Tag Archives: oceania

Rogue MP to fight move to expel her from Liberal Party

Rogue MP Moira Deeming has vowed to fight the "unjust" push to expel her from the Liberal Party after she attended an anti-transgender rally that she claims was crashed by neo-Nazis.

Deeming spoke at the 'Let Women Speak' event held by British anti-transgender activist Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull outside the Victorian parliament in Melbourne's CBD on Saturday.

A group of neo-Nazis joined the anti-transgender demonstrators and repeatedly performed the Nazi salute.

READ MORE: Millions to receive pension, JobSeeker and carer payment boost

Deeming condemned the actions of the neo-Nazi group who "gate-crashed the Let Women Speak (LWS) event".

"Most of the LWS supporters did not realise who they were until they were being escorted out by Victoria Police, when they did the despicable Nazi salute," Deeming said in a statement obtained by The Age.

"I completely reject the beliefs of National Socialists (Nazis) and I have seen first-hand the impact that the Holocaust had on a family member."

https://twitter.com/msanto92/status/1637593483174350848

Opposition Leader and Leader of the Victorian Liberals John Pesutto announced his intention to oust Deeming from the Parliamentary Liberal Party, describing her position as untenable.

Pesutto said the move was not linked to Deeming's long-held anti-transgender views, but her role in organising and promoting an event affiliated with well-known white supremacists.

He said Deeming should have been aware of Keen-Minshull's associations with white supremacists and questioned why she did not leave when the group of Nazi sympathisers showed up.

"I am a strong supporter of free speech, but free speech doesn't include hate speech," Pesutto told media today.

"I will never, ever accept any member of the Parliamentary Liberal Party under my leadership ever associating with anybody who shares a platform with people who peddle hate, division, and attack people for who they are."

The Victorian government will consider banning the Nazi salute after white supremacists hijacked a far-right protest on the steps of State Parliament. 
There's also been sharp criticism of the role of Victoria Police, with the force refusing to elaborate on why the Neo Nazis were not arrested.

He specifically referenced British women's rights activist, Kelly Jane Keane, who was at the centre of the demonstration on Saturday.

"Having seen the ugly scenes and having had an opportunity to disown and dissociate from those very people, Ms Deeming chose to celebrate, as evidenced on social media," Pesutto said.

Displaying the swastika is outlawed in Victoria, but the Nazi salute is legal.

Victorian Equality Minister Harriet Shing questioned whether the opposition leader only took action against Deeming due to the event's links with white supremacists.

"Mr Pesutto and his colleagues have consistently voted against legislation that we have proposed and passed to remove the stigma and discrimination against LGBTIQ Victorians," she said.

"He has questions to answer on whether he will stand up for trans rights and call out transphobic comments made within his party room.

"It's not good enough for Mr Pesutto to take action only when Nazis show up on the steps of parliament, (he) needed to take action when an anti-trans rally took place on the steps and when members of his parliamentary party made comments that were directly intended to cause hurt and trauma to trans people."

Sign up here to receive our daily newsletters and breaking news alerts, sent straight to your inbox.

US pilot was on his last shift when air tanker crashed

Two long-time US military aviators had just started aerial firefighting while their experienced pilot was flying his final shift when their large air tanker crashed fighting the Black Summer bushfires.

A NSW inquest into the 2019-20 horror fire season resumed on Monday to examine their deaths.

Calls played to the inquest recorded the local incident controller telling the Rural Fire Service state area command aircraft were grounded on the morning of the crash.

READ MORE: Millions to receive cash boost today

US firefighters Paul Hudson, Rick DeMorgan and Ian McBeth died during an air tanker crash in the NSW Black Summer bushfires in January 2020.

"Let's just get LATs (large air tankers) up there and see what they can do," came the response.

Captain Ian McBeth, 44, first officer Paul Clyde Hudson, 42, and flight engineer Rick DeMorgan Jr, 43, were killed when their Lockheed EC-130Q LAT crashed northeast of Cooma in southern NSW on January 23, 2020.

