Cyclone Gabrielle is forecast to be one of the most serious storms to hit NZ this century.

Aucklanders have rushed to stores to stock up on essentials as the cyclone approaches.

Households could be in line for more power bill relief as new government figures show energy caps are having a welcome impact.

Treasury analysis of ASX data on energy prices shows the market hasn't increased to the sky highs this year as was forecast in 2022 after the federal government's intervention.

The data shows there was a wholesale price drop of 41 per cent in NSW, 46 per cent in Queensland, 34 per cent in Victoria and 28 per cent in South Australia in February 2023 compared to November 2022.

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It reveals Australians' electricity bills will be lower than predicted in 2023.

The federal government intervened in the energy market in December after a national cabinet meeting decided on a four point plan to provide relief to households. 

The plan included capping gas prices at $12 a gigajoule for a year and a temporary coal price cap in NSW and Queensland of $125 per tonne.

The intervention came after a dire prediction in the Albanese government's first budget in October revealed energy prices could rise by 30 per cent this year.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers said there are "encouraging signs" the relief plan is working.

"It will take some time for the benefits to fully flow through, but there are encouraging signs that our action is starting to work," he said earlier in the week.

"We understand Australians are doing it tough. That's why the Albanese Government will keep its focus on delivering responsible cost of living relief and dealing with the inflation challenge in our economy."

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Nationals leader David Littleproud said Australians welcome any power bill relief that government action can offer but it doesn't mean there isn't price pain in the future.

"Unfortunately there is a supply issue and demand and supply are principles you can't run away from," he said.

"What is happening is they're walking away from supply, particularly in gas.

"Whilst in the short term we might get relief, in the long term we'll pay a lot more."

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It comes as inflation, a key impact on energy prices, continues to rise to 7.8 per cent as the Reserve Bank of Australia hikes interest rates to slow it.

The central bank said on Tuesday after its ninth consecutive rate rise thatr the energy plan is helping to take some of the sting out of high power prices and helping to curb inflation.

"Over this year and next, increases in wholesale costs are expected to be dampened by the Australian Government's Energy Price Relief Plan," the Reserve Bank said in its Statement on Monetary Policy.

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Six people were injured when multiple cyclists collided during a bike race in Sydney's north.

NSW paramedics, and a CareFlight, helicopter attended West Head Road in Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park around 7.45am this morning after 15 bikes reportedly crashed during a road race.

Six men in their 40s were treated for injuries that ranged from serious to minor including, head, chest, collar bone and shoulder wounds.

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"NSW Ambulance engaged a number of resources, including two helicopters with medical teams on board, extended care paramedics and extended care paramedics to assist in the response," NSW Ambulance said.

All six men were taken to hospital for treatment.

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"A man aged in his 40's who suffered head, shoulder and chest injuries, continued to receive treatment by CareFlight's specialist doctor as he was taken by road ambulance in a stable condition to Royal North Shore Hospital," CareFlight said.

The West Head Road Race is a monthly competition held by the Manly Warringah Cycle Club which runs through the national park and some competitors ride for 90km.

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One teen is dead and three others were injured after the car they were travelling in collided with a tree in Queensland.

The Toyota Corolla hatchback was driving along Wimmers Hill Road in Milford around 11.50pm last night when it crashed into a tree.

The 20-year-old male driver suffered critical injuries and died at the scene.

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A 14-year-old boy was airlifted to Queensland Children's Hospital in a critical condition.

An 18-year-old boy and a 14-year-old boy were taken to Ipswich Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

The Forensic Crash Unit is investigating what caused the crash.

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A close knit community is mourning the loss of an experienced driver, who died at a racing event in Victoria's north-west.

Stephen Douglas, 48, died after a crash at the Daylesford Speedway 7:30pm last night.

Douglas was airlifted to The Alfred Hospital with critical injuries but later died.

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Another man in his 30s suffered upper body injuries and was taken to Ballarat Base Hospital in a serious but stable condition.

