Tag Archives: oceania

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Man seriously injured after being dragged into garbage truck

A man has been taken to hospital with serious injuries after he was dragged around five metres into the back of a garbage truck in western Sydney this morning.

The man, aged in his 40s, trapped his hand and wrist in the truck on a site on the corner of Davis Road and Elizabeth Street at Wetherill Park at 8.40am.

It took police and Fire and Rescue crews four hours to free the man's arm, cutting through the body of the truck while paramedics treated the injured man.

READ MORE: Australian man found in Seattle after eight days missing

"This was a delicate rescue operation for our paramedics," NSW Ambulance Acting Inspector Liam Ryan said.

"It was determined that the best way to release the patient would be to cut into the side of the truck, which was made from high density metal, making it very difficult to cut through.

"Our paramedics, along with a specialist medical team, monitored the patient and provided pain relief while emergency crews worked to free him."

The man was taken to Westmead Hospital in a serious but stable condition.

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Australian man found in Seattle after eight days missing

An Australian man has been found alive and well in Seattle after he vanished eight days ago from a hospital.

Stanley Haviland, 68, was found by a truck driver in bushland just kilometres down the road from where he went missing at a SeaTac hospital in Renton.

He is being treated for dehydration but Valley Medical Centre emergency department medical director Cameron Buck said he's "alert and sharp".

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Stanley Haviland was found after he vanished eight days ago in Seattle.

Buck added it "defies common sense" that Haviland was missing without food and water for eight days.

"It speaks to Stanley's character and strength that he sustained enough hydration not to get critically ill," he said.

Haviland's nephews were elated that he was found and can't wait to take him back to Australia.

"He's one tough bastard. He's been there for 8 days. He said he's had one bottle of water in eight days, he was freezing his ass off, it was amazing," his nephews said.

"For the condition he's in, he's a tough guy."

READ MORE: SES receives 1000 calls for help as rivers rise in NSW

Detective Robert Onishi said finding Haviland was the good news police rarely get.

"It's so good to have a happy ending to this," he said.

"He seems to be in incredible shape for all the time he was out and about without food and water and shelter thousands of miles from home."

When he went missing, Haviland was being treated at a SeaTac hospital for confusion before he checked himself out and left the facility on foot.

Haviland did not return to his hotel to check out or gather his belongings and he later missed his return flight to Australia. 

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North Korea says Kim Jong-un supervised cruise missile tests

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un supervised tests of long-range cruise missiles, which he described as a successful demonstration of his military's expanding nuclear strike capabilities and readiness for "actual war," state media said.

Wednesday's tests extended a record number of weapons demonstrations this year by North Korea, which has punctuated its testing activity with threats to preemptively use nuclear weapons against South Korea and the United States if it perceives its leadership as under threat.

Analysts say Kim is exploiting the distraction created by Russia's war on Ukraine, using it as a window to accelerate arms development as he pursues a full-fledged nuclear arsenal that could viably threaten regional US allies and the American homeland.

LIVE UPDATES: Victoria flood emergency

South Korean officials say Kim may also conduct a nuclear test in the coming weeks or months, escalating a pressure campaign aimed at forcing the US to accept the idea of North Korea as a nuclear power that can negotiate economic and security concessions from a position of strength.

North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency said the two missiles during Wednesday's tests flew for nearly three hours, drawing oval and figure eight-shaped patterns above its western seas, and showed that they can hit targets 2000km away.

The tests demonstrated the accuracy and war-fighting efficiency of the weapon system that has already been deployed at army units operating "tactical" battlefield nuclear weapons, the agency said.

Kim after the tests praised the readiness of his nuclear combat forces, which he said were fully prepared for "actual war to bring enemies under their control at a blow" with various weapons systems that are "mobile, precise and powerful," according to the report.

READ MORE: North Korea confirms nuclear missiles tests to 'wipe out' enemies

He said that the tests send "another clear warning to enemies" and vowed to further expand the operational realm of his nuclear armed forces to "resolutely deter any crucial military crisis and war crisis at any time and completely take the initiative in it."

The missiles' flight details and characteristics described in state media resembled what North Korea reported in January following the previous demonstration of its long-range cruise missile system, which was first revealed in September last year.

State media photos of Wednesday's test showed a missile leaving an orange tail of flame as it shot out of a launch vehicle. Kim is seen smiling and clapping from a viewing station established inside an arched structure that appears to be a highway tunnel. Experts say the North may intend to use such structures to conceal its weapons before launch.

South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said it was analyzing the tests. Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said the missiles would pose a potential threat to Japan if North Korean descriptions about their range are true.

READ MORE: Why is North Korea firing so many missiles

The tests were the first known weapons demonstrations by North Korea after it launched 12 ballistic missiles in a span of two weeks through to October 9 in what it described as simulated nuclear attacks on South Korean and US targets.

North Korea said those drills were meant as a warning to Seoul and Washington for staging "dangerous" joint naval exercises involving the nuclear-powered US aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan in recent weeks, which were intended as the allies' show of strength in the face of growing North Korean threats.

The US and South Korean militaries have also conducted live-fire drills. One of the tit-for-tat launches last week nearly caused a catastrophe when a malfunctioning South Korean Hyunmoo-2 missile flipped shortly after liftoff and crashed into a coastal air force base, causing an explosion but injuring no one.

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Residents of three towns ordered to evacuate as rain hits Melbourne

Three communities in regional Victoria have been told to evacuate as floodwaters rise across the state.

On Thursday evening, evacuation orders were issued first for Rochester, then also for Carisbrook and Seymour.

Residents of all three areas have been told to get out before 10pm on Thursday.

"If you do not evacuate before this time, your property may be isolated or inundated with water and it may be too late to leave," the warnings from Vic Emergency state.

READ MORE: Tasmanians warned to prepare for flash flooding

Major flooding is expected to hit Rochester, a small town roughly 180km north of Melbourne, on Friday from 10am.

The Campaspe River is expected to rise to minor flood levels at 9pm on Thursday, and is expected to peak on Friday afternoon.

Stay up to date with the latest emergency warnings at Vic Emergency.

The warnings come It comes as Bureau of Meteorology Meteorologist Diana Eadie said the most intense showers will begin to cross Melbourne's western suburbs from 5pm, before moving into the central and eastern suburbs.

Eadie said there had been about 22mm of rain to 9am this morning and said the "ground was already very saturated".

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As the rain moves over Melbourne, a number of warnings have been issued including a watch and act alert for flash flooding in Thomastown, Lilydale, Coldstream and Yara Junction.

In Seymour, local residents said the floods were the "biggest they had ever seen".

"It's the biggest that we've seen in the area. We had floods in 1994, but nothing like this," Kerianne Speechley told 9News Melbourne.

"I sunk probably three foot I had to get myself out of there using a stick to make sure nothing is in the floodwater," local, Will Speechley said.

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Earlier today, more than 40 schools have been closed and train lines have gone down as multiple watch and act alerts are issued.

Emergency Management Commissioner Andrew Crisp said there were currently 70 warnings in place across the state.

He urged drivers to stay off the roads, to check road closures and be aware that it was a "dynamic situation".

"If you don't need to be on the road today, don't be on the road. What you are doing is you are distracting our emergency services from doing the job we need to be doing," he said.

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Satellite images published by Weatherzone show a massive cloudband stretching 5000km from the Indian Ocean to Australia's south-east.

It's this cloudband that's brought the current wave of extreme weather to that part of the country.

Huge falls are also impacting Tasmania, which could see up to 200mm of rain in just 24 hours.

A massive 129mm of rain had already fallen in Strathbogie North in central Victoria by 9am today, while wind gusts overnight reached 109km/hr at Mount Hotham.

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A severe weather warning for damaging winds and heavy rainfall is in place for most of the state.

The SES has already responded to more than 1600 calls for help in Victoria in the 24 hours until 4pm today, with the worst of the weather forecast for the state still yet to come.

Of those calls, 911 were for flooding, 193 for trees down, 153 for building damage and crews carried out 30 floodwater rescues.

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The Department of Transport has described driving conditions as "extremely hazardous", urging drivers to defer non-essential travel.

"As significant rain moves towards metropolitan Melbourne, many roads are likely to close due to flooding or will be impacted by flood waters, fallen trees and debris," the department said.

"Poor conditions and high traffic volumes will result in challenging conditions on major roads like the Monash Freeway, West Gate Freeway, M80 Ring Road and Eastern Freeway."

READ MORE: When will the rain end? Hint, it's not good news

Parts of regional Victoria begin to flood

Already there is water over major roads, including the Melba, Hume, Calder and Maroondah Highways.

Buses are replacing trains on sections of the Shepparton, Albury, Echuca, Swan Hill and Warrnambool lines, due to extreme weather and flooding affecting parts of the rail network.

The Department of Education has advised that a number of schools and kindergartens across the state have closed due to flooding or risk of flooding.

In central Victoria, Broadford High School was closed at lunchtime, with all students sent home on buses to do remote learning for the rest of the week.

READ MORE: 'Dynamic situation': Tasmanians warned to prepare for flash flooding

Residents of Rochester, 180km north of Melbourne, have been told waters could potentially rise to 115m above sea level, affecting hundreds of homes.

Thousands of sandbags have been filled and residents have been urged to evacuate after they have done their best to prepare their homes and businesses for a flood.

Up to 80mm of rain is expected in the north and west of Victoria today, with isolated totals of 120mm or higher.

Roads in Castlemaine, Heathcote and Bendigo have also begun flooding, cutting off parts of the town. 

https://twitter.com/ColibanWater/status/1580357276614815749

One Heathcote resident has told 9News Melbourne that she had never seen flooding this bad.

In Echuca, residents have been advised to boil their water until further notice after storm water entered a treated water storage tank.

"This may compromise the safety of the drinking water," Coliban Water via Twitter.

More than 1000 people are currently without power in Echuca, according to Powercore.

There are also outages in Bendigo, Daylesford and Rochester.

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The SES has received over 200 calls for help in the last 24 hours, mostly for minor flooding.

Yesterday, about 100 people were evacuated from Falls Creek due to a slow-moving landslide cutting off the access road.

Victorian Emergency Management Commissioner Andrew Crisp told 3AW that the state will continue to see this cycle over the next six to eight weeks.

"If you don't need to be on the roads today, please don't be on the roads, because it's not just about the floods, it's also about the trees," he told 3AW.

Crisp warned the state would be "in this for a while", with Victorians in for a "campaign flood event".

Tasmania too is expecting an inundation, with up to 300mm of rain to fall in places just today.

By 9am today a total of 185mm had already fallen at Great Lake East and 148mm had fallen at Lake Mackenzie.

There are currently heavy rain and major floods warnings in place for northern Tasmania.

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https://twitter.com/BOM_Tas/status/1580351590682136577

New South Wales is also in the firing line with rivers still swollen from recent rain.

A woman and her daughter had to be rescued from floodwaters at Forbes in the state's Central West.