Latest news with #Goldfields
ABC News
2 days ago
- General
- ABC News
Man charged after allegedly leading police on chase through streets of Kalgoorlie
Police in Western Australia's Goldfields have charged two people following a string of incidents, including a man behind the wheel of an ATV allegedly attempting to ram police cars several times. The incident allegedly began early on Monday, when a 19-year-old woman was stopped by police for allegedly recklessly driving a stolen Toyota LandCruiser through bushland in the northern suburbs of Kalgoorlie, 600km east of Perth. A WA Police spokesperson said that during the woman's arrest, a 29-year-old man driving a Polaris all-terrain vehicle was also directed to stop. Police allege he drove directly at the officer arresting the woman, with both officers jumping out of the way. Police located the ATV a short time later in a laneway in West Lamington, where the 29-year-old allegedly drove it directly at a police car. The ATV rolled, causing significant damage to the police vehicle, but the two officers inside managed to apprehend the man. Police allege the man had methamphetamine in his possession, while a subsequent search of a nearby property uncovered mercury, a stolen trailer and bobcat, and a paintball gun. The West Lamington man has been charged with 12 offences, including assaulting police, driving to escape pursuit by police, possession of a dangerous poison, and unlawful possession of a paintball gun. The 29-year-old man and 19-year-old woman are due to face Kalgoorlie Magistrates Court in June. Police are continuing to look for a trailer with a small crane that was initially sighted being towed on the LandCruiser. The trailer has WA registration KBC 962W, and anyone with any information is urged to contact police. Goldfields-Esperance Acting Inspector Shayne Knox said incidents such as this could have lasting effects on the community. "We will not tolerate this level of reckless behaviour that puts lives at risk and could cause catastrophic outcomes for members of the public and public officers," he said. "The circumstances of these arrests strongly demonstrate the commitment of Kalgoorlie police to relentlessly hunt down and arrest individuals impacting our community."
West Australian
2 days ago
- Sport
- West Australian
Japanese star keen for success at Golden Open
Japanese squash professional Risa Sugimoto is hopeful of going one better against a crack field at this weekend's annual Northern Star Golden Open. Kalgoorlie-Boulder's premier squash tournament this year features players from nine different countries who are chasing $6000 prizemoney in each of the women's and men's divisions. Sugimoto is fresh off an epic final of the South Australian Open in Adelaide, when the 30-year-old was beaten in five games by Hong Kong's Toby Tse (9-11, 11-6, 5-11, 11-8, 11-8). This week Sugimoto has focused on her recovery before her opening round on Friday, when she will have to win two games to make it through to the semifinals. 'In last week's tournament, I was lucky enough to perform better than I previously had been, making it through to the finals,' Sugimoto said. 'This week, I want to work through my fatigue and try to perform through my fatigue to allow me to perform at my best on the first day of the tournament, which is hard with two matches to win.' Sugimoto is hoping to use the Goldfields event to boost her ranking which will assist her chances in getting a call-up for the 2026 Asian Games. 'I am aiming to get my PSA ranking inside the world top-100,' she said. 'Next year I want to qualify for the Asian Games with the target of winning a medal.' The No.4 seed, Sugimoto will take on Ka Huen Leung from Hong Kong in her first round. Sugimoto is enjoying the contrast between Kalgoorlie-Boulder and her hometown Kyoto. 'It's very relaxed, very quiet (in Kalgoorlie-Boulder) and good for recovery,' she said. 'In Kyoto there is so much traffic and people everywhere.' The top-three women's seeds are Helen Tang (China), Akari Midorikawa (Japan), and Wong Po Yui Kirstie (China). Among a strong men's field, Sri Lanka's Ravindu Laksiri is the No.1 seed from Pakistan's Hamza Khan, and the Chinese duo of Wailok To and Ming Hong Tan. Queenslander Brendan MacDonald is the highest-seeded Australian at No.11. The Northern Star Golden Open gets under way on Friday from 10am at Ray Finlayson Sporting Complex and continues on Saturday and Sunday.