Many have taken to social media to mourn the loss of Douglas, who has been described as a "great bloke" who would help anyone.

Police are preparing a report for the coroner.

Daylesford Speedway Committee said Douglas was always a "happy bloke" and "well respected by his competitors to lend a hand or ear".

"The Speedway community will sadly miss Dougo and we would like to pass on our condolences to Sandra and the rest of Dougo's family and friends," the committee said.

A venomous eastern brown snake was found hiding in an unexpected place over the weekend in Queensland, giving one family quite a shock.

Anthony Adams, from Southern Downs Snake Catchers, received a call from a concerned resident, who found the reptile hiding in a gumboot in Warwick, about 130 kilometres south-west of Brisbane.

Adams said he was "surprised" to see the brown snake, which is Australia's second most venomous land snake, believed responsible for the majority of fatalities.

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The snake was moving along a low shelf before it dropped down and climbed into the boot, according the snake handler.

"It was the first time finding a snake in a gumboot, but they can pop up anywhere. I was surprised to see it was a brown, but they are capable of showing up in unexpected places," he said, explaining the species aren't known for their climbing abilities.

"It's important to check things like boots and shoes if left outside, as well as making sure screens and doors are shut and secure.

"This one was found inside the house and the caller is very lucky to have seen it and known where it went."

Adams warned snakes can become "very dangerous" in situations like this due to their unpredictably.

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It was the third brown snake Adams has caught this weekend.

The second snake was found in a roll of fencing mesh and the other under the compressor of a freezer.

Just last month, a father-of-two died of a suspected brown snake bite in the Lockyer Valley.

READ MORE: What to do if you encounter a deadly snake, spider or jellyfish

Associate Professor Julian White, Head of Toxicology at South Australia's Women's and Children's Hospital, has previously ran 9news.com.au through basic first aid steps should someone encounter a snake, spider or jellyfish.

When it comes to snake and spiders, there are a few species' bites that require immediate first aid.

"Place the firm bandage over the bite site and the rest of the bitten limb, over the top of clothing if there's some in place. Keep the limb still with a splint, and the patient still as well," White said.

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Forty years on from the Ash Wednesday fires, the horror of the day remains vivid for those who endured it.

John* and his four young children, in tears, raced to reach the safety of the Macedon Hotel, fleeing the flames roaring around them.

His wife's blonde hair caught fire. Behind them, their car was swallowed by fire.

The smoke in the air was so thick John had just crashed into another car pulling up outside the pub.

His family had been forced to suddenly bolt from their regional Victorian home just before midnight, when they realised it was about to be engulfed by fire.

They sheltered in the small single-storey pub with hundreds of other terrified locals for hours as firefighters stood on the roof, fighting off the raging bushfire.

He thought they were all going to die.

"Incidentally, there were no drinks left," he joked as he told his story to 9news.com.au.

He vividly remembers sitting in a police car as it drove through a corridor of fire along Mt Macedon Road at about 2am.

"It was like a great cathedral of flames, because the trees all met at the top of the road, and they were all burning terribly."

Police had decided to relocate the families to the town of Gisborne, where there was less threat.

Later in the morning, he remembers the horrific smell as he inspected the ruins of their former home, where nothing was salvageable.

"The fridge is all burnt and open and the meat in it is cooked," he said.

"It's almost funny – there's roast pork, for goodness' sake."

John's family are among thousands of people still haunted by the Ash Wednesday fires of February 16, 1983.

The natural disaster made up of 180 different fires killed 75 people, destroyed more than 3000 homes and scorched around 230,000 hectares in Victoria and South Australia.

The events of that night are a "tremendous trauma" to John and his family to this day, so much so that he has declined to talk about it publicly, not wanting any publicity to encourage the memories.

More than 130,000 emergency services personnel were involved in the battle, with 16 volunteer firefighters losing their lives.

Many others came extremely close.

