Latest news with #Duncan
STV News
11 minutes ago
- STV News
Scots sleep in Bulgarian airport after 'eggy smell' forces plane emergency landing
Passengers were forced to sleep in a Bulgarian airport after an Edinburgh-bound flight had to make an emergency landing due to an 'eggy smell'. The EasyJet flight EZY3282 from Dalaman, Turkey, to the Scottish capital took off at 9.55pm UK time and was due to arrive at around 12.45am on Wednesday morning. But around two hours into the journey, the aircraft made a U-turn over Serbia following a reported technical issue and landed in Sofia, Bulgaria. Those onboard told STV News staff said the plane was being diverted due to an 'unusual smell' described as 'eggy'. After landing, passengers were informed that they needed to spend the night in the Bulgarian capital because the cabin crew had worked their due hours. EasyJet previously told STV News that accommodation and meals were provided to those impacted, but affected passengers say they slept in the airport and haven't been supplied with water or food. After queuing at the check-in desks, passengers were informed that hotels had denied them spaces, and airport staff had to contact hotel managers directly to seek accommodation. Passengers claimed staff said they were unable to provide food and drink vouchers because EasyJet representatives had not contacted them. At around 5.30am, Scott Duncan and his wife, Emily Powell, were told accommodation had been found for them; however, they'd have to pay for transport to the premises. 'Check out times were between 10am to 11am, along with paying for transport there and back, and needing to be at the airport for 3pm to pass security for a 5pm flight, we decided it was better to stay in the airport overnight,' he told STV News. 'After sleeping on the floor for an hour after being refused seating from the Costa staff, eventually they opened the seating at 7am and allowed us chairs to sleep on.' Mr Duncan said they were issued new boarding passes to download but the EasyJet app crashed when trying to access them or the customer service option. He said that they had still not been able to check in an hour before the scheduled departure. iStock 'We have had nowhere to store our luggage and still no word on food or water, as well as airport staff reporting that there has been no word from an EasyJet representative,' Mr Duncan said. 'We have barely slept, are extremely dehydrated and provided very weak air conditioning in over 30-degree weather.' Passengers still feel 'left in the dark,' with a flight scheduled to leave at 5pm on Wednesday being delayed for a further three hours Scott's wife, Emily, added: 'We haven't been provided any information and have had to find out from friends and family about certain things that are happening. 'We are having to contact EasyJet first to find out information. They are not coming to us and they are completely leaving us in the dark. 'We can clearly understand that it is not the cabin crew or the pilot's fault as they were making sure that we were safe, and this is completely on EasyJet.' Vicky Walker, who noticed a 'foul smell' prior to landing, said passengers were assured that accommodation, water and food would all be handled by the UK airline. But the 37-year-old from Forfar says she spent the night in the Bulgarian airport. 'We were offered a hotel room, but we had to make our own way there, to then be told we would need to check out of the hotel at 10am,' she said. 'My friend and I didn't have the money to pay for it, so we ended up in the airport with others. We haven't been offered any water or food and have had no information given to us at all. 'Just a horrendous experience. Needless to say, I won't be travelling with EasyJet again.' 'I'm shattered and it just put a total dampener on my holiday.' Another passenger told STV News her family had to book their own accommodation despite EasyJet informing them that the situation was 'under control' and to 'hang tight'. While 'kids slept on the floor', the mum called the airline for the fourth time. She was told that ground staff were 'dealing' with affected passengers; however, there were reportedly no employees in the area. She told STV News: 'We collected bags then made our way through to arrivals which was chaos, there were no staff at all present in the arrivals hall or departures, just a police officer in each who had no information. 'I called EasyJet various times and each time was told to hang tight they were sorting it out and someone would be on their way soon. 'After two hours and no sign of anyone I asked EasyJet if we could book our own hotel, they said it was all under control and if we booked our own they would not reimburse us for it. 'The airport was completely closed and the one vending machine wasn't working. It was hot and there was no access to food or water and still no staff around. Kids sleeping everywhere and all miserable.' Eventually, the family booked accommodation for themselves before heading back to the airport later in the day. The mum added: 'I'm really glad they got us off the plane safely and are sending a new plane but I'm extremely disappointed with how EasyJet has let everyone down. 'Just want to get our little one home it's been a long two days for her.' EasyJet has been contacted for comment. Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
