Two of the four injured people are in a critical condition.

Homicide squad detectives are investigating after a young man was fatally shot in a drive-by attack across the road from a Melbourne police station.

Two men were walking near the intersection of Brunswick and King William Streets in Fitzroy, just across from Fitzroy police station, shortly after midnight when the attack happened.

Detective Acting Inspector Brett Meadows said shots were fired at the men from a moving vehicle.

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A police officer who was alone at the closed police station rushed to the scene after hearing one or two shots and radioing for back up.

"He went out to investigate and located a male on the footpath with head injuries consistent with a gunshot wound, provided first aid immediately," Meadows said.

The other man who was with the victim at the time fled.

Police are urging him to come forward.

Emergency services worked on the man, however, he died at the scene.

He is yet to be identified.

READ MORE: First victim of Swiss Alps bar fire identified, scores fighting for life in hospitals

A car allegedly fled the scene before police arrived, and no arrests have been made.

Police are looking for at least one offender.

Investigations are still under way as police investigate the circumstances of the shooting.

Anyone with information should call Crime Stoppers.

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Training changes are planned, with a review already underway.

A swathe of weather watches and warnings cover the top half of the North Island.

Multiple states are set to swelter next week as a hot air mass spreads across parts of Australia.

The weather system will push temperatures towards the mid-to-high 40s in parts of Western Australia, South Australia, Victoria and NSW.

The hot weather is expected to intensify over WA from this weekend before spreading across southern, central and south-eastern Australia next week.

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Temperatures are expected to reach the low-to-mid 40s in WA by Monday, according to Weatherzone.

The heat will then spread about Tuesday into South Australia and central Australia.

The weather system will then move to Victoria and NSW from Wednesday and Thursday.

The peak of the heat is expected to occur inland but capital cities won't escape.

Melbourne could reach between 30 and 39 degrees each day from Wednesday to Friday next week, while Adelaide's temperatures could range from about 39 to 41 degrees.

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Temperatures are expected to be hotter in the regional Victorian city of Mildura, with the potential for 45 degrees on Thursday.

"It's too early to know exactly how hot this air mass will be as it spreads across Australia next week," Weatherzone meteorologist Ben Domensino said.

"However, numerous computer models suggest temperatures could reach around 45 to 46 degrees in parts of WA, SA, Vic and NSW, with some spots possibly reaching about 48 degrees.

"The hottest weather over the coming week will occur inland, away from Australia's state capital cities, but the major cities won't completely escape the heat."

Heatwave conditions are expected to impact parts of every state and territory next week but the highest temperatures are likely to be felt in WA, South Australia, Victoria and Tasmania.

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As young partygoers rang in the New Year at a packed bar in the Swiss Alps, the celebration quickly turned into a nightmare when a devastating fire tore through the basement, killing at least 40 people and injuring 119 others.

The blaze at Le Constellation in Crans-Montana has been described by Switzerland's president as one of the country's "worst tragedies."

As families anxiously await word about missing loved ones and experts work to identify the victims, authorities are still piecing together how the fire started and why it spread so fast.

READ MORE: First victim of Swiss Alps bar fire identified, scores fighting for life in hospitals

Swiss authorities said Friday that the champagne sparklers were the likely cause of the fire, though the official inquiry remains ongoing.

Emerging videos and eyewitness accounts reveal a deadly combination of hazards: fire-prone ceiling panelling and a crowded bar packed with young patrons funnelling toward a narrow escape route.

A night of revelry

Le Constellation, located in the heart of Crans-Montana, a luxury ski resort in the French and German-speaking canton of Valais, is a popular nightspot among young locals and visitors.

Around 200 people were inside the venue on New Year's Eve, according to eyewitnesses, ready to celebrate 2026 with music, drinks and dancing.

Sparkles that turned to smoke

Imagery widely shared online shows staff in motorcycle helmets perched on others' shoulders, holding champagne bottles with sparklers amid the packed crowd.

One clip shows at least six bottles raised in the air as flames and smoke erupt from the ceiling.

The sparklers appear to have ignited what experts believe is acoustic panelling on the ceiling, a material designed to improve sound but that can also be highly flammable.

Independent fire consultant Stephen MacKenzie described it as "plastic petrol," adding: "That's why we're seeing reports of many of the young people with a first, second, third and unfortunately, fourth degree burns."

Swiss chief prosecutor Beatrice Pilloud told reporters on Friday that investigators are examining the installation of foam panelling at the bar, and whether it complied with regulations.

READ MORE: Witnesses blame 'sparklers in champagne bottles' after 40 killed in Swiss Alps blaze

A fast-spreading fire

Once the fire broke out, it spread quickly.

One video shows a young man attempting to put the fire out by hitting it with a cloth, while others record on their phones or continue dancing, seemingly unaware of the imminent danger.

"Once the ceiling was on fire, within about 10 seconds, the entire nightclub was on fire," one witness said.

