Latest news with #FraserCoast
ABC News
4 days ago
- ABC News
Attorney-General appeals 'plainly unjust' sentence for teen who caused triple fatal crash
The Attorney-General has appealed the sentence handed to a teenager who caused a triple fatal crash on the Fraser Coast, arguing it should have been considered the "worst category" of offending. Last year, a 14-year-old boy, who legally cannot be identified, pleaded guilty to several charges including dangerous operation of a vehicle causing three deaths and grievous bodily harm while excessively speeding. The teenager was sentenced to six years in detention and was ordered to serve 60 per cent of that in custody. During his sentencing, the court heard the then 13-year-old stole a car from Maryborough and drove it dangerously and at high speed on roads between there and Hervey Bay in April 2023. While in Maryborough, he caused a three-car collision, which killed Michale Chandler, 29, Kelsie Davies, 17, and Sheree Robertson, 52. A 23-year-old woman was also seriously injured in the collision. Earlier this year, Attorney-General Deb Frecklington announced the government would appeal the sentence on the legal ground it was manifestly inadequate. On Thursday, Crown Prosecutor Chris Cook argued in the Court of Appeal on behalf of the Attorney-General, that the sentencing judge should have determined this case of dangerous operation of a motor vehicle as "the worst category of the offence". "The only appropriate penalty to impose … was the maximum penalty of seven years detention," he said. Mr Cook told the court the six-year penalty was "unreasonable" and "plainly unjust", and said it should be increased given the teenager's conduct was "so grievous". "The sentence imposed … does not reflect the enormity and the seriousness of the offending," he said. At the time of his sentencing, a Childrens Court judge accepted the offences were "egregious" but had to consider a range of mitigating factors under youth justice legislation when determining his punishment. This included his young age, early guilty plea, lack of criminal history, disadvantaged childhood, and his rehabilitation prospects. Mr Cook told the court this was a case "where the mitigating factors shouldn't be reducing the maximum penalty". "[The sentencing judges] favoured the mitigating approach rather than the community deterrent approach, which is a double edge sword," he said. The teenager's lawyer Ed Whitton told the court it could not be said the sentencing judge did not have "proper regard to the seriousness of the offending". "That was front and centre of his honour's consideration," he said. Mr Whitton told the court it was a "difficult exercise" of sentencing discretion, but submitted it was "appropriately undertaken". "It is not a lenient sentence by any stretch of the imagination," he said. "Especially when recording a conviction was also factored into that." The court heard the teenager was due to be released in December next year and his community supervision order would expire in 2029. Three Court of Appeal judges have reserved their decision.
ABC News
08-07-2025
- Business
- ABC News
Applications open for 300 new train manufacturing jobs on the Fraser Coast
Manufacturing powerhouse Downer has started recruiting workers to deliver the next generation of Queensland's trains, but employees facing redundancies at the company's nearby site have been told there is no guarantee they will secure a position. The factory being constructed at Torbanlea on the Fraser Coast is expected to produce 65 locomotives between 2027 and 2032, in time for the Brisbane Olympic Games. The state government selected Downer to build the new fleet and today the company opened applications for 300 jobs. But more than 120 Downer employees facing an uncertain future have been told they cannot count on their applications being successful. The workers from the company's nearby Maryborough facility were warned of possible redundancies in May due to a "drop in expected work volume". Later that month Manufacturing Minister Dale Last said the workers facing job losses would be prioritised for employment at the new Torbanlea site. But on Tuesday he said those workers had been informed about the new jobs "a couple of weeks ago" but would have to "go through the same selection process as everyone else does". Mr Last could not confirm whether the Maryborough employees had yet faced job cuts. "The jobs at the Maryborough Service Delivery Centre were the subject of a private contract between Downer and industry, but having said that, those affected workers have been given a couple of weeks to apply and express their interest for these [Torbanlea] jobs going forward." Mr Last said interviews for the jobs would take place this year and that successful applicants would to start work early next year. The jobs on offer at the new site include 200 trade roles, including mechanical and electrical trades, fabricators and test technicians, as well as 100 white-collar roles. Downer had been encouraged to complete the recruitment process as soon as possible, to minimise the time that any staff affected by the job cuts would be out of work. "Certainly that's a message that we've been portraying to Downer, that time is of the essence," Mr Last said. "If they can reduce that time-frame between their job loss at Maryborough and the commencement of their employment [at Torbanlea], then that would certainly be helpful for everyone." Downer did not comment on the status of jobs at its Maryborough facility but a spokesperson said in a statement that the group welcomed the state government's assistance with the recruitment drive. "Downer and the Queensland government are committed to supporting the local industry and communities through the delivery of this state-shaping project," the statement said. ALP shadow minister for manufacturing Tom Smith said the 300 roles at the Torbanlea facility would not make up for lost jobs in Maryborough. "This suggestion that they'll open expressions of interest for the 122 workers … who have their livelihoods on the line does not solve the problem of job losses in Maryborough," he said. The Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union declined the ABC's request for comment.
