Latest news with #1079
Sydney Morning Herald
12-08-2025
- Sydney Morning Herald
How to catch a real-life Thomas the Tank Engine steam train in Brisbane
They were retired when the state's steam era ended in 1969, but Queensland Rail kept two, the 1079 and 1089, which are maintained at the Rail Workshops at Ipswich and rolled out for special events. The 1089 entered service in March 1958, and was the last main line steam train to enter service in Australia. But despite being 67 years old – retirement age for an Australian worker – this beauty has been polished up, and the coal loaded for QR celebrations, including to the general public to the Ekka on Wednesday. Steam trains have been described as like a 'living breathing' creature, with personalities all of their own. There's a nostalgic 'chugga chugga choo choo' noise as steam hisses, the wheels rumble, and the whistle shrieks. Tutor driver Peter Cohen said there was a lot of preparation involved in getting the steam train running, including a day or two of polishing. 'To line it up takes three, four hours, get it all oiled and greased, and ready to go, it's a lot of hard work, a lot of shovelling coal and keeping the water up, it's a big day,' he said. The Exhibition Station at the RNA Showgrounds was reopened this year after a renovation, and it will only operate for major events until Cross River Rail opens in 2029. People can board the steam train at Roma Street to the Ekka at 9.05am, 9.55am, 10.35am, 11.25am, 12.05pm, 12.55pm, 2.05pm, 2.55pm. Loading People can either exit at Exhibition Station, or stay on for the loop back to Roma Street, and there will be no boarding onto the steam train from the Ekka. The heritage carriages are not accessible for people in wheelchairs or using a mobility device, and boarding is via ladder style steps and a grab rail.
The Age
12-08-2025
- The Age
How to catch a real-life Thomas the Tank Engine steam train in Brisbane
They were retired when the state's steam era ended in 1969, but Queensland Rail kept two, the 1079 and 1089, which are maintained at the Rail Workshops at Ipswich and rolled out for special events. The 1089 entered service in March 1958, and was the last main line steam train to enter service in Australia. But despite being 67 years old – retirement age for an Australian worker – this beauty has been polished up, and the coal loaded for QR celebrations, including to the general public to the Ekka on Wednesday. Steam trains have been described as like a 'living breathing' creature, with personalities all of their own. There's a nostalgic 'chugga chugga choo choo' noise as steam hisses, the wheels rumble, and the whistle shrieks. Tutor driver Peter Cohen said there was a lot of preparation involved in getting the steam train running, including a day or two of polishing. 'To line it up takes three, four hours, get it all oiled and greased, and ready to go, it's a lot of hard work, a lot of shovelling coal and keeping the water up, it's a big day,' he said. The Exhibition Station at the RNA Showgrounds was reopened this year after a renovation, and it will only operate for major events until Cross River Rail opens in 2029. People can board the steam train at Roma Street to the Ekka at 9.05am, 9.55am, 10.35am, 11.25am, 12.05pm, 12.55pm, 2.05pm, 2.55pm. Loading People can either exit at Exhibition Station, or stay on for the loop back to Roma Street, and there will be no boarding onto the steam train from the Ekka. The heritage carriages are not accessible for people in wheelchairs or using a mobility device, and boarding is via ladder style steps and a grab rail.
Yahoo
28-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Halle Berry testifies before Maine Legislature to support menopause education
Mar. 28—Award-winning actress Halle Berry testified before the Maine Legislature's Health and Human Services Committee Friday in support of a bill to expand education on menopause and perimenopause. The Hollywood icon described her own experience with menopause: a barrage of misunderstood symptoms and misdiagnoses. "I'm in menopause, and I had no idea," Berry, 58, told the committee through a Zoom video feed. "None of my doctors ever talked to me about it." The bill, LD 1079, would direct the state Department of Health and Human Services to develop educational materials "in electronic and physical form" about perimenopause and menopause, working in partnership with local health care providers, including gynecologists and community-based programs. Those materials would include details about symptoms, treatments and the underlying biological processes, as well as advice on how to discuss menopause with family and friends, according to the draft. The bill's fiscal note is $10,000, said sponsor Kristen Cloutier, D-Lewiston. No one testified against the bill Friday. Berry said she experienced brain fog, heart palpitations and dryness in her eyes and vagina, but her health care professionals "kind of gaslit me" about the cause. Doctors suggested herpes and Sjogren's syndrome — neither of which was the case, she said. One doctor, when confronted with the suggestion of menopause, appeared sheepish, "like he could hardly say the word," she said. "Women deserve the support. We deserve to live good, quality lives and get the treatment so that we can do that," Berry said. Cloutier offered the first testimony Friday, speaking in the Burton M. Cross Building in Augusta a few minutes earlier. "Menopause is a universal experience for all who menstruate, yet education surrounding this critical health transition remains severely limited," Cloutier said. "The reality of this transition period, however, is that there can be serious health consequences." Cloutier said many individuals, including herself, end up feeling blindsided by symptoms they were not prepared for or unsure of how to address them with a health care provider. "Everyone deserves to understand the changes that their bodies will experience," she said. Senate President Mattie Daughtry, D-Brunswick, followed Cloutier's testimony, arguing that poor access to information can lead people experiencing menopause and perimenopause to misunderstand their own health. She cited a study that found roughly 80% of women felt unprepared for menopause. "Outside of some jokes about hot flashes and mood swings, most of us know next to nothing about this chapter in our life," said Daughtry, who cosponsored the bill. She added that there "at least be an acknowledgement" of menopause in high school health classes to better prepare young people for their futures. Copy the Story Link
