration of this previously law-abiding woman of mature years is a source of great shame to her family and herself," he said.
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PM to sign agreements with Modi, won't be drawn on India-Russia ties
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will sign multiple agreements with his Indian counterpart across three subject areas, including defence, but has refused to be drawn on the Asian nation's military ties with Russia amid the invasion of Ukraine.
Speaking in New Delhi on the second full day of his trip to India, Albanese said he expects to sign agreements which will deal with national security, economy and cultural ties with Narendra Modi today, saying they are the "three themes" of his diplomatic visit.
However, when asked about India's defence relationship with Russia, Albanese took a leaf from the book of some of the Australian cricketers he watched yesterday and played a straight bat.
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"India is a sovereign nation, and they deepen their relationships with other nations as they see fit," Albanese said.
"What's important is how we deal as a sovereign nation with friends in our neighbourhood. And India is a friend of Australia.
"We have an increasingly important relationship… India is an important democracy.
"India stands up for democracy. And I think that the relationship is a very positive one."
Albanese on Thursday visited the first Indian-built aircraft carrier, INS Vikrant, which is based on a Russian design and had three Russian fighters on board.
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But rather than be drawn on the ties between Russia and India, Albanese instead focused on Australia's defence links with the world's second most-populous nation.
"We have an increasingly important relationship which goes to our economic ties, our cultural ties, but also our ties through exercises like the Malabar exercises that will take place later this year," he said.
"We also have, as part of the announcements as well, we've had the participation of Australian defence personnel here in India, and exchange the other way around as well."
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During his visit to the Vikrant on Thursday, Albanese announced Australia will for the first time host the Malabar naval exercises this year, which includes personnel from India and the other two Quad members, the US and Japan.
He also said India will take part in this year's Talisman Sabre military exercises, which are held biannually.
Among the agreements not related to defence, Albanese flagged increasing renewable energy ties between Australia and India.
"In economic areas, we'll also have agreements including in clean energy, we think in particular in solar, there's enormous opportunities," he said.
"I spoke to one of the major Indian companies here yesterday who are looking at billions of dollars of investment in Australia, including the manufacturing of solar panels.
"Something we've been talking about, something we want to promote through the national reconstruction fund: I want a future made in Australia."
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Whānau speak of barriers to prevention and treatment of cancer in new report
Māori whānau facing cancer talk about barriers to treatment in current health system.
Queensland locals evacuated ahead of expected record-breaking floods
Rural Queensland is prepping for major flooding following the highest river levels seen in the state since the record-breaking March 2011 floods.
River levels in and surrounding Burketown have hit as high as 17m, causing major floods and warnings which are expected to peak on Sunday as the floods inch closer towards the township.
The flood warnings have prompted police to remove residents from their houses as experts warn the floodwaters haven't reached their peak.
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"The problem now is we are expected a significant downflow… all that water is expected to flow down through areas of Doomadgee and then onwards to Burketown," Mt Isa District Officer Superintendent Tom Armitt said.
"(Today) we are starting evacuation operations, we will be moving the vulnerable and the elderly first, and then looking at whether we should continue to evacuate the remainder of the town.
"At this stage, Burketown is surrounded by large volumes of water, the flood modelling is showing that there is expected record flooding into the township."
Police will shuttle the elderly in small, manned aircraft to Normanton, while young children and their parents will be taken to Mount Isa.
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The river level record for the area is 6.78m from the 2011 March floods.
In the 48 hours between 9am on Wednesday and 9am on Friday, the Nicholson and Leichhardt River catchments saw 293mm of rain.
Riversleigh has seen the highest river water levels, peaking at around 18m on Thursday before slowly easing on Friday.
The Gregory River In Gregory Downs peaked at 14.7m, causing major floods in the region surrounding the river.
https://twitter.com/BOM_Qld/status/1634071646070792192
The Leichhardt River and its surrounding areas were also impacted by major flooding, with flooding peaking at Lorraine at around 17m.
River levels over 6m are considered above the major flood level.
The area is still under a major flood warning, which is expected to remain until next week.
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Polyfest 2023: Corned beef-holding competition attracts youth to fill out surveys
Pacific Island staple kai corned beef is attracting Polynesian youth at the festival.