ABC News
26-06-2025
- Health
- ABC News
Hospital study finds link between La Niña events and spread of deadly Vibrio vulnificus infection
Anamika Ganju had not seen anything like it in more than 20 years as an intensive care clinician. Two men in three days had presented to the emergency department with baffling similarities. Both men, aged around 80, had cuts that had rapidly progressed to grotesque infections, with their skin sloughing away to reveal gaping wounds. Both had been crabbing in the muddy estuaries of rivers swollen by floodwater that had devastated the Wide Bay region just weeks before. And to the despair of Dr Ganju and her colleagues, both men were unresponsive to the standard antibiotics used to treat bacterial infections. "It is pretty devastating," Dr Ganju said. "You're like, 'Why is this patient so sick? What am I missing? He shouldn't be so sick … with [the] signs and symptoms I'm seeing, they should start getting better." Analysis of decaying tissue from one of the patients in March 2022 showed it was teeming with Vibrio vulnificus — a flesh-eating bacteria rare enough in the tropical north of Queensland, but almost unheard of in the Fraser Coast region about three hours' drive north of Brisbane. Vibrio vulnificus was known to thrive on the additional nutrients brought by floodwaters, but Dr Ganju said the scarcity of the infection in the hospital's sub-tropical location meant it was not initially considered a likely diagnosis. "To be honest, in my career — I've been doing this for 25 years — I had not seen a Vibrio [case] before this," Dr Ganju said. The medical team pivoted to use ciprofloxacin, an antibiotic known to target Vibrio vulnificus, and both patients underwent operations to remove and replace the decaying flesh. Three more fishermen presented to the hospital with bacterial infections over the next six months and, by then, the team was on high alert. Source: Queensland Health "We would always ask whether there was exposure to … marine water or were they in a boat, and if we got that history we would start the ciprofloxacin [immediately]," Dr Ganju said. More than one in four patients can die once the infection takes hold, but all five men survived. The third patient, Hervey Bay fisherman Rodney Drier, required 18 operations and after contracting a fungal infection had his left hand amputated. He rues the slip of a knife while cutting up a catfish to use as crab bait which had life-changing consequences. "It ruined my lifestyle … took my life away from me," the disability pensioner said. Once all patients were discharged in 2022, Dr Ganju and her colleagues recorded their experience in a clinical case report published today in the Rural and Remote Health Journal. By analysing the frequency of Vibrio vulnificus infections in Queensland, lead author and senior pharmacist Daniel Bermingham found spikes of infections over the past 25 years corresponded with La Niña weather events. While there were only 86 cases of Vibrio vulnificus infections in Queensland between 1998 and 2023, the number of cases increased nearly fivefold during a La Niña event. With carbon emissions known to contribute to more frequent and extreme La Niña events, Mr Bermingham said his research showed climate change increased the risk of Vibrio vulnificus infections. The researchers hope the findings will result in a public awareness campaign of the potentially fatal risks and best practice if the infection is acquired. "The first aid care that you can provide to yourself … is to get the first aid kit out, give [the wound] a good wash and make sure that you can clean the wound from injury," Mr Bermingham said. "Get some chlorhexidine or some betadine and put it onto the actual wound and go see the GP or ED if it does tend to get worse." Allen Cheng, the director of Monash Infectious Diseases at Monash Health in Victoria, was not involved in the clinical case report and does not believe "major changes" to public health messaging are warranted. However, he agreed the epidemiology, or distribution, of Vibrio vulnificus was becoming more common in subtropical regions due to global warming. "The case report … is at least a very good reminder to physicians that this [infection] does exist and we may be seeing changes in the epidemiology." In a statement, Queensland Health says the department issues public health advice about the risks of exposure to floodwaters, particularly around severe weather events. The Queensland Health guidelines prescribing antibiotics in cases of severe infections were last reviewed in 2024, the spokesperson said. The guidelines now advise using ciprofloxacin — the antibiotic targeting Vibrio vulnificus — if the patient is exposed to water, including in subtropical regions like Hervey Bay. As he tends to his orchids, Mr Drier is emphatic that there needs to be improved public awareness of the infection. "Especially when you see people walking in floodwaters in the streets," he said. "I think, 'You stupid fools, if only you knew'. One scratch and you've got a bug."