The trio were experienced aviators and have been memorialised by the US National Fallen Firefighters Foundation.

McBeth spent years as an aerial firefighter, including with the Wyoming and Montana Air National Guard branches.

He had performed 994 tanker drops across 3010 hours piloting C-130s.

"He had just handed in his resignation. This was Ian's last shift," counsel assisting the inquiry Adam Casselden SC said on Monday.

Hudson and DeMorgan both worked on C-130 planes during their respective careers with the US Marine Corps and Air Force, and had recently begun working for Coulson Aviation.

Coulson was among companies that provided the 38 privately owned and operated aircraft engaged by the RFS through the National Aerial Firefighting Centre during the fire season.

The three men were hailed as heroes and posthumously awarded an RFS commissioner's commendation.

READ MORE: Cold change hits after heatwave sees March records tumble

Safety report handed down by Australian Transport Safety Bureau on 2020 air tanker crash in NSW.

NSW State Coroner Teresa O'Sullivan began the hearing on Monday by praising their bravery and generosity for coming to protect Australia.

She acknowledged the presence of McBeth and Hudson's widows. DeMorgan's family was unable to attend.

The inquest heard on a day of extreme fire danger, when aircraft had been grounded for several hours already, two LATs were tasked to southern NSW from Richmond RAAF base, without any supervising aircraft, about 11am on January 23, 2020.

McBeth had a US "initial attack" firefighting qualification certifying him to drop fire retardant without a supervising aircraft or "birddog".

The RFS does not have an equivalent certification but recognises the overseas one, Australian Transport Safety Bureau investigator-in-charge Laura Henwood told the inquest.

A Boeing 737 LAT, known as B137, took off first at 11.27am, followed by the C-130, dubbed B134, about half an hour later.

A birddog pilot rejected the task one minute before B134 took off.

B137 dropped retardant on a fire at Adaminaby at 12.20pm, refusing further tasking to the site 12 minutes later.

The two planes came into communication range of one another about 12.35pm just outside Canberra.

The pilot of B137 told authorities in a sworn statement he communicated the deteriorating conditions at Adaminaby to McBeth.

"I'll go take a look," he responded.

About 1pm, B134 radioed to say it would head to the nearby Good Good fireground due to the poor conditions at Adaminaby, and again three minutes before it crashed to say it would carry out multiple runs on the fire.

The plane likely stalled as it climbed after dropping fire retardant, a separate ATSB investigation found.

The inquest will aim to provide answers to the family of the three American firefighters, while assessing how a similar incident could be avoided as Australia becomes increasingly reliant on LATs to fight fires.

The hearing continues.

Shark beheaded after washing up on UK beach

The head and tail of a shark believed to be rarely seen in British waters were cut off after the animal was found dead on a beach.

The incident prompted broadcaster and popular historian Dan Snow to appeal for the head to be returned so scientists can study it, the BBC reports.

Walkers at on Lepe beach in Hampshire, southern England, last Saturday discovered a dead shark.

READ MORE: Shark chases New Zealand swimmers to steps of beach access

But it was later spotted without its head, tail and fin, believed to have been removed under the cover of darkness.

Later, Snow and a group of local residents dragged the 2.4m shark from the beach to a nearby road to secure the carcass.

He tweeted a video showing their efforts but said "trophy hunters" had reached it first.

"We have recovered a good chunk of it but some trophy-hunters got there just before us and they took the head and the dorsal fin on the tail," he said.

https://twitter.com/thehistoryguy/status/1637356737727528962?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Snow said he and the group had been requested by scientists to safeguard the carcass "of this once-in-a-lifetime find in British waters".

From images on social media, the shark was identified as a smalltooth sandtiger by the UK Shark Trust.

"Smalltooth Sandtigers are seldom encountered and considered naturally rare. In the Northeast Atlantic their range reaches to the French coast at the top of the Bay of Biscay. Making this report an exceptional one," the trust said in a statement.