ABC News
3 days ago
- Health
- ABC News
Basketball team resurrected to help build kids' dreams in remote WA town of Leonora
Most nights in Leonora are filled with the sound of basketballs hitting the concrete. It's the sound of a small outback town coming back from adversity. About 800 kilometres east of Perth, Leonora has many problems: limited opportunities, crime and high rates of youth suicide. It also has one basketball team, the Blazers. The Blazers were resurrected by Rene Reddingius, affectionately called "Pop" by Leonora children, who high-five him when they see him in the streets. He runs the basketball program with the help of his partner Shelley. Almost a decade ago, six Aboriginal youth took their own lives over an 18-month period in the town of about 1,500 people. So in 2017, Rene — a Pirni man — left his job with the WA Commissioner for Children and Young People to return to his country, the Goldfields, to make a change. "We were the hotspot for the world," Rene said. Rene knew what pain felt like, "having a hell of a time trying to survive 2004", after recovering from an attack. "I survived by coming to my country at my darkest hour," he said. "On my country … contemplating my future, I ended up walking back into camp, and I've become the man that I am today, and I will always walk with strong sense of purpose." And it's that sense of purpose that he wants to help young people on his country to find. Resurrecting the old Blazers team, which he founded in 1991, gives Rene a way to reach them. He says the majority of children in the remote Goldfields town are "at risk", often facing additional socio-economic challenges, but that shouldn't limit or determine what they can achieve. Rene says there's no "miracle work', it's just about giving children the skills, strength and support to make the best choices for themselves. "You've got to do the actions that will make the difference, the choices at the crossroads," he said. "It's: 'Don't jump in that stolen car, driven by your cousin'. It's: 'Don't take that substance that's been offered at the party by your boyfriend.'" The basketball program has given a new direction to the lives of many Leonora children, such as captain Amber Thomas. She lived in the neighbouring ghost town of Gwalia and used to walk one hour into town for "muck-up games" when the program restarted. Amber had a full house where she was "like a big sister to her big sisters," and a full head. "Pop" Rene and the Blazers became her second family. "He's my safe space when I don't have a safe space," Amber said. On the basketball court she stopped saying "I can't do it" and, now a youth worker, she's guiding other teens, just a little younger than her. "Push through and see how far you can get," she said. Blazers look up to Amber and the other captain, McKye Blake, who's also her partner. "When the kids think about what a healthy relationship looks, they think like Amber and McKye," she smiles. McKye used to get in trouble, but staying in the team helped him stay in school and he's now an apprentice boilermaker. Being a role model "puts a lot of pressure" on McKye, who has to "act like a leader". But basketball has taught him pressure can shape character. "Going into these areas we don't feel comfortable. Like, going through, helps you become better," McKye said. The Blazers' training starts without Rene, with the children taking it upon themselves to lead the warm-up session. Anyone who's late, including Rene himself, runs laps. It's about accountability but also hard work. "If you have the bar low, people can fall over it." Every Blazer player is expected to set and achieve goals, cheered on, and held accountable, by the entire team. It's something Leonora mother Naomi Sprigg dos Santos appreciates. "I think it's vital for children who come from trauma and often times dysfunction to know that life can be predictable and to have a routine," she said. "Rene offers that in the program. There is a predictability about his training, there's a predictability about his expectations." Ms Sprigg dos Santos thinks relationships play a huge part in the success he's having. For Rene, the "life-skill program" must try to engage families, and the whole community. "They have shared memories, and instead of dropping a kid off at a program, you can go and do stuff with them," he said. Wongai grandmother Samantha Banks is an ex-basketball player and current supporter, touring with the team when she can to see her grandchildren playing. "It keeps us all together, me, the kids," she said. "My nana comes and watches me play, cheers me on and makes me confident," Aliahky smiles shyly. Ms Banks said basketball was teaching her grandchildren how to want to be on time, organised, but, most importantly, on the right path. "He can take his little anger or whatever on the courts," she said. It is one positive message, reinforced on the court, at school, and at home, that Rene wants children to internalise. The Blazers have been touring the state. Rene says they are big opportunities for small-town children, and their peers who have fallen through the cracks are taking notice. But if the basketball program is taking them places, it's because it's a grassroots movement. Rene's father, who's also called Rene, but is better known as "Sir", taught four generations of Leonora youth. "They respond to you as the relationship you've built," he says. Families, the shire CEO and the school principal say having familiarity and continuity makes the program more successful than anything that could be offered by a visiting service. Choosing to return to his home town and stay, Rene has helped it to bounce back. Even if he decides to leave, the once under-confident Amber is ready to step up. "My dreams and hopes for Blazers is, let me just say, me working for them, being a big boss of Blazers," she smiled. "One day, I will get there."
The Independent
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Watch: Australian MP bows out with ‘shoey' in parliament
Outgoing Western Australian MP Kyle McGinn ended his valedictory speech with a "shoey"—drinking a beer from his own shoe. Before doing so, he told the chamber: 'I thought so long and hard about how I would finish this speech and my constituents in the Goldfields I think will be particularly appreciative.' McGinn said the act reflected how he was known among constituents and was his way of marking the end of his time in office on Thursday (23 May). The "shoey" is a well-known Australian celebration, popularised internationally by figures like Formula 1 driver Daniel Ricciardo.
