Tag Archives: oceania

Young man opens up about shark attack

A Victorian teenager is lucky to have his foot after it was punctured to the bone by a shark in Portland.

Izaak Johnstone was surfing with mates on Thursday night at Portland off the far south-west coast when they felt something brush up.

The 17-year-old's mates thought he was joking until he lifted his bloody foot out of the water.

READ MORE: Man seriously injured after being mauled by three-metre bull shark off WA coast

A Victorian teenager is lucky to have his foot after it was punctured to the bone by a shark in Portland.Izaak Johnstone was surfing with mates on Thursday night at Portland off the far south-west coast when they felt something brush up.

"I felt my foot go down its throat and then it bit me," Johnstone told 9News.

Despite the wounds and frightening experience, Johnstone believes the shark encounter has somewhat "overhyped".

"It's not like I lost my leg or anything, I guess," he said.

But the teenager has several bite marks to the bone as a reminder of the attack.

"I could definitely feel it but not as bad as it probably was," he said.

"I didn't realise how bad it was until I got up to the top and started looking at it."

Johnstone's friend Nathan Malady said he didn't believe his friend until he looked at his face.

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Johnstone said once his foot heals, he intends to get back in the water.

"He just yells I've been bitten by a shark and I didn't really believe it until I looked at his face," he told 9News.

"He's going pale and lifted up his foot and it's just blood pouring down his foot."

Johnstone's mum Frances got the call but even she was relatively calm.

"I didn't feel too too freaked out so much really because I knew they would be in good hands," she said.

He underwent surgery this morning and is back on his feet with the help of some crutches.

Johnstone said once his foot heals, he intends to get back in the water.

Rain records broken amid heavy downpours and thunderstorms

Heavy rain and thunderstorms are bringing widespread flooding to New South Wales and parts of Queensland.

The deluge hit Sydney on Saturday afternoon, as residents were told to brace for conditions to intensify throughout the night.

A damaging trough in New South Wales, first unleashed across the state's west, left several regions awash.

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A rain deluge is hitting Sydney, with residents bracing for conditions to intensify through the night.

Despite only being October, Dubbo has now recorded its wettest year in 49 years, with about 882mm recorded up until 4pm today.

While at Bathurst, racing on Mount Panorama was thrown into chaos, after the Top-10 shootout was cancelled due to the torrential downpour.

The regional city has copped more than a month's worth of rain in a few days.

There are more than 60 flood warnings in place across NSW, covering western parts of the state, in the Central West, Hunter, Hawkesbury-Nepean, the South Coast and the Illawarra.

NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet said the state currently has a situation where dams and rivers are full.

"With heavy rain expected, we ask everybody to continue to be cautious," he said.

"If those flood warnings are in place, please continue to follow instructions, be prepared to be ready if an evacuation is needed.

"Particularly on roads, not just in Sydney but right across the state, please be careful."

However the worst may still be yet to come, with another system expected to move through the state on Wednesday.

"We're only eight days into the storm season and unfortunately, we're seeing flooding continue across NSW," emergency services minister Steph Cooke said.

"It's expected to do so for weeks and months ahead."

Showers to ease briefly

The latest burst of storms is being caused by a developing low pressure system, which will endure well into the evening before dissipating over Sunday and Monday.

Meteorologist Dean Narramore said the trough is being fuelled by tropical moisture, with heavy falls expected to exacerbate flash flooding.

READ MORE: Woman dies after car slams into western Sydney home

"Widespread areas particularly for our flood-affected areas of inland NSW, (could get) 30-50mm with isolated falls of 80-100mm possible," he said.

"[They system] is going to move eastwards quickly today [Saturday] and expanding, then hit the coast later today into tonight.

"Severe weather warnings current for heavy rainfall and damaging winds from Newcastle all the way down to Ulladulla."

Narramore added the low will take rain offshore Sunday and into Monday, but added another weather system will hit mid-next week.

"Unfortunately the next weather system [arrives] Wednesday to Thursday with a burst of widespread heavy storms," he said.

Narramore's warning comes as residents near the Hawkesbury-Nepean Rivers face a possible fifth flood in 18 months.

The Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) said there's a minor, to moderate risk of flooding along those communities.

Residents can stay across all NSW flood warnings here. 

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Wet weather will return to Sydney from this evening, with communities in Western Sydney on high alert.

Weatherzone said this latest round or rain and storms is due to a cold front that's "tapped into abundant tropical moisture, which had already made its way south from northern Australia.".

"The situation will probably become extremely serious on the weekend, with heavy rain again forecast across a huge area, particularly on Saturday, and particularly north of the Murray River," the weather service added.

Weather warnings are in place for parts of Queensland, with heavy rainfall possible in areas including Maranoa Warrego and the Central West districts, extending to the Darling Downs.

There's also a risk of minor to moderate flooding across a number of catchments across western and south-western Queensland as the system pushes east.

Areas around Bulloo and the Paroo River are of particular concern. 

Residents can stay across Queensland warnings here.

Clean up begins in Victoria

Eastern Australia is currently in the grips of its third consecutive third La Nina , which is tipped to weaken early 2023.

Meanwhile, Victoria SES continues to clean-up after a fierce storm lashed the city.

State Agency Commander Geb Abbott said Victoria has "seen the worst" of the rain but added flooding is still possible as water flows down catchments.

"Calls for both flooding, building damage and trees down," she said.

"Unfortunately, we're having to respond to vehicles that have been stuck in floodwater.

"A reminder for all areas that are experiencing flooding – please do not drive into floodwater, it may be one of the last things you do.

"We are still seeing water coming through the damp catchments. Flooding will be experienced in many areas. Crews are still out ready and prepared to respond and still engaging with the communities still likely to experience impact."

Massive explosion on Crimea's Kerch bridge, Russian state media reports

A fuel tank exploded early Saturday on Europe's longest bridge, which links Russia to the annexed territory of Crimea, according to Russian state media RIA and social media footage.

Images of the Kerch bridge posted on social media appear to show a portion of the roadway of the vehicle and rail bridge had fallen into the waters below it.

Flames are seen burning from rail cars above.

READ MORE: Ukraine announces major gains against Russians

https://twitter.com/Podolyak_M/status/1578628414197485569

The tanker was located on the 19-kilometre long bridge – strategically important because it links Russia's Krasnodar region with the Russian-annexed Crimean Peninsula.

The bridge spans the Kerch Strait, which connects the Black Sea to the Sea of Azov.

The source of the explosion remains unclear.

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In an interview in August, a senior Ukrainian military commander said the Kerch bridge was a legitimate target.

"This is a necessary measure in order to deprive them (Russia) of the opportunity to provide reserves and reinforce their troops from Russian territory," Maj. Gen. Dmytro Marchenko said in an interview with RBC-Ukraine.

Work is "underway to extinguish the fire," the adviser to the Russian administration head of occupied Crimea, Oleg Kryunchkov, said in a Telegram post, adding that the bridge's "shipping arches were not damaged."

The Kerch bridge is able to handle 40,000 cars a day and to move 14 million passengers and 13 million tons of cargo per year, state news agency RIA Novosti reported when the bridge opened in 2018.

READ MORE: Kremlin-appointed official slams ministers over flagging war effort

After the bridge opened, the United States condemned its construction as illegal.

"Russia's construction of the bridge serves as a reminder of Russia's ongoing willingness to flout international law," a US State Department statement said.

"The bridge represents not only an attempt by Russia to solidify its unlawful seizure and its occupation of Crimea, but also impedes navigation by limiting the size of ships that can transit the Kerch Strait, the only path to reach Ukraine's territorial waters in the Sea of Azov."