Sky News AU
7 hours ago
- Sky News AU
Third charged in fatal shooting of Sydney grandmother Kim Duncan
A third person has been charged in relation to the fatal shooting of Sydney grandmother Kim Duncan in April. Police allege three men, including Manase Fakahau, 19 and Jesse Evans, 34, approached the southwestern Sydney home of Ms Duncan, 65, about 11pm on Monday, April 14, before several shots were fired in the direction of the house. Ms Duncan was inside the house at the time, as were her 34-year-old son and a 21-year-old woman. She was shot in the leg and died at the scene while bing worked on by paramedics. Her son and the woman were uninjured. Police charged Mr Fakahau and Mr Evans with murder last Wednesday and their matters remain before the courts. At about 9.25am on Wednesday, a 34-year-old man was also arrested and charged with murder. He was refused bail and is scheduled to appear before Parramatta Local Court on Wednesday. As part of the ongoing investigation, strike force detectives searched a Parsons St, Ashcroft residence about 4pm on Tuesday and arrested a 40-year-old man. During the search, police seized 11.3kg of cannabis, $91,600 in cash, 31 mobile phones, a laptop, and a knuckle duster. The man was charged with recklessly dealing with proceeds of crime, supplying a prohibited drug in an indictable but non-commercial quantity, and possessing suspected stolen goods. He was granted conditional bail and is set to appear at Liverpool Local Court on Wednesday, August 23, 2025. Investigations under Strike Force Apslawn are ongoing. More to come Originally published as Third charged in fatal shooting of Sydney grandmother
Perth Now
9 hours ago
- Perth Now
Third charged over grandmother's fatal shooting
A third person has been charged in relation to the fatal shooting of Sydney grandmother Kim Duncan in April. Police allege three men, including Manase Fakahau, 19 and Jesse Evans, 34, approached the southwestern Sydney home of Ms Duncan, 65, about 11pm on Monday, April 14, before several shots were fired in the direction of the house. Ms Duncan was inside the house at the time, as were her 34-year-old son and a 21-year-old woman. She was shot in the leg and died at the scene while bing worked on by paramedics. Her son and the woman were uninjured. Police charged Mr Fakahau and Mr Evans with murder last Wednesday and their matters remain before the courts. At about 9.25am on Wednesday, a 34-year-old man was also arrested and charged with murder. Grandmother Kim Duncan was fatally shot on Monday, April 14. Facebook Credit: Supplied He was refused bail and is scheduled to appear before Parramatta Local Court on Wednesday. As part of the ongoing investigation, strike force detectives searched a Parsons St, Ashcroft residence about 4pm on Tuesday and arrested a 40-year-old man. During the search, police seized 11.3kg of cannabis, $91,600 in cash, 31 mobile phones, a laptop, and a knuckle duster. The man was charged with recklessly dealing with proceeds of crime, supplying a prohibited drug in an indictable but non-commercial quantity, and possessing suspected stolen goods. He was granted conditional bail and is set to appear at Liverpool Local Court on Wednesday, August 23, 2025. Investigations under Strike Force Apslawn are ongoing. More to come
Otago Daily Times
3 days ago
- Business
- Otago Daily Times
Stalwart looks forward to focus on coaching
Shelley Duncan is leaving — but she is going nowhere. Duncan will tomorrow sign off as general manager of the Otago Golf Club after four years in the role. But she will clock in again on Saturday as the guest of honour at the appropriately named "Shelley's Stableford" tournament followed by a farewell function at the clubhouse, and she will be back at Balmacewen on Monday to begin the next stage of her golfing career. Duncan is returning to being a self-employed coach. She will still be based at the Otago club, alongside coaching professionals Mike Henderson and Callum Patrick, and she will continue to run the successful She Loves Golf programme on Tuesday nights and business house golf on Thursdays. "So I'm still doing stuff, but mainly for myself," Duncan said yesterday. "And there will be a lot less paperwork." Duncan has spent nearly 20 years at the Otago club — after starting her apprenticeship at Balmacewen then spending three years at Taieri Lakes — in the roles of coaching professional, director of golf and general manager. Her passion for coaching had simmered in the background while handling managerial duties but was reignited when she started working with a promising junior girl. "I think it's taught me that it would be nice to be able to coach, but actually not have to worry about any of this other stuff. "Just to be able to focus on my coaching and do some more learning ... and the other thing is I'll go and spend some time with other coaches like I did probably 20 years ago, where I just go and sit and observe and watch. Because that's probably the way I learn