Victoria police urge drivers to prepare for snow at alpine resorts after dozens of rescues
Each week during the ski season about 80 cars are turned back from Mt Buller for arriving unprepared for the snow.
And 50 rescues have been made on Mt Hotham so far in the first three weeks of snow season, Victoria police say, “mostly consisting of motorists who needed to be extracted to their cars due to rapidly changing weather conditions”.
“Police are disappointed at the number of motorists arriving at alpine resorts unprepared,” the statement says.
Despite clear laws, signage and repeated safety messages, police and Alpine resort management staff continue to intercept a large number of vehicles without snow chains – equipment that can be the difference between a safe trip and a serious crash.
Commander Karen Nyholm says:
These aren’t small mistakes – we’re seeing vehicles stuck, and people needing to be rescued, after being caught out in rapidly changing weather. In many cases, it comes down to a lack of preparation.
As we move into the school holidays, we’re urging all travellers to take a few simple steps before setting off – pack your chains, check the weather, and ensure your vehicle is suitable for the conditions. It could save your life.
Alpine conditions can change fast – roads that look fine can become icy or dangerous without warning. If you’re not properly equipped, it can quickly turn into a serious situation for you and others.
Key events
Police ‘attempted to negotiate’ with alleged gunman in Victorian siege before fatal police shooting
Victoria police are giving an update on a fatal police shooting in Daisy Hill last night.
Police were called to Menzies Drive following a report that a man discharged a firearm just before 3pm yesterday, police said in a statement.
Officers attended and ascertained shots had been fired inside a shed, police said in a live update.
A 39-year-old man “hid inside the shed when police attended, making threats to shoot those police and also indicating that he had a knife and bomb/explosives at his disposal,” police said. “He wasn’t keen at all on engaging with police, who attempted to negotiate with him but unfortunately could not.”
There was a siege in the shed for several hours before the man discharged shots towards police, who returned fire, just before 10pm, the police statement said.
“Unfortunately, a confrontation occurred just prior to 10pm, where the male exited the shed, produced a firearm and shot at police,” police said in the update. “Sadly, they were forced to respond, exchange gun fire with him and at this time he is deceased.”
No police or other members of community were injured.
Two teenagers charged over Luke Manassa stabbing ‘known to police’
The two teenagers charged with the fatal stabbing of 21-year-old Luke Manassa in Pemulwuy last week are “known to police”.
A 17-year-old male was arrested in South Penrith, police said in a statement, and charged with murder and failing to comply with a direction for digital evidence access. He was refused bail to appear in a children’s court today.
A 16-year-old male was arrested in Mt Druitt, police said. He was charged with murder and was also refused bail to appear in a children’s court today.
NSW police allege: “Both are linked to western Sydney street gangs.”
Police allege the two teenagers “were contracted by someone to conduct this killing”.
Police investigating whether fatal stabbing of Luke Manassa was a case of mistaken identity
More on the two teenagers charged with the fatal stabbing of 21-year-old Luke Manassa in Pemulwuy last week.
Investigations have not found a motive “as to why somebody would want to murder Luke,” NSW police said in an update.
“This could well be a case of mistaken identity. However, that is a strong line of inquiry that we continue to pursue and is probably too early at this stage to absolutely confirm that Luke was a mistaken identity,” police continued.
Manassa is not adversely known to NSW police, they said.
NSW police allege 21-year-old killed in ‘ambush-style’ attack in western Sydney
New South Wales police are giving an update on two teenagers who have been charged with murder over the fatal stabbing of 21-year-old Luke Manassa in Pemulwuy last week.
Police allege Manassa “was a victim of an ambush-style attack where two males dressed in dark clothing and wearing face coverings lay in wait at a location in Pemulwuy that the victim was attending,” they said.
Police further allege the the two males were armed with “machete hunting-style knives”.
Alleged blessing scam targeting Asian people, NSW police say
An elderly Chinese woman is the latest victim in an alleged spiritual blessing scam defrauding people out of valuables, including jewellery and money.
New South Wales police arrested a 63-year-old woman at Sydney airport on Thursday night.
She is accused of defrauding a 77-year-old woman out of a large sum of money and jewellery at Parramatta last month.
Authorities said it is the latest example of an alleged scam aimed at people of Asian backgrounds, where alleged offenders “exploit cultural fears” and convince women their wealth needs to be blessed to protect their families because they are at risk from spirits.
“The women are deceived and once the scammers are in possession of their money and valuables including jewellery, the items are swapped with items of no value and the women are encouraged not to open the bags for an extended time,” NSW police alleged in a statement.
A police strike force has been running since April, investigating alleged blessing scams across Sydney since 2023. In general, police have received reports of more than 80 incidents in that time and say the scams have netted a cool $3m in cash and valuables.
The woman arrested on Thursday has been charged with dishonestly obtaining financial advantage by deception, participating in a criminal group and demanding property in company with menaces with intent to steal in relation to the incident at Parramatta.
She was set to face Parramatta local court on Friday after being denied police bail.
