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Medibank is the latest Australian company to be hit by a "cyber incident" but has reassured customers their personal data remains safe.

The health insurance provider announced today that it had detected "unusual activity" on the network yesterday.

"Medibank took immediate steps to contain the incident and engaged specialised cyber security firms," Medibank said in a statement.

READ MORE: Warning of once-in-50-year flood as satellite shows rain threat

Medibank said it is isolating and removing access to some customer-facing systems to prevent any damage or data exposure.

The provider reassured customers that no sensitive data had been accessed.

Medibank said AHM and international student policy management systems have been taken offline and are expected to be down most of the day.

This means AHM and international student customers won't be able to access their policy information.

"I apologise and acknowledge that in the current environment this news may make people concerned," CEO David Koczkar said.

"We recognise the significant responsibility we have to the people who rely on us to look after their health and wellbeing and whose data we hold.

"We are working around the clock to understand the full nature of the incident, and any additional impact this incident may have on our customers, our people and our broader ecosystem."

READ MORE: Another country could be poised to join Russia's war on Ukraine

Medibank said customers don't need to do anything but can contact customer services if they have any questions.

The provider is investigating the incident and said it will provide regular updates to customers.

The incident comes just weeks after the major Optus hack which exposed at least 2.1 million personal identification numbers.

Authorities have issued a dire warning for Aussies to 'beware' on the roads after a driver caught tailgating was involved in a serious crash.

Transport and Main Roads Queensland have released shocking footage of a driver of a ute closely following another car before completely losing control, swerving across three lanes and then smashing into a nearby fence.

The video shows the ute lose at least two wheels during the crash, before other distressed drivers pull over to avoid the wreckage.

READ MORE: Warning of once-in-50-year flood as satellite shows rain threat

"Tailgaters beware ," Transport Queensland said on social media.

"We've all had a car in our rear view mirror who's driving way too close for comfort—so this let's have a serious talk about tailgating.

"Always drive a safe distance behind the vehicle in front to make sure you've got time to stop safely and avoid a collision."

READ MORE: Another country could be poised to join Russia's war on Ukraine

Drivers should drive "at least two seconds" behind the vehicle in front during ideal conditions and "double the distance if the conditions are poor", Transport Queensland said.

If drivers are carrying a trailer or caravan then they should add one extra second extra for each three metres of trailer length.

Grey skies have become the norm and it seems like there is no end to the downpours battering the east coast as Australia rides out its third consecutive La Niña event.

The dams are overflowing and Sydney has recorded its wettest year on record in 2022. 

Melbourne, meanwhile, is in line for its most intense weather event of the year this week with torrential rains and flooding risk.

So when will the effects of this third La Niña finally peter out?

READ MORE: Warning of once-in-50-year flood as satellite shows rain threat

The Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) released its latest update this week about the climate drivers in the Pacific, Indian and Southern oceans and the Tropics.

The good news is that La Niña is expected to wane over spring. 

READ MORE: Schools closed, train services down as flooding swamps parts of regional Victoria

The bad news is that a combination of other influential weather patterns still point to more rain on the horizon for this spring and summer.

And while La Niña will grow weaker during spring, its effects are "likely to persist into early 2023", the BoM report says.

The combined effect of La Niña, along with a negative Indian Ocean Dipole – where ocean temperatures are warmer in the east Indian Ocean than in the west – also means the likelihood of above average rainfall is increased, especially on the east coast.

READ MORE: Sydney's wettest year on record – What experts think is coming for 2023

Then there's the Southern Annular Mode (SAM), which controls the ring of westerly winds that circle the South Pole.

It's in a positive phase, which generally points to above average rainfall for all of the eastern states – but a lower than average rainfall for western Tasmania.

"The Bureau of Meteorology's extended and long-range forecasts show that above average rainfall is likely across much of eastern Australia. This reflects the influence of several key climate drivers," the report says.

The effects of climate change also need to be factored in, the report notes.

"Climate change continues to influence Australian and global climate," the report says.

"Australia's climate has warmed by around 1.47 degrees Celsius for the 1910–2020 period. There has also been a trend towards a greater proportion of rainfall from high intensity short duration rainfall events, especially across northern Australia."

READ MORE: Queenslanders get two weeks free water as dam levels released ahead of storm season

Eight people have been detained over Saturday's blast that damaged the only bridge connecting annexed Crimea with Russia, marking a critical juncture in Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.

Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) claimed the main intelligence department of the Ukraine's Ministry of Defence, its head Kyrylo Budanov, and its employees and agents organised the "terrorist attack" on the Kerch Strait road-and-rail bridge, Russian state media has reported.

"At the moment, five citizens of Russia, three citizens of Ukraine and Armenia, who participated in the preparation of the crime, have been detained as part of a criminal case," the report by FSB and the Russian Investigative Committee said, according to RIA Novosti.