News.com.au
20-06-2025
- General
- News.com.au
Native title group condemns ‘anti-social' behaviour after residents chased away from beach
An Indigenous group holding exclusive native title to a strip of land near a Queensland beach has assured locals that the public may use the land, despite claims that residents have been chased away and made to feel unsafe while attempting to cross the area. The long-running stoush over access to a Burrum Heads beach, near Hervey Bay, was addressed at a community meeting held last month. In 2019, the Butchulla people were granted almost 100,000 hectares of native title land on the Fraser Coast in 2019, which includes 17,000 hectares of exclusive use. Part of the exclusive use land includes a strip of 20-metre wide foreshore in front of Burrum Heads residents' homes. In 2022, a small group of Butchulla people established a camp near the idyllic beach and were chasing away residents. This came despite criticism from the Butchulla Native Title Aboriginal Corporation (BNTAC), which insisted there was a way for 'all to enjoy this beautiful country'. Following the community meeting held at Burrum Heads Community Hall on May 14, 2025, the BNTAC released a statement on Wednesday reaffirming its position. 'We understand the concerns raised at the meeting regarding the actions taken over the last four years to prevent access to the beach at Burrum Heads through an area of exclusive possession of native title land,' the statement said. 'Our position has always been, and continues to be, that the Butchulla people do not seek to prevent the public from accessing public access routes to the beach at Burrum Heads. 'Butchulla people are collectively responsible for our land and all decisions about how land is to be used. 'No one native title holder is able to make final decisions about how the land is to be used or to prevent people from accessing the land. 'All decisions about how land is used must be made in accordance with Butchulla traditional decision-making processes.' BNTAC urged police to 'take action and protect the Burrum Heads community'. 'We understand that the public have made several complaints to the Queensland Police Service over the past four years to report incidents that have occurred while attempting to access the beach at Burrum Heads through an area of exclusive possession of native title land,' the statement said. 'Our position has always been, and continues to be, that the Butchulla People's exclusive possession does not prevent the police from exercising their powers to respond to anti-social incidents and take appropriate action where people are fearful, in peril, or have made a complaint. 'We call upon the police to use the enforcement powers at their disposal to maintain community safety for Burrum Heads residents. 'We are dedicated to working together with the people of Burrum Heads to achieve a respectful, sensitive, and lasting resolution to the concerns that have been raised. 'The Butchulla Court Determination was brought on behalf of all Butchulla People, not one or a few Butchulla persons.' The statement added that 'one of the aspects of Butchulla Peoples' native title is the right of exclusive possession'. 'Butchulla People have the right to exclusive possession and use of land and waters where it has been determined our native title rights and interests are recognised under our traditional laws and customs,' it said. 'However, the right of exclusive possession is not absolute and it is subject to laws of the State of Queensland. 'Specifically, the State of Queensland passed legislation in 1993 to confirm existing public rights of access to beaches and these are capable of being recognised as an 'interest' for the purposes of our determination. 'Butchulla People do not have the right to restrict such interests, and actions to do so are outside Queensland law as well as our traditional laws and customs.' Fraser Coast Councillor Michelle Byrne said in a statement to The Courier-Mail on Wednesday that council's powers were limited but it was engaging with 'all parties to try and find a positive resolution to the concerns of residents'. 'Council appreciates the efforts of BNTAC and the State Government, who hold the tenure of the land, and is actively working with both parties within the limits of our responsibilities for the land parcels in question,' she said. Former federal MP Keith Pitt previously argued that the best solution for the conflict was for the small stretch near the beach to be removed from the exclusive use ruling. Mr Pitt told The Daily Mail in 2023 that his office had been inundated by 'concerned Burrum Heads residents' who 'contacted my office about an area of land under native title'. 'It has resulted in restricted access to the beach and older constituents being chased off the beach,' he said. 'Every Australian is expected to abide by Australian laws and regulations, without exception.'