"The head in particular holds the key to unlocking intricate details of the shark's life, even from before birth, so we'd welcome news of its whereabouts."

Snow also appealed on Twitter for the return of the shark head.

READ MORE: Cold change hits after heatwave sees March records tumble

He said scientists who contacted him wanted to study it to "help us learn about our oceans and the ocean health and climate change".

Ben Garrod, a professor in evolutionary biology at University of East Anglia, said it was important for scientists to examine the shark as it offered a "snapshot" of animals living in international waters.

"The oceans cover 71 or 72 per cent of our planet, however it's still incredibly mysterious," he told the BBC.

"Every time we see a whale breaching or a shark washing up, this is like finding a Roman hoard or Viking daggers."

Sign up here to receive our daily newsletters and breaking news alerts, sent straight to your inbox.

Showers, storms and cold: Weather switcheroo is coming

A burst of record-breaking heat is almost at an end, as temperatures tumble across much of the southern east coast thanks to a cool change.

The front is expected to bring wet weather along with cooler conditions. 

The weather shift comes after it was confirmed multiple March heat records were broken across New South Wales.

READ MORE: UBS to buy Credit Suisse in bid to avoid global banking crisis

https://twitter.com/BOM_au/status/1637298856705523712

Today, the capitals of Canberra and Sydney are looking at a top temperature of 23C and 26C respectively, after clocking sweltering Autumn highs of 37C and 33C yesterday.

Showers and storms are expected to return to south-eastern Australia from Tuesday. 

But not all of NSW is basking in the cooler conditions yet.

"Even though that cool change has reached parts of the coast, including the Central Coast and the Sydney area, unfortunately we are still seeing very hot conditions inland," Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) senior meteorologist Miriam Bradbury told Today.

"(There is) high fire dangers about the slopes and plains of NSW and temperatures reaching the high to mid 30s at least across those inland areas.

"We are going to see conditions becoming milder and more humid over the next few days and hopefully lead to an easing in the fire conditions."

READ MORE: Millions to receive pension, JobSeeker and carer payment boost

The cold front crossed South Australia, Victoria and Tasmania on Saturday.

Weatherzone explained the cold front started moving across South Australia, Victoria and Tasmania on Saturday.

"It's now pushing up over southern parts of NSW, bringing some welcome relief," the weather service said. 

READ MORE: Search continues for missing canyoner in Blue Mountains 

Record-breaking heat

Half a dozen records fell across NSW during the "unseasonable" heatwave, which lasted several days.

Weatherzone said the sweltering conditions were caused by a pair of slow-moving troughs that moved across from the country's interior.

"Mudgee soared to 38.3C, its hottest March day in 116 years of records," it said.

"Both Forbes (40.7C) and Wagga Wagga (39.9C) have had their hottest March day in 83 years, with Bathurst (36.6C) having their hottest March day in 82 years."

Satellite image and observed temperatures over NSW at 3pm AEDT.

Temperatures also fell at Moss Vale, which reached 37C and has 61 years of records, Orange, which reached 34.5C and has 55 years of records, and Goulburn, where the mercury hit 37.6C, breaking 52 years of records.

The scorching temperatures come days after it was confirmed La Niña, the weather phenomenon responsible for flooding rains, has come to an end.

Multiple flood warnings are still in affect for Queensland, which just over a week ago faced record-breaking floods.

Sign up here to receive our daily newsletters and breaking news alerts, sent straight to your inbox.

US fire crews rescued a dog trapped inside a car engine

Fire crews respond to emergencies every day to help put out fires and save lives. Last week, crews responded to an emergency that was surprising to everyone.

Officials say a fire truck in Georgia, US responded to a service call for "a dog that was stuck in the engine compartment of a vehicle."

A motorist said he stopped because of a dog in the middle of the road and the dog ran underneath his car.