READ MORE: Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant loses external power

"The explosive device was concealed in rolls with polyethylene construction film on 22 pallets with a total weight of 22,770 kilograms," the FSB report added.

Ukraine has yet to publicly comment on the new claims.

The Crimea bridge explosion over the weekend served as a major blow to what the Kremlin calls its "special military campaign" in Ukraine, as Moscow counters low morale among Russian troops and thinning military supplies.

The bridge is strategically important because it links Russia's Krasnador region with the Crimean peninsula, which Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014 in a move roundly criticised by the international community.

It is a critical artery for supplying Crimea with both its daily needs and supplies for the military. Over the last few months, dozens of Russian military convoys have used the bridge, carrying vehicles, armour and fuel.

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Limited car and rail traffic has restarted on the bridge following the blast. However, larger vehicles like heavy trucks, vans and buses are travelling by ferry.

Russian officials had earlier claimed the explosion was caused by a truck blowing up on the road bridge. The report said the explosive device had been sent from the port of Odesa in early August this year through Bulgaria, Georgia and Armenia, Russian state media TASS reported.

The blast also sparked a feverish response from the Kremlin, which used the explosion to justify a wave of brutal airstrikes across Ukraine on Monday in scenes that echoed the early days of the invasion.

At least 19 people were killed and more than 100 injured during the attacks, which targeted critical energy infrastructure across Kyiv and other major Ukrainian cities, according to Ukrainian officials.

Further east, rescuers searched through rubble in the city of Zaporizhzhia on Sunday after Russian missile strikes killed at least 13 people and wounded 89 others.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba described the fatal shelling as an act of "revenge" from Russian President Vladimir Putin following recent defeats on the battlefield.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy invoked G7 leaders on Tuesday to help his country establish an "air shield" against aerial attacks. He also called for stiffer sanctions against Russia and reiterated his demand for Russia to be declared a terrorist state.

Statements made this week by Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko have reignited fears that his army could join Russian forces in Moscow's waragainst Ukraine, but the authoritarian leader appears reluctant to lend his troops to the effort, despite perceived pressure from Moscow.

Russia has already used Belarus, its longtime and dependent ally, as a staging ground to send troops and missiles into Ukraine.

Analysts say if Belarus' small and inexperienced military gets involved, the additional troops could help Moscow cut off some key transportation corridors, but likely wouldn't significantly boost Russian President Vladimir Putin's capabilities on the battlefield.

READ MORE: Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant loses external power

"The Belarusian army is weak and demotivated, and it is not willing to fight with Ukraine, which means that Lukashenko will try to give Putin anything but Belarusian soldiers," Ukrainian military analyst Oleh Zhdanov told The Associated Press on Tuesday.

"Lukashenko is letting Putin know: 'I will help, but I won't fight'."

Lukashenko announced on Monday that he and Putin agreed to create a joint "regional grouping of troops" and that several thousand Russian soldiers will be stationed in Belarus.

Lukashenko offered no details about where the troops will be deployed, and Russia's motives weren't immediately clear, though the remarks come as Moscow is struggling to replenish troops lost on the battlefield.

Lukashenko also said that Kyiv is plotting to attack Belarus — and he cautioned Ukraine against attacking "even one metre of our territory with their dirty hands".

His defence minister, Viktor Khrenin, also warned Ukraine not to provoke Belarus, saying, "We don't want to fight" and stressing that the joint force is for defence.

READ MORE: 'Terrifying' mid-flight brawl forces Jetstar flight to turn around

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy assured leaders of the Group of Seven industrial powers on Tuesday that Kyiv isn't planning military actions against Belarus. He said Moscow "is trying to directly draw Belarus into this war".

Oleksiy Danilov, head of the National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine, told Ukrainian television Tuesday that Belarus is being "held hostage by Russia".

Fears of Russian pressure on Belarus aren't unfounded. Lukashenko, an authoritarian leader, has ruled Belarus with an iron fist for 28 years while relying on Russia's political and economic support.

Moscow has pumped billions of dollars into shoring up Lukashenko's Soviet-style, state-controlled economy with cheap energy and loans.

In 2020, the Kremlin helped Lukashenko survive the largest mass protests in the country's history, following a presidential election that the opposition and the West denounced as rigged.

Lukashenko has publicly supported Russia's attack on Ukraine, drawing international criticism and sanctions against Minsk. Still, Lukashenko has repeatedly rejected speculations that Belarus would send its own soldiers to fight alongside Russia.

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"Neither the Belarusian elites, nor the population are ready to participate in this incomprehensible war," Valery Karbalevich, an independent Belarusian analyst, told the AP.

Karbalevich said Lukashenko is trying to bargain, offering to keep Russian nuclear weapons on its soil and create the joint force, while also hinting at the weakness of his own army.