ABC News
15-05-2025
- General
- ABC News
With an uncertain future of native logging in Queensland, a forest home to endangered greater gliders could be cut down
Without seeing them fly, you'd be forgiven for confusing a greater glider with a possum. In the dark, the cat-sized marsupial uses webbing between its limbs to sail silently from gum to gum, dropping its metre long tail like a rudder just before impact. The endangered species sleeps during the day and eats leaves at night, almost never touching the ground. They're incredibly hard to find, without the right technique. Three hours north of Brisbane, a group of locals have found a community of them living in the St Mary State Forest, near the Fraser Coast town of Tiaro. At night they go spotlighting, holding huge torches at eye level to look for the glider's eye-shine in the canopy. The reflection looks like two stars peeking through the foliage, but with binoculars the animal takes shape. With big ears, a pink nose, tiny hands and an absurdly long and fluffy tail, gliders will stare back at you as long as the spotlight shines on them. Found in Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and the ACT, southern and central greater gliders were upgraded from vulnerable to endangered in 2022, due to a 50 per cent population drop over 21 years. The hollows of gum trees they live in take between 150 and 300 years to develop. Logging, clearing for agriculture and bushfires have ravaged their habitat. Tina Raveneau, who discovered the group in the St Mary State Forest, has fallen in love. "I can recognise their little faces and start to realise there's so many different ones [with] different colouring," she says. But despite protections, Ms Raveneau is worried the forest these gliders call home will soon be logged. Three things dominate the land around Tiaro — paddocks, pine plantations and state forest. In 1999, a deal was struck between government, conservationists and the timber industry to end logging in all state forests south of Gladstone by the end of 2024 in a decision known as the South-East Queensland Forest Agreement (SEQFA). In 2019, the Palaszczuk government redrew the area, meaning logging was only ceased in state forests south of Noosa. The practice was allowed to continue in the Eastern Hardwoods — which includes forest around Tiaro — for "at least another two years". Logging licenses in the Western Hardwoods, further inland, will continue through to at least 2034. Dr Tyron Venn, an expert in forestry and a natural resource economist, says by 2019 it was clear elements of the SEQFA deal had not been met. He says a commitment to develop long rotation plantation hardwood to replace the output from the native forest industry never got off the ground. "Only a fraction of those plantations were established and many of those have already been cleared for other land use," Dr Venn says. He says the government also promised support for private native forestry but did not deliver. "As a result, in the 2020s we are producing as much timber as we were in the 1990s," he says. "We've had no increase in timber production, but our population has grown a whopping 64 per cent." That shortfall is made up by imported timber, often from places with less regulation, he says. "This is bad for global climate and biodiversity conservation outcomes," he says. Logging licenses in the Wide Bay Burnett end in 2026, but the Queensland government is yet to determine whether the practice will continue. A statement from the Department of Primary Industries (DPI), who are responsible for logging in state forests, says the government's new plan for the use of state forests will be released later this year. The regulations Dr Venn believes make Queensland timber sustainable, are laid out in the state's native timber production code of practice. When it comes to greater gliders, loggers are duty bound to protect the species by leaving six "habitat trees" per hectare, as well as two "recruitment trees" for future habitat. If there aren't enough habitat trees, more recruitment trees are left standing. Trees that should be left behind are marked with a spray-painted H. A DPI spokesperson says within their habitat range "timber harvesting is authorised on the basis that gliders may be present anywhere at any time". Research scientist Dr Norman Patrick says these measures are "not good enough". He says studies show 85 per cent of the basal area — essentially the total amount of trees — needs to remain for gliders to thrive and 20 per cent of that prime habitat is in state forests. "Areas that are degraded will likely see localised extinctions," he says. Nicky Moffat from the Queensland Conservation Council says after more than a century of logging, many trees that could have become gnarled and hollowed are not there anymore. "Some of these trees with an H on it, they're actually a really young tree, and they've got no hollow," she says. That impact can be seen on the eastern side of Tiaro in the Bauple State Forest, where locals say they have also seen greater gliders. Large swathes of Bauple State Forest have been logged within the past year. At one site, an area on the side of the road is cleared and covered in bark — a landing area where the harvested trees were left to dry out. While there are habitat trees marked with yellow Hs, most of the remaining trees are young and straight. Weeds and thick undergrowth cover the ground. Yellow Hs have started to appear on trunks in the St Mary State Forest where Tina Raveneau spotted the gliders. "My heart sank," she says. Dr Venn argues any short term damage for local species populations must be thought of in the grand scheme of conservation efforts globally. "We really need to be thinking about the broad landscape level, not simply the site level at which the harvesting takes place," he says. He says selective native logging done right can trap carbon, supply Australia with needed building supplies and create jobs. Ms Moffat says the 1999 agreement needs to be honoured. "A deal is a deal and we hope the Crisafulli government will honour that and protect these forests," she says. "At the moment, signs are not great. They are rushing through a timber action plan and they are planning on getting that out in October but we haven't had any consultation so far and we're not seeing very encouraging signs. "We're worried it's going to be a smash and grab before these licenses end." The Crisafulli government's roundtable for the Queensland Future Timber Plan, made up of industry stakeholders, met for the first time yesterday. "Investment security for both the plantation softwood and native forestry sectors will be critical to bolster growing, harvesting and processing activities across the supply chain," a statement read.