Another eyewitness, Axel, who did not give his surname, told Reuters news that he and others in the bar didn't initially realise the danger was serious.

"We were yelling, 'Fire! Fire!' and then we thought it was a joke or that it wasn't necessarily serious.

And then suddenly, a huge cloud of black smoke, we couldn't breathe anymore," he said, describing how he eventually got upstairs and smashed a window to get out.

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Horrific escape

As smoke filled the lounge and the fire blazed, partygoers rushed toward a narrow staircase.

Video verified by CNN shows dozens trapped at the exit, with one person jumping through a window as thick, red smoke engulfed the building.

MacKenzie explained the fire's rapid spread through a process called a flashover, in which nearly everything in a room ignites almost simultaneously.

"Combustions pick up at ceiling level," causing the fire to "spread laterally," he said. This process is like a "stone drop in an ocean," with smoke rippling out sideways and starting to "preheat" everything in front of it.

When the fire door was opened, it could have created a "chimney effect" which accelerated the flow of smoke and combustible gases upward, MacKenzie said. "The smoke is actually on fire, a 'flashover,'" he added.

On Friday afternoon, Pilloud, the Swiss prosecutor, said all signs supported that theory.

"As things stand, everything points to the fire starting from sparklers or flares placed in champagne bottles that came too close to the ceiling, which very rapidly led to a flashover fire."

Laetitia Place, a 17-year-old partygoer from Lausanne, recounted her harrowing escape from the fire, saying that there was a crush at the narrow exit that made it difficult for others to get through.

"The first stairs are pretty easy to get through since they're wide and all that. But after that, there's the small door where everyone was pushing, and so we all fell."

"We were piled on top of each other, some people were burning, and some were dead next to us," the teenager told Reuters.

Video obtained by CNN shows multiple people lying motionless outside, while bystanders try to help.

Resident Samuel Rapp, 21, witnessed that aftermath.

"There were people screaming, and then people lying on the ground, probably dead."

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Emergency services arrive

Swiss emergency services launched a response within minutes of the fire, transporting the injured to hospitals across Switzerland and abroad.

Around 50 patients have been or will be transferred to hospitals in other European countries for specialist treatment, authorities told journalists on Friday.

Edmund Coquette told CNN-affiliate RTL Germany that he saw "bodies on the streets," and young people "totally burned in the face," who were missing fingers.

A man living near Le Constellation, who ran to assist people fleeing the burning building, described searching for an emergency exit behind the bar and finding a jammed door with people trying to get out.

The man, Paolo Campolo, told French media outlet "20 Minutes" that he asked the fire captain for help but soon decided to intervene himself.

"We didn't wait. With someone who happened to be passing by, we broke the door open and got the people out," Campolo said from a hospital bed.

Dr Robert Larribau, head of emergency care at Geneva University Hospital, told CNN that most patients the hospital received were 15 to 30 years old, many with "extremely serious injuries" caused by flashover and possible backdraft.

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Flashover typically causes severe burns, particularly on the face, back and upper limbs, often combined with critical inhalation injuries from radiant heat and superheated gases.

Backdraft, an oxygen-driven explosion, can cause instantaneous fatal burns and toxic inhalation.

An investigation has been opened into the circumstances surrounding the fire and how it spread so quickly, as Swiss officials said Friday that the two French owners of the bar have been interviewed by police to gather information.

CNN has reached out to the owners of the bar through their businesses but is yet to receive a response.

Meanwhile, as of Friday evening, many loved ones of the victims and injured were still waiting for answers, and authorities continue the process of identifying the dead.

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Mark Kempster has lost over $100,000, his 20s and nearly his family to an online betting addiction, which started when he was playing Australian Rules football at age 15.

"It ruined me. It turned into a horrible person for a long time," he said.

Kempster has not placed a bet in five years, but keeps seeing young influencers post about gambling at the pokies on social media.

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"I try and block them every time I see them, because I don't want to see it. But I can't keep up with them," he said.

It is something he has seen an increase in this year.

Young Australian influencers, predominantly men, are posting themselves gambling at the pokies, often spending thousands of dollars each time.

Their entire social media feeds show the colourful allure of the pokies machine, their bets and wins. 

When they do post their losses, some in the thousands, it is often in a nonchalant manner and considered to be all part of the game.

Some have even partnered up with betting companies to promote their services.

One Australian influencer, who 9news.com.au has chosen not to name, films himself betting each day at the pokies to his hundreds of thousands of followers.

He largely posts his wins, making his followers believe he is the "luckiest guy alive", despite the odds of winning a maximum prize on the pokies being one in seven million.

He has inspired young men to get tattoos of his catchphrase, and even draws a crowd at the pubs he gambles at. 

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But his social media comments highlight a disturbing trend: "I hit this last night as well", "Makes this look too easy", and "What casino my bro please tell me". 

Kempster, who is now an advocate for gambling reform, has witnessed the real-world consequences of these influencers.

He has been approached by people as young as 17 who have fallen into gambling and lost up to $20,000 after watching these influencers on social media in the past eight months.

"It's having a huge effect," he said.

"It's a public health issue. They are glamorising how cool it is, and how much fun it is, when we know that this causes so much social harm in the world."

State and territory governments are responsible for the direct licensing and regulation of all land-based gambling products, like pokie machines.

The Australian Communications and Media Authority regulates the advertising and promotion of illegal gambling services like online casino games and slots, and has previously issued a warning to social media influencers promoting these services.

But these pokies influencers do not fall under the authority's regulation, as they promote a legal form of gambling. 

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Gambling has been a significant topic for reform for decades, with Australia having the largest number of pokie machines per capita in the world.

Late Labor MP Peta Murphy, who led an inquiry into online gambling and advertising in 2023, said Australians were the "biggest losers in the world when it comes to gambling".

"We have a culture where sport and gambling are intrinsically linked. These behaviours are causing increasingly widespread and serious harm to individuals, families and communities," she said.

Kempster cannot watch sporting games anymore due to the gambling ads and has noticed his seven-year-old son's footy team talk about the sport in terms of odds.

"The kids are being taught gambling is normal, and it's something you have to do when you're watching the sport, which is just such a horrible thing we've developed especially over the last 20 years," he said. 

Murphy's report handed down 31 recommendations, including a phased ban on online gambling advertising, a national online gambling regulator and monthly win and loss statements for customers.

But two years on, the government has failed to implement any of the recommendations. 

READ MORE: The alarming myth a quarter of young Aussies believe

A government spokesperson said it "takes seriously our responsibility to protect Australians, particularly children and young people, from the harms of online gambling, and we are continuing to do the work to address this issue".

They added that the government had undertaken "the most significant gambling harm reduction measures" in the past decade, like launching the national self-exclusion register BetStop.

But Kempster said the government has only done the most for gambling reform because former governments failed to do anything at all. 

"You're going from zero to one, not zero to 100. They need to do more," he said.

There are many different ways to get help and information about gambling. You can visit the National Gambling Helpline or call on 1800 858 858.

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A large number of NSW Police carrying heavy weapons will patrol the Sydney Cricket Ground ahead of the first day of the Ashes series tomorrow.

A full crowd is set to be in attendance at the SCG as police look to reassure the public that gathering in large crowds is safe in the wake of the Bondi terror attack.

"Many people may not be used to seeing police carrying rifles at sporting events, but our objective here is to help the public feel safe, and police will be out in force," NSW Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon said.

READ MORE: First victim of Swiss Alps bar fire identified, scores fighting for life in hospitals

"The difference will be in the visibility of long arms and a stronger presence. Police will otherwise be targeting antisocial and unsafe behaviour as usual," he said.

Uniformed and mounted police will be patrolling the grounds to reassure the public of its safety.

Public Order and Riot Squad officers will also be present, equipped with visible long-arm rifles.

Assistant Commissioner Leanne McCusker, Commander of Counter Terrorism and Special Tactics, said that the extra visibility of rifles is not due to a specific threat.

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"I want to emphasise that there is not any active or imminent threat," she said.

"All PORS officers are rifle trained and have been for some time, this does not reflect any recent change in capability or weaponry."

The extra police presence comes after one of the largest policing operations in Sydney's history, with more than 2000 officers on duty in the central and metropolitan area during New Year's Eve celebrations.

NSW Premier Chris Minns suggested it would mark the beginning of a new style of policing around the state.

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A person is fighting for life in hospital after almost drowning at a Gold Coast theme park this afternoon.

Paramedics were called to WhiteWater World at 2.03pm (3.03pm AEDT) "following a post immersion incident", Queensland Ambulance said.

The person was taken to Gold Coast University Hospital in a life-threatening condition.

READ MORE: Witnesses blame 'sparklers in champagne bottles' after 40 killed in Swiss Alps blaze

WhiteWater World is the water theme park attached to Dreamworld.

The person was pulled from the water of the Cave of Waves attraction, a 50-metre-long wave pool, the theme park said in a statement.

"Our highly trained lifeguards responded immediately, and Queensland Ambulance Service attended the scene promptly," the theme park said.

"The safety and wellbeing of our guests and team members is our highest priority."

There are fears two workers have been trapped in a collapse at a coal mine in Central Queensland this afternoon.

Emergency crews were called to the Curragh mine site about 3pm (4pm AEDT).

9News Queensland reports that police responded to the mine near Blackwater, about 800 kilometres north-west of Brisbane.

READ MORE: Witnesses blame 'sparklers in champagne bottles' after 40 killed in Swiss Alps blaze

It was understood emergency services were working to retrieve the pair about one kilometre underground.

More to come