ABC News
4 days ago
- Business
- ABC News
Shire of Coolgardie angers mining industry with 97 per cent rates hike
A cash-strapped regional shire in Western Australia's Goldfields is pushing on with plans to hike mining rates despite significant public backlash. The move has drawn the ire of industry titans in Perth and local prospectors. The Shire of Coolgardie, which was founded on the discovery of gold in 1892, has taken drastic steps since March when it revealed it was facing a $6.5 million budget deficit. The local government, colloquially known as "the mother of the Goldfields", was already dealing with an ongoing investigation into former CEO James Trail when it this month proposed raising mining rates by 119 per cent. The plan to increase the rate in the dollar for mining rates from 0.23667 to 0.52030 would result in increases for all operating mining companies and tenements within the shire. The proposal attracted 21 submissions during public consultation, with a further 179 submissions lodged in a petition. Objections flowed from major employers in the Goldfields, including companies controlled by mining magnates Andrew Forrest and Chris Ellison, and powerful lobby groups such as the Association of Mining and Exploration Companies (AMEC). At Tuesday's ordinary council meeting in Coolgardie, councillors voted in favour of a slightly reduced increase in the rate in the dollar of 0.46827. It equated to a 97 per cent increase in mining rates. Councillors also agreed to provide a 30 per cent concession for prospectors and a 25 per cent concession for exploration companies, reducing forecast rates revenue by $481,478. The shire has forecast rates revenue of $20.57 million in 2025-26, up $7.86 million from the $12.71 million forecast in 2024-25. Shire of Coolgardie president Mal Cullen had defended the proposed increase, telling the ABC the additional income would help cover the cost of a $10.4 million capital works program to repair roads damaged by increased heavy vehicle movements and mining activity in the past three years. "The reasoning behind the proposed increase is to maintain infrastructure in the shire, such as the road network," he said. "The cost of operation of local government these days is significant." Deputy shire president Tracey Rathbone said the shire had done its best under the circumstances, telling the packed public gallery at Tuesday's meeting that "voices have been heard". "It has not been an easy budget to work through," she said. The angry response to the proposed hike was reflected by the Eastern Goldfields Prospectors Association, which took out a full-page newspaper advertisement in Tuesday's edition of the Kalgoorlie Miner. The advertisement depicted the shire as the grim reaper and urged ratepayers to "stand with us", calling for the appointment of administrators and for Local Government Minister Hannah Beazley to intervene "before mining is destroyed". "We're upset, our members are ropeable they've been targeted to get the shire out of trouble," president Cranston Edwards said. "They just go to the mining industry for a quick fix, it's a like a drug addict … we've been attacked." Prospector Ferdinand Gere said the proposed rates hike was unrealistic and scandalous. Privately-owned gold miner, Corinthian Mining, said if approved, the rates bill on its tenements would jump nearly $300,000 a year to $511,534. The shire disputed that figure. Corinthian Mining managing director Noel Wemyss said it risked Coolgardie's reputation as a stable place to invest. Ms Beazley has been contacted for comment. Mr Ellison's Mineral Resources, which placed its Bald Hill mine near Kambalda into care and maintenance last year, has been working closely with the Shire of Coolgardie on plans to upgrade the Kambalda Airport. It said the proposed increases differed markedly from neighbouring local governments with no evidence-based rationale to justify the hike. In response to a similar comment during the council meeting's public question time, shire president Mal Cullen said each shire had different budget considerations to work through when drafting rate increases. Mineral Resources manager of land access and tenure, Michael Bycroft, said it would result in a $400,000 increase in rates, describing the proposed hike as "unfair and inequitable". Mr Forrest's Wyloo Metals, which closed its Kambalda nickel mines last year, wrote in its public submission to the shire that its rates bill would increase from $725,471 to $1.74 million as a result of the proposed hike. Wyloo's Kambalda asset president, Zoran Seat, noted the financial impact of the shire's decision to build a 328-bed workers camp in Kambalda, known as Bluebush Village. He said multi-million dollar losses from the effectively failed investment by the shire had directly contributed to its deficit. "We have serious concerns that the proposed rate hike is being implemented to raise funds to address the shortfall in finances the shire is facing, rather than as part of a fair or sustainable fiscal strategy," Mr Seat wrote. ASX-listed exploration company WIN Metals said its rates bill would jump from $299,000 a year to $511,000, which it described as "simply ridiculous". "The shire and its financial issues are entirely of its own creation," WIN Metals managing director Steve Norregaard said. A submission from AMEC chief executive Warren Pearce called it an "extraordinary leap", saying he was not unsympathetic to the shire's financial woes but "exorbitant rates" were not the solution. Mining giant Rio Tinto, via its general manager of technical services for lithium, Leigh Slomp, said mining growth was fragile. He pointed to a recent downturn in nickel and lithium as examples. "It threatens to severely undermine confidence in Coolgardie as a mining-friendly shire and ultimately reduce long-term revenue as companies reassess the attractiveness of operating in Coolgardie and its reputation as a stable place to invest," he said. Gold miner Evolution Mining, which this year completed a $228 million expansion of its Mungari operations, estimated the rates on its mining tenements would increase by $1.6 million to $2.8 million. Evolution Mining also owns the 100-bed Kurrajong Village in Coolgardie, with the company calculating the rates for the workforce accommodation would increase by $784,237 to $1.43 million. Mungari general manager Scott Barber said the increases would have lasting and long-term repercussions, adding the company would be asking the local government minister to intervene. ASX-listed Minerals 260 in January paid $166.5 million to acquire the Bullabulling gold project near Coolgardie. It plans to enter production in 2028 with a mine employing about 350 workers. Minerals 260 managing director Luke McFadyen said the proposed rates hike would deter investment in the region, reduce exploration activity and discourage the key industry which underpinned the local economy.
