Georgia Loney

6 days ago | abc.net.au | Brooke Tindall |Georgia Loney

According to his mum, 12-year-old Dustin Neilsen is "just a normal bush kid" who likes to be outside with his pet dogs, build with Lego and play his electric guitar. This year he should have started year 7 at boarding school, but his family has had difficulty finding one that will accommodate his needs. Dustin has autism and despite trying to coordinate a plan with schools and therapists, his parents have been turned down by two schools and told by another to wait 12 months.

2 weeks ago | abc.net.au | Chloe Chomicki |Georgia Loney

An investigation into the sexual assault of a Townsville University Hospital nurse has found some clinical staff view unsafe patient behaviours as "just part of the job". When the nurse was assaulted by a patient, who was known for "verbal and physical aggression", there was no clear procedure for staff to follow. The health service has agreed to update procedures for line managers who are notified of sexual assault and make training mandatory service-wide.

2 weeks ago | abc.net.au | Georgia Loney |Meghan Dansie

North Queensland towns say their economic future is hanging in the balance after further cost blowouts to the proposed $13.9 billion CopperString 2032 transmission line. The new LNP government on Tuesday looked to reorder the construction plan for the 1,100-kilometre high voltage powerline by building the Hughenden to Townsville stage first to recoup costs sooner. The government said it would seek private funding to continue the line through to Mount Isa.

2 weeks ago | abc.net.au | Emily Dobson |Georgia Loney |Zara Margolis

The cost of Queensland’s CopperString transmission line project has blown out to almost $14 billion – four times what the state government will spend on the Olympics and Paralympics. Treasurer and Energy Minister David Janetzki is expected to reveal the massive cost increase in a major speech on Tuesday after a review into the high voltage network project. It is a significant increase from the $1.8 billion slated when the project was first announced in 2020.

2 weeks ago | abc.net.au | Georgia Loney

Townsville has received 2,419.8mm of rain already this year, breaking a 25-year rainfall record. The wet season has caused millions of dollars in damage to the city. Isolated falls of up to 100mm are possible for the remainder of today, before drier weather arrives next week. Townsville, Australia's largest northern city, has already recorded its wettest year on record, just three months and five days into 2025.