– via Australian Associated Press
Ben Fisher
‘I’m heartbroken’: Jürgen Klopp leads tributes after Diogo Jota dies aged 28
Jürgen Klopp and Cristiano Ronaldo led the tributes from across the football world to Diogo Jota after the Liverpool and Portugal forward was killed in a car accident in Spain. Jota’s brother, André, also died in the crash in the province of Zamora.
Jota was 28, a father of three young children and had married his long-term partner, Rute Cardoso, less than a fortnight ago. Klopp, who signed Jota for Liverpool in 2020 and managed him for four seasons, posted on Instagram:
This is a moment where I struggle! There must be a bigger purpose! But I can’t see it!
I’m heartbroken to hear about the passing of Diogo and his brother André. Diogo was not only a fantastic player, but also a great friend, a loving and caring husband and father! We will miss you so much! All my prayers, thoughts and power to Rute, the kids, the family, the friends and everyone who loved them! Rest in peace – Love.
Ronaldo, who played with Jota for Portugal, posted a message on social media in Portuguese which translated said:
Doesn’t make any sense. Just now we were together in the national team, just now you were married. To your family, to your wife, your children, I send my condolences and wish them all the strength in the world. I know you will always be with them. R.I.P Diogo and André. We will all miss you.
Read the full story:
No ransom request received after Qantas cyber-attack, airline says
Qantas will soon be able to tell the 6 million customers whose data was stolen by cyber criminals exactly what type of personal information was harvested.
In an update today, the airline also said the group believed responsible for the incident remained unclear and that it had not received a ransom request.
The hack, revealed earlier this week, occurred on a third-party system used by a call centre working for Qantas.
Sensitive data such as credit card details, personal financial information, passport details and Qantas Frequent Flyer accounts were not exposed. But millions of customers did have names, dates of birth and email addresses stolen.
– via Australian Associated Press
Read more from Josh Taylor here:
Victoria police urge drivers to prepare for snow at alpine resorts after dozens of rescues
Each week during the ski season about 80 cars are turned back from Mt Buller for arriving unprepared for the snow.
And 50 rescues have been made on Mt Hotham so far in the first three weeks of snow season, Victoria police say, “mostly consisting of motorists who needed to be extracted to their cars due to rapidly changing weather conditions”.
“Police are disappointed at the number of motorists arriving at alpine resorts unprepared,” the statement says.
Despite clear laws, signage and repeated safety messages, police and Alpine resort management staff continue to intercept a large number of vehicles without snow chains – equipment that can be the difference between a safe trip and a serious crash.
Commander Karen Nyholm says:
These aren’t small mistakes – we’re seeing vehicles stuck, and people needing to be rescued, after being caught out in rapidly changing weather. In many cases, it comes down to a lack of preparation.
As we move into the school holidays, we’re urging all travellers to take a few simple steps before setting off – pack your chains, check the weather, and ensure your vehicle is suitable for the conditions. It could save your life.
Alpine conditions can change fast – roads that look fine can become icy or dangerous without warning. If you’re not properly equipped, it can quickly turn into a serious situation for you and others.
Woman trapped in unit fire in Brisbane, prompting police investigation
A woman is in hospital after being trapped in a unit fire in Brisbane’s West End, with police investigating the fire as suspicious.
Emergency services were called to Percy Street about 9.05pm last night to reports a number of units were on fire. Police found a unit well alight and the fire had spread to a second unit, Queensland police said in a statement.
They heard a woman screaming, trapped in the second unit, and “forcibly gained entry to extract” her.
The 54-year-old woman was treated for smoke inhalation and taken to hospital. A number of officers were also treated for smoke inhalation. No one else was injured.
Investigations into the cause of the fire are ongoing, and a crime scene was declared.
Police are appealing to the public for information, CCTV or dashcam footage.
Australia must stop treating childcare ‘as a market and a business’, expert says
Alison Gill says there needs to be investment in childcare sector, with appropriate staffing and education on “how predators work”.
The Bravehearts CEO spoke on ABC RN a short moment ago:
I think people who are committed to early childhood education and care have been saying for a really long time: stop treating this as a market and a business and really invest in high-quality early childhood services. And it’s all about that quality.
There just should be no opportunity for abuse to occur in an early childhood setting. There should be no area where an educator can hide with a child, no opportunity for an educator to be alone with a child. And we do need to invest in the appropriate level of staffing, the qualification and knowledge of educators. We need to upskill the sector on sexual abuse and how predators and perpetrators work, and to be looking for that, to be vigilant all the time, to be raising concerns, to be reporting concerns.
We need to back in educators as this front line of child safety. There’s just so much that we can do.
‘It’s more than just systemic reform’
Societal reform needs to come with systemic reform on child sexual abuse, a child protection expert says.
Alison Gill, the CEO of Bravehearts, encourages parents to “have considered and age-appropriate conversations with your kids that are truthful”.
She spoke on ABC RN a moment ago, after a Melbourne childcare worker was this week charged with allegedly sexually abusing infants and children in his care.
Gill urges parents to talk about personal safety, and create environments “where the children can be open with their parents and trusted adults”.
It’s more than just systemic reform. There’s societal reform that needs to happen too when it comes to child sexual abuse.
Elizabeth Westrupp had more advice yesterday, writing for The Conversation:
