Queensland woman dies in flood waters
A Townsville woman has died in flood waters yesterday afternoon, Queensland police have confirmed.
According to police, the woman’s vehicle became submerged in flood waters at Duchess, south-east of Mount Isa, yesterday.
At about 1:15pm, emergency services received reports of a white Toyota Hilux located partially submerged in the flooded Malbon River, near Cloncurry Duchess Road.
The driver of the vehicle, a 28-year-old Townsville woman, was located inside and was declared deceased.
Investigations into the circumstances of the woman’s death are ongoing, police said. Police are appealing to the public for information.
Key events
Hundreds of people are already lining up at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, hoping to secure some merchandise ahead of tonight’s Taylor Swift concert:
One “Swiftie” described the atmosphere in Melbourne as “incredible”, having received friendship bracelets from someone at the train station:
The vibe in Melbourne is incredible. The guy at the train station gave us all friendship bracelets. We’re about to brave the merch lines. Such an in incredible experience. I [love] Melbourne.
And this group of Swifties have arrived in Melbourne for the Eras Tour, all the way from New Zealand.
Ticket scammers pull a Swiftie
A quick search of “Taylor Swift Melbourne” on X/Twitter reveals dozens, if not hundreds, of people purporting to be selling tickets to tonight’s concert.
Ticket scams related to the Eras Tour have been rife since the Australian concerts were first announced. Between mid-June last year and 12 February, the ACCC had received 406 reports to Scamwatch regarding Taylor Swift ticket scams, with total losses of about $183,000.
Last month it warned of a social media scam, where scammers would hack social media accounts to sell fake Taylor Swift tickets to the compromised account’s friends list.
You can read all the latest advice from Scamwatch here. Please be on alert if you’re looking for last-minute tickets!
Sydney man freed from crashed car in one-hour rescue
Firefighters on Sydney’s lower north shore have pulled off a delicate, one-hour mission to free a man in his 80s from his overturned car at Mosman.
Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) said in a statement that his vehicle mounted a footpath, crashed through a fence and rolled down a “steep decline” before ending up on its side near Balmoral Park just after 7am.
The driver, a man in his 80s, was trapped inside the wreckage.
Dozens of firefighters, including specialist rescue personnel, worked for more than an hour to stabilise the car and free the man. They used straps, cables, winches and hydraulic tools to prevent the car from further rolling down the embankment.
Crews removed the hatch to reach and free the man, who had sustained superficial cuts and abrasions. He was treated by paramedics and taken to hospital in a stable condition.
FRNSW said efforts are now under way to retrieve the car, with a crane likely to be used.
MOSMAN | Fire and Rescue NSW retrieves injured driver after car rolls down embankment. Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) crews today have pulled off a delicate one-hour mission to free an elderly man from his overturned car at Mosman, on Sydney’s lowe… https://t.co/MBoJJ2IYHt
— Fire and Rescue NSW (@FRNSW) February 15, 2024
A lucky Taylor Swift fan has struck gold this morning – not with another concert ticket, but an elusive “Tay Tam”:
The Eras Tour officially kicks off in Australia today, but it also happens to be National Tim Tam Day, with the iconic biscuit turning 60 this year.
As Taste reports, Arnott’s is giving away free Tim Tams at Melbourne airport today, and a limited number of “Tay Tam” biscuits will be distributed across the city.
And they’re not the only brand to join in the hype. According to Mediaweek, Spotlight launched a “Get Concert Ready” campaign in January so Swifties could be dressed on-theme and create their own friendship bracelets.
Jacinta Allan says storms have highlighted state’s backup power needs
Victoria’s devastating storms have shone a spotlight on the need for more backup power to telecommunication towers as tens of thousands of homes remain off the grid, premier Jacinta Allan says, according to AAP.
Allan said it was reasonable to question if telcos should have more batteries and generators in towers as backup power sources for severe weather events:
We saw the same thing coming out of Queensland with the cyclone event before Christmas. The reality is everyone relies on their mobile phone. Very few people have a landline.
This has really emerged strongly out of this event this week as something that needs much greater focus and attention both levels of government, but also the telecommunications companies have to come to the table with solutions.
Allan suggested the state’s emergency call-taking service, Triple Zero Victoria, came under strain despite extra staff being added in anticipation of the catastrophic weather.
Tuesday was the highest number … for police calls ever. It was the fourth-highest ever for the emergency service and I think that speaks to … the tornado-like winds.
QBE Insurance doubles profit amid spike in premiums
Jonathan Barrett
Australia’s big general insurers are profiting during a period of fast-rising premiums that are squeezing homeowners and drivers.
QBE Insurance more than doubled its net profit for calendar 2023 to $1.4bn and greatly expanded its profit margins, even as policyholders grappled with double-digit premium rises, according to results lodged today.
It was able to grow the size of its insurance book and profits derived from policies.
The sector, largely overlooked as a driver of inflation and cause of cost of living pressures, was the standout contributor to recent inflation data, representing annual premium price increases not seen in more than two decades.
