Australia news live: whale rescuers try to help humpback entangled in buoy; drivers trapped in heavy snow near Mount Hotham
Update:
Date: 2025-06-08T21:22:12.000Z
Title: Welcome
Content:
Good morning, and welcome to Monday. I'm Nick Visser and I'll be here all morning to take you through today's breaking news. Here's what's on deck:
The mother of Pheobe Bishop remembered her daughter as someone who 'always sung to her own tune' at a vigil on Sunday. 'She loved the people that she loved to every extent of the earth', Kylie Johnson told hundreds of community members at the gathering. A second vigil will be held tonight.
Dozens of people were trapped in their cars in the Victorian Alps amid heavy snow this weekend. The state's SES said the agency rescued more than 20 people near Hotham Heights yesterday, with an official saying they believe there could be up to 20 vehicles still on the mountain. Emergency officials will meet this morning to discuss ongoing plans.
Officials will continue to monitor a humpback whale seen near Sydney harbour yesterday entangled in rope. Rescue teams tried to free the animal, which is trailing a buoy behind it, on Sunday but were unsuccessful.
Stick with us throughout the day.
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The Guardian
7 hours ago
- The Guardian
Thirteen people trapped in cars overnight and hikers rescued as heavy snow falls across Victorian and NSW alps
More than a dozen motorists and two hikers have been rescued after being trapped in heavy snow in the alpine region of Victoria amid a dangerous start to the snow season. Separately, bushwalkers were evacuated near Mount Kosciuszko in New South Wales as snow fell across Australia. Search crews rescued 13 travellers stranded near Mount Hotham as 50cm of snow fell around the Blue Rag Range Track near Dargo High Plains Road. Some spent Saturday night in their cars and one man in his 40s suffered minor injuries after his vehicle rolled. Emergency services used snowmobiles to traverse the mountain. Members of Wangaratta Ski Club, the Country Fire Association and a snow plough from Mount Hotham Alpine Resort joined the rescue effort, said Graham Gales, an SES unit controller. Gales said the roads had been challenging even for experienced volunteers, and it had been difficult to ascertain how many people remained stranded. 'We were very surprised at the number of vehicles that we did come across yesterday … that had gone out for the weekend and have been caught short by the snow,' he told ABC Radio. 'The experience of our drivers going into the Dargo High Plains Road yesterday was even they were having difficulty, and these are people that basically work in the snow all year round.' Police and the SES said no one remained trapped in the area by Monday afternoon. Roads had been closed across the Victorian alps, but the site of the incident was accessible to motorists over the weekend despite heavy snowfall being predicted. The local Alpine Shire council on Friday recommended motorists avoid the road in a Facebook post before declaring the road closed on Sunday morning. However, some gates on Dargo High Plains Road wouldn't be locked until Thursday, the local mayor, Sarah Nicholas, said. 'In the alps, during the declared snow season, you have to carry chains … so people should have chains with them during this current [long] weekend,' she told ABC radio. Police in 2024 turned back nearly 1,500 vehicles from the Mount Hotham area for failing to carry mandated wheel chains. Two hikers were rescued from the Wonnangatta walking track in Vioctoria's Alpine national park on Monday, police said. Sign up to Morning Mail Our Australian morning briefing breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion Emergency crews separately rescued two bushwalkers stranded near NSW's Mount Kosciuszko on Sunday after the pair were stranded in blizzard conditions. A search party advanced through fierce snow on Saturday towards the 31-year-old man and 28-year-old woman but was forced to retreat due to white-out conditions. Trained alpine officers then reached them late on Saturday night and the pair was escorted from the Kosciuszko walking trail to a staging campsite and evacuated by 4am on Sunday. Hotham Alpine Ski resort reported 12cm of snow in the 24 hours to 9am with 63cm in the week to Monday. The Snowy Mountains were set to see additional dumps of 10cm to 20cm on Monday, with many areas already seeing half a metre of snow over the past few days. More snowfall was forecast across alpine regions of Victoria and NSW on Monday with some sites expecting further falls in the coming days.
The Guardian
7 hours ago
- The Guardian
Hikers rescued as ski season begins in Australia's alpine region
A long weekend cold snap in Australia's south-east has seen the ski season begin in earnest, with authorities in NSW and Victoria conducting rescues across the alpine region. Hikers were filmed on Sunday night as they walked through heavy snowfall in Mount Kosciuszko national park while being rescued by police
The Sun
13 hours ago
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I fell 9,000ft & LIVED after my paraglider wing collapsed during a flight… but I can't wait to get back in the sky
A GRANDAD has told how his paraglider's wing collapsed 9,000ft above the French Alps. Retired counter-terrorism cop Steve Barnett, 57, flew into a storm cloud, saturating his glider. 5 5 5 The wing caved under the weight of water as he tried an emergency landing — sending him falling 30ft through trees. Steve broke his pelvis when he hit the ground at 40mph. He called fellow paraglider Matt Roach, 47, for help. The pal, in the air at the time, tracked him down and alerted a rescue helicopter. Steve was airlifted from Passy, in south eastern France, to a hospital near the Italian border. He was allowed to head home to Seaford, East Sussex, just two days later. Steve recalled: 'There was a big cloud and I started hearing a pitter patter on the wing. "It came down heavier. 'Then all I could hear was this snapping, crackling and rippling. "I bounced on the ground and rolled. Shock vid shows half-frozen paraglider who was sucked 5 MILES into sky by vortex & left shivering in -40C conditions 'It was like someone had kicked me really hard.' Unfazed, he added: 'I can't wait to get back into the sky.' 5 5