'The fire hit us at an enormous speed and sucked every bit of oxygen out of the air around us'

Patrick Bell knelt in the back of an open-air firetruck, unable to breathe and thinking his life was "absolutely" over, as a fire roared over him.

He'd only just made it to the shelter of the truck's sprinklers, having been standing in a paddock waiting for the fire to come when he first saw it.

He and several other firefighters had parked a firetruck on Bacchus Marsh Road in Riddells Creek and walked down into the valley with their water backpacks to wait for the fire and try to stop it heading towards Bullengarook.

"We heard this train coming. It just kept getting louder and louder and we had no idea what it was. I'd never seen a bushfire before," he recalled.

Then they saw the 30 metre-high flames travelling quickly in the 90km/h winds.

"We took one look at it, myself and another guy, and ran back up to the fire truck at the road," Bell said.

"The fire hit us at an enormous speed and sucked every bit of oxygen out of the air around us.

"We couldn't breathe."

Those firefighters were all remarkably uninjured.

Bell is confident they would have died if it hadn't been a bushfire instead of a grassfire, which led to it passing over them so quickly.

Bell said the firefighters had had "maybe two to three hours of training" after joining the Riddles Creek CFA that week because of the fire emergency.

"We then chased it and fought it with all the energy we could muster," he said.

Ash Wednesday was the most traumatic event of the now 73-year-old's life.

"We saw houses in Bullengarook just exploding."

He knew people who died in the fires, and while he was firefighting, his frightened wife and four kids had to evacuate their home without him.

Bell is confident there would be less devastation if a similar fire threat was to arise today.

"There's so much more awareness now," he said, adding that people are encouraged to have fire plans.

"No one bothered in those days. We hadn't seen a fire like that – the ferocity."

He noted firefighting strategies had also advanced a long way, with volunteer firefighters now needing months of training.

John agreed a huge lesson about "the importance of planning" had been learnt since then.

His family have recovered "as well as can be expected after such a violent, traumatic experience", but they are all still mentally affected by it.

One of his daughters developed asthma from Ash Wednesday.

"Your whole life starts again – but if you're strong and positive, it does start again but not quite the same as it was before."

His family rebuilt their home on the same block after living in a caravan gifted to them.

The strong feeling of community after the fires is a positive memory that is clear in Bell and John's minds.

"It was comradery and a belonging feeling. It really was the community getting together," Bell said.

People got together to make food and donate clothing and items, spending up to 12 hours a day helping each other recover.

"It was just great to see the whole community get behind it."

*John's name has been changed to respect his privacy

Over 415,000 images from over 200 countries were submitted to the Sony World Photography Awards 2023. These are a selection of the incredible images that won.

Australian actress Christie Whelan Browne has accused a theatre company of sex discrimination over her appearance in musical The Rocky Horror Show.

Whelan Browne, 40, said she has lodged a complaint with the Australian Human Rights Commission over the 2014 show, produced by what was then the Gordon Frost Organisation (GFO).

In a social media post Whelan Browne accused the company of "sexual discrimination, unsafe conditions at work, breaching its duty of care towards her, failing to meet work health and safety standards and permitting another employee to engage in sex discrimination and sexual harassment."

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In 2020, actor Craig McLachlan was found not guilty of allegations he indecently assaulted four women during the Melbourne stage production of the Rocky Horror Show.

Whelan Browne said she tried to address the situation privately but has "no choice" but to make this move.

"It's disappointing that I've been forced to take this step, having tried but failed on a number of occasions to have GFO properly address my complaints," she said.

"I do this knowing that it will subject me to further attacks online and in the media, but also knowing that I have no choice.

"I am determined to stand up for myself."

In May 2022, actor McLachlan dropped his defamation case against Nine newspapers, the ABC and Whelan Browne.

McLachlan was suing the ABC and Nine newspapers for publishing sexual harassment allegations from his time acting in The Rocky Horror Show musical in 2014.

Whelan Browne is better known to wider audiences for her role on ABC comedy Mad as Hell.

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