Part of the increases are linked to the growing cost of extreme weather events, however many insurers have more than offset these costs via premium hikes. Some homeowners living in high-risk areas have seen premiums spike by as much as 50%, while motor insurance premiums also rise quickly.
The QBE chair, Mike Wilkins, said:
As we face an increase in the frequency and severity of extreme weather events globally, we must collectively learn to mitigate their impacts and improve our preparedness and responses.
In its half-year results also lodged on Friday, major insurer IAG recorded a slide in overall net profit from $468m to $407m. The insurer, however, expanded its profit margins, a scenario that tends to underpin future profit results.
Queensland woman dies in flood waters
A Townsville woman has died in flood waters yesterday afternoon, Queensland police have confirmed.
According to police, the woman’s vehicle became submerged in flood waters at Duchess, south-east of Mount Isa, yesterday.
At about 1:15pm, emergency services received reports of a white Toyota Hilux located partially submerged in the flooded Malbon River, near Cloncurry Duchess Road.
The driver of the vehicle, a 28-year-old Townsville woman, was located inside and was declared deceased.
Investigations into the circumstances of the woman’s death are ongoing, police said. Police are appealing to the public for information.
Police association moves towards industrial action over pay
The Australian Federal Police Association (AFPA) has lodged an application with the Fair Work Commission (FWC) for a protected action ballot – the first step towards potential industrial action.
This would become the first time in history the AFPA/Australian federal police (AFP) would be taking this type of action.
The AFPA president, Alex Caruana, said now the application has been lodged, they will wait for the AFP to respond and the FWC to make their decision
He said this was the “only way forward” due to the “restrictiveness” of the government’s Public Sector Workplace Relations Policy 2023 and the non-APS bargaining parameters forming part of that policy.
The AFPA recently surveyed more than 1,800 of its members, and 75% endorsed industrial action to advocate for a better pay offer.
Caruana said that the AFPA had a mandate from its members to safeguard their workplace conditions and seek the best enterprise agreement possible:
The recent survey showed that over 90% of the 1,800 participants would reject the proposed three-year, 11.2% (with no additional allowances) pay rise offered by the government.
V/Line trains resume in Melbourne after industrial action
V/Line train services in Melbourne have resumed after industrial action by Rail, Tram and Bus Union members this morning.
In a statement, V/Line said there would be “some delays possible for the next few hours” but services would run to a normal timetable from late-morning.
The spokesperson also assured there would be increased capacity and extra services on some lines today to get fans to the Taylor Swift concert at the MCG.
Coaches would also be on standby at key locations in the hours before and after the concert to support train services, V/Line said.
The total attendance across the weekend is expected to be the equivalent of three AFL Grand Finals, so an enormous public transport effort has been months in the planning. With no parking available at the MCG, public transport is the best way for Swifties to get to the venue safely and quickly.
RTBU members employed by V/Line are planning to take further protected industrial action between 3am and 7am on 19 and 23 February, with no V/Line trains running during this time.
Banks restore digital services after network outages
Several Australian bank services that were hit with technical issues causing outages yesterday are now back up and running.
As Elias Visontay reported yesterday, several banks appeared to be hit with technical issues that caused outages and left customers unable to make online transfers or use mobile banking apps.
Several features including online transfers, smartphone apps and the use of Osko – a secure payment service – were unavailable.
A network outage at Data Action, a software company that provides online banking services to many newer so-called “challenger banks”, appeared to be the cause of the outages, iTnews reported.
According to the websites of UBank, Bank Australia, Defence Bank, Beyond Bank, People’s Choice and P&N Bank, all their services have now been restored.
All the services appeared to be restored between 6pm and 9pm last night, and all banks apologised for the inconvenience.
‘Bring him home’: David Pocock calls for end of prosecution of Julian Assange
The independent ACT senator David Pocock has called on the US and UK governments to “end the prosecution of Julian Assange and allow his return to Australia”.
This comes as federal MPs, including the prime minister and cabinet members, voted overwhelmingly to urge the US and UK to allow the WikiLeaks founder to return to Australia:
In a statement posted to X – directed to the US and UK embassies in Australia, president Joe Biden and prime minister Rishi Sunak – Pocock wrote:
On February 20, Julian Assange will make his final plea to the UK’s High Court to block his extradition to the US.
If extradited, Julian Assange will face a sentence of 175 years in prison for publishing evidence of war crimes committed by the US.
If he is convicted, the US will set a legal precedent that means any publication of US government information by anyone, anywhere, could result in espionage charges.
It will mark the end of free speech and the end of modern journalism.
It will re-define investigative journalism as a crime.
Democracy itself is at stake. Without freedom of the press, democracy cannot exist.
In New South Wales there is a severe thunderstorm warning for the far north-east, including Tweed Head and Murwillumbah.
The Bureau of Meteorology says localised heavy falls leading to flash flooding is a concern.