READ MORE: Millions of Aussies to receive cash boost today

A fire crew in the US has rescued a dog after it got trapped in the engine compartment of a car.

When he attempted to get the dog out from under his car, he told officials the dog climbed into the engine compartment and got stuck.

Marietta Fire Department officials said, "the dog was located in between the engine air box and a firewall.

The airbox top cover was removed for better access. The dog was still unable to be removed so Marietta Fire Department removed the air box and duct work.

The dog was then pulled out of the engine compartment. Cobb County Animal Services arrived on the scene to help get the dog to safety."

Fire crews helped to put the car back together and returned to service to await their next call, officials told Atlanta News First.

READ MORE: King Charles' coronation public holiday to be 'considered' in WA

Sign up here to receive our daily newsletters and breaking news alerts, sent straight to your inbox.

McLeod's Daughters and Chopper actor dies snorkelling

Friends are paying tribute to an Australian actor who drowned while snorkelling at a Western Australian beach on Thursday.

Peter Hardy, who gained popularity for his roles in McLeod's Daughters, Chopper and the Mamma Mia! musical was on Sunday named as the 66-year-old man who died at Fremantle's South Beach on Thursday.

His death came just days before another man drowned at the same beach on Sunday.

READ MORE: Victorian government to consider banning Nazi salute after protest

Actor Peter Hardy gained popularity for his roles in McLeods Daughters and the Mamma Mia! musical, died while snorkelling in Perth.

Andy Burns, a friend of Hardy, said he was "inconsolable" following the Perth-born actor's death.

He said hardy was visiting WA from London where he lived in a canal boat.

"Words cannot express how deeply I feel this loss, We've been close friends since living together in Neutral Bay Sydney in the mid 80s," he wrote.

READ MORE: Farmer, 75, killed in rural NSW hazard reduction burn

Peter Hardy, 66, was in McLeod's Daughters for many years.

"He was a superb actor a wonderful singer and guitarist he also played drums and sax.

"He always loved performing in the theatre as well as film and TV.

"Heartfelt condolences to all his family and many friends over this devastating loss especially his beautiful girlfriend Lysa."

Hardy played Phil Rakich in McLeod's Daughters for three years, and Detective Cooney in 2000 film Chopper.

READ MORE: Police investigating after body found in Melbourne lake

Peter Hardy starred in multiple movies and TV shows.

He was in a handful of Neighbours episodes plus episodes of Underbelly and the Dr Blake Mysteries.

His identity was confirmed hours after a second man, believed to in his 30s, was pulled from the water at the same spot about 1.30pm.

READ MORE: Sydney woman attacked by kangaroo while trying to rescue joey 

A man has died after being pulled unconscious from the water at Fremantle's south beach in Perth.

Two deaths within days at popular beach

On Sunday, a second man drowned at the same popular beach where hardy died.

Police said a marine rescue vessel found the man unresponsive about 50 metres off shore.

He was taken to Sardine Jetty where paramedics gave CPR but he couldn't be saved.

Police are still investigating both drownings.

Woman's horror injury after being attacked by kangaroo

A Sydney woman was left unable to work for months after she was attacked by a kangaroo while trying to rescue a joey stuck in a fence in NSW's Blue Mountains.

Melanie Stubbs, from Campbelltown, had been hiking in the Megalong Valley near Katoomba with friends in December when the group spotted a joey hanging from a wire fence by its back legs.

"We thought, 'we'll try to free the baby'," Stubbs said.

READ MORE: Temperatures tumble as Sydney swelters

A Sydney woman was left unable to work for months after she was attacked by a kangaroo while trying to rescue a joey stuck in a fence in NSW's Blue Mountains.Melanie Stubbs, from Campbelltown, had been hiking in the Megalong Valley near Katoomba with friends in December when the group spotted a joey hanging from a wire fence by its back legs.

She said the mother kangaroo was nearby and growling at the group but they didn't think she posed any danger.

"I had no idea that a kangaroo would actually cause some harm. Plus, she was on the other side of the fence, so we kind of had a false sense of security," she said.

One of Stubbs' friends used a hiking pole to try to fend off the kangaroo, and another tried to film the attempted rescue, while Stubbs went up to the joey.

Stubbs said she slipped on an embankment by the fence, and the kangaroo was "all over" her in "lightning bolt speed".

"She came under the fence and reared up with her claws spread," she said.

"I don't remember what happened next but it is on film. You can see in the film that I kick out at the kangaroo. I don't remember doing any of that. The next thing I remember was I turned over onto my tummy.

"And I was trying to crawl away and I'm yelling, 'Help me'.

A Sydney woman was left unable to work for months after she was attacked by a kangaroo while trying to rescue a joey stuck in a fence in NSW's Blue Mountains.Melanie Stubbs, from Campbelltown, had been hiking in the Megalong Valley near Katoomba with friends in December when the group spotted a joey hanging from a wire fence by its back legs.

"And she was pounding on my back. It was awful."

The 58-year-old told 9News.com.au after the kangaroo got off her she realised her some of her muscles were "outside her leg".

"I went to get up and then I noticed my calf muscles hanging off my leg," she said.

"It was horrendous."

Stubbs said she had to hold her leg together to be able to get away from her dangerous position near the joey.

"The adrenalin just kicked in," she said.

The group then managed to flag down a passerby at a nearby road, and they took Stubbs to hospital.

The kangaroo had cut Stubbs' calf right through to her bone, and she needed emergency surgery.

Two days later, the wound developed the first of two infections, which saw her put on antibiotics.

She initially was unable to walk without crutches, and with her job as a cleaner requiring a lot of movement, she was unable to return to work until mid-February.

Stubbs also suffered nightmares after the attack.

But she says she was lucky that it was only her leg that was badly hurt, with doctors telling her the attack could have been fatal.

"It could have killed me," she said.

A Sydney woman was left unable to work for months after she was attacked by a kangaroo while trying to rescue a joey stuck in a fence in NSW's Blue Mountains.Melanie Stubbs, from Campbelltown, had been hiking in the Megalong Valley near Katoomba with friends in December when the group spotted a joey hanging from a wire fence by its back legs.

Stubbs said she wanted to share her story to make others aware of the dangers of kangaroos, with almost everyone she had told about the attack having said they also would have tried to help the joey.

University of Melbourne biosciences researcher Graeme Coulson has said kangaroo attacks are rare, but can definitely cause serious injury.

"Their sharp claws can make deep cuts, and their powerful kicks can cause severe bruising and internal injuries," he said.

"If a kangaroo attacks, keep an eye on it and get away as quickly as possible while keeping low in a crouch, because the kangaroo is less likely to give chase."

Sign up here to receive our daily newsletters and breaking news alerts, sent straight to your inbox.

Farmer, 75, killed in rural NSW hazard reduction burn

An investigation is under way after a farmer was killed during a hazard reduction burn at a property in Central West NSW.

Viv Coady, 75, died after a planned hazard reduction operation facilitated by the local RFS at his farm in Forbes.

It's understood Coady became cut off from the group and surrounded by flames on his tractor after a freak gust of wind hit around 11.30am yesterday.

An investigation is underway after a farmer was killed during a hazard reduction burn at a property in the Central West NSW.Viv Coady, 75, died after a planned hazard-reduction operation facilitated by the local RFS at his farm in Forbes.

He was flown to Royal North Shore Hospital in Sydney but died.

Coady was a well-known community figure and a friend to a number of the RFS members who were at his property.

His nephew Grant said it was "a tragic accident".

"None of us blame anyone for anything. Farming's dangerous," he said.

READ MORE: Relief in sight as 'unseasonable' heatwave grips East Coast

Investigators from the RFS were back at the farm today conducting inquiries.

Police will prepare a reporter for the coroner.

Sign up here to receive our daily newsletters and breaking news alerts, sent straight to your inbox.