Part of Belarus' 1,000-kilometre border with north-west Ukraine lies only about 90 kilometres north of Kyiv, Ukraine's capital.

Troops coming from Belarus would likely move west and target cities of Lviv and Lutsk, key transportation hubs for Western military supplies, said Zhdanov, the Ukrainian military analyst.

"It is vital for Russia to cut off the transport corridor, because via Lviv, Western weapons reach the east and the south, where the Ukrainian army is conducting a successful counteroffensive, and this can only be done from Belarus," Zhdanov said.

READ MORE: Widow of Walcha Natasha Darcy sentenced over jail bribery plot

However, Lukashenko's army is relatively small — just 45,000 troops, including conscripts — and largely inexperienced. The Belarusian military holds regular drills, but hasn't taken part in combat since World War II.

At best, Minsk will be able to deploy 20,000 troops — professional contract soldiers, according to Zhdanov.

Belarusian military analyst Alexander Alesin said Lukashenko can avoid getting involved by saying that his limited troops are needed to defend Belarus' borders from its neighbours — NATO members Poland, Lithuania and Latvia.

Lukashenko said earlier this year that the Kremlin's campaign in Ukraine "has dragged on" and even suggested that he could mediate peace talks, insisting on the need to end the war as soon as possible.

Kabralevich said Lukashenko understands that Russia is losing the war and he "is trying to crawl as far away from Russia as he can".

Lukashenko is also facing public frustration at home, as Belarusians are feeling the effects of crippling Western sanctions and spiking inflation, which is already twice as high as last year.

"After mass protests of 2020, when hundreds of thousands of people demanded that Belarus' leader step down, Lukashenko is afraid of arming Belarusians. It can provoke another domestic explosion," Karbalevich said.

Alesin said Belarusians are not mentally prepared to fight Ukrainians.

"Unlike the Russians, Belarusians have absolutely no hostility towards the Ukrainians and don't understand the point of this special operation. This may lead to mass refusals to comply with orders to shoot Ukrainians," he said.

A Perth survivor of the Bali bombings who spent 44 days in a coma after he was buried alive is finally ready to tell his story.

Antony Svilicich has reflected on his near-death experience and determination to restore peace on the 20th anniversary of the terrorist attack.

Svilicich was at the Sari Club in Kuta on October 12, 2002, where one of the explosions went off.

READ MORE: Australian survivors, rescuers and victims' loved ones reflect on Bali Bombings 20 years on

"I was buried alive under the rubble of the Sari," he said.

"I remember I was waking up and lying on my back.

"The smoke and the inferno just engulfed the rear of the Sari.

"I could hear screaming and shouting and arguing.

"It was just absolute chaos."

BALI BOMBINGS TIMELINE: A plot to inflict as much pain and catastrophe as possible

Svilicich was in a coma for 44 days. By the time he woke up it was the end of November.

At his bedside, his brother told him what had happened.

"(He said) you were injured in a bombing in Bali," he said.

"That was the first time I'd heard of this bombing.

"Up until then, all I knew was that it was a fire, you know."

That night, 202 people were killed, including 16 Western Australians.

Svilicich underwent emergency surgery following the bombing.

READ MORE: How Bali Bombings police operation has prevented more attacks

His life was saved by Dr Fiona Wood and Dr Mark Duncan-Smith.

He has had a total of 28 operations and was the last Western Australian to leave hospital in January 2003.

"Dr Dale Edgar, he taught me how to walk again and regain functional movement in all parts of my body," he said.

Moving forward

Now 45 and working at Melville Council, Svilicich has dedicated the past 10 years to gathering support for the Bali peace park.

Despite millions in funding for the project, the owner of the land where the Sari Club once stood is still refusing to relinquish the majority of his share of the site.

"They've got their heart set on building a new nightclub on that site," Svilicich said.

READ MORE: 'Harrowing': Aussie football club which lost seven players in the Bali bombing

"I think they'll probably get their wish.

"Building another nightclub on there isn't really appropriate for that site.

"I think we need to remember those victims and people who were injured in a much more respectful manner."

In his new book, Phoenix Rising, Svilicich details the hunt for the terrorists, including bomb maker Umar Patek, who could soon walk free.

"I'd be very disappointed in the Indonesian justice system if he is released," Svilicich said.

"I don't think that spending 10 years in jail is enough time to be fully rehabilitated.

"I think he's just saying that to be able to get out.

"I think there's a real chance that he may reoffend."

Twenty years since the tragedy that rocked his world, Svilicich's message is clear.

"The terrorists may have won the battle on that night but they certainly haven't won the war," he said.

"The Australian spirit has not been broken."

The eleventh-hour remorse shown by a man who raped a young girl staying at his family home showed he was more sorry for himself than his victim, a judge has said.Paetau Tioata, who met the victim through church, has been sent to…