the best." It was April Fool's Day in 2021 when Duncan became general manager at the Otago club. Covid was no joke, obviously, but it had a silver lining when the club's 150th celebrations were delayed, allowing the new boss to really get her feet under the table. She had a ball at the celebrations, and hosting special guest Clive Brown, the captain of The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews, as well as other prominent faces. "Given that I've been here as sort of a member on and off since 1977, I felt like a big part of it, and it was exciting. "We had our old golf pro come back from Australia, and all sorts of people travelled. It was a lot of fun." Duncan will also treasure memories of a dinner that raised $50,000, driven by former prime minister John Key, a big supporter of the club. Covid, funnily enough, led to surging numbers at many New Zealand golf clubs, though Duncan said there were signs of a slowdown. A general manager role was challenging with the amount of paperwork and compliance, but she treasured the support of the governance at Balmacewen. "One of the best pieces of advice I had was from one of our members, a smart man in business. He said you don't know what you don't know when you take on a new role. "And it's so true. There's all these things that pop up all the time. 'I didn't know' was what I said for probably the first couple of months. And I'd been here forever. "GM in a club environment can be difficult because you have a board of governance, as we have at our club, and you have your staff layered underneath that and then your members as well. "It's just that balance between those dynamics. But I think at Otago we've been very fortunate with the board members that we've had and the member support." As well as the general manager, the Otago club has four greenkeepers, a fulltime chef and bar manager, a part-time administrator and casual staff. Duncan grew up in a house on the sixth fairway and had her first whack at Balmacewen in 1977. She played at the University of Oklahoma and was a touring professional in the United States from 1998 to 2000, a spell that included an appearance at the US Open. Playing as well as coaching more golf lies ahead. "In 20 years, I've probably averaged, I'd say, 15 rounds a year, which is ridiculous. So I am looking forward to getting back to playing some golf. "I was going to go and try and qualify for the US Senior Women's Open. But I got Covid-ed out about four years ago. "There's still a wee flicker in the back of my mind that I'd be quite keen to have a run at that. "All my college mates are doing it. "We'll see. Yeah, it could be quite fun." Drew Butcher is replacing Duncan as Otago Golf Club general manager.
Otago Daily Times
3 days ago
- Sport
- Otago Daily Times
9-year-old to take on world's best juniors
Joanna Ke has come a fair way. The Dunedin 9-year-old is playing golf people double her age could only dream about. She jetted off yesterday — with her parents and her coach, Dunedin professional Shelley Duncan — to play at the world's biggest junior invitational tournament, the Champion of Champions, in Lough Erne, Northern Ireland, from July 29-31. The Columba College pupil booked her spot in the under-9 division at the tournament, featuring 250 junior golfers from 40 countries, after finishing runner-up at an event in Australia last year. She is believed to be the only New Zealand golfer heading to Ireland. "I feel very excited and nervous," Joanna said. "I'm looking forward to the tournaments. I'll just try my best, one shot at a time." Joanna Ke and coach Shelley Duncan put in the hard yards on the practice fairway at Balmacewen. PHOTO: GERARD O'BRIEN The journey does not stop there, though. They will then head to St Andrews — the Scottish resort known as the "home of golf" — where Joanna, who will turn 10 while in Northern Ireland, will play in the St Andrews Junior Ladies' Open next month. It will be a full-circle moment for her coach. Duncan and Joanna get to play a round at the prestigious old course with former Otago Golf Club members Dylan Stock and Henry Hodgson, who have been caddying overseas. "It's quite cool for me," Duncan said. "I taught both of them how to play golf and now Joanna and I are going to play golf with them on the other side of the world at St Andrews." Joanna was born in China. Her family moved to New Zealand a couple of years ago, and landed in Dunedin in April 2023, when her mother contacted Duncan about coaching her daughter. "I had an expectation I was meeting a 13- or 14-year-old ... I looked down at the practice fairway and here's this little 7-year-old dot," Duncan recalled. Joanna, who plays off a 12.9 handicap, first picked up the clubs at the age of 3 and had been working hard with Duncan over the past two years. "Jaw-dropping, from time to time," Duncan said when describing Joanna's skills. "She hits some shots and I'm like, 'How on earth did you just do that?'. "We've worked really hard on keeping it fun. When she's a chatterbox, and she's talking to me, she plays much better golf." And has Joanna enjoyed working with the renowned Dunedin coach? "Yes — of course!" Joanna exclaimed.
