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Jan 26, 2025 | 
abc.net.au | Callum Marshall |Jason Katsaras
Victorians have been warned to prepare for scorching temperatures today as hot, windy, and dry conditions are forecast across the state. Total fire bans are in place for five of the regions to the state's west, with some communities warned to expect maximum temperatures around 45 degrees Celsius. Bureau of Metereology senior forecaster Lincoln Trainor said a front would enter the western parts of Victoria in the early afternoon.
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Jan 14, 2025 | 
abc.net.au | Dave Marchese |Jason Katsaras
Should prisons be more about rehabilitation or punishment? On this episode of the summer hack podcast, we look at a program getting inmates involved in helping injured wildlife and why experts say it could be a game-changer.
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Jan 6, 2025 | 
abc.net.au | Jason Katsaras
A number of recent deaths and injuries from falling tree limbs in Victoria have prompted calls for increased awareness of the dangers they pose. Last week two people were taken to hospital after a large tree branch fell on them near Melbourne's Shrine of Remembrance. In November, a 45-year-old man died and a woman and teenage boy were hospitalised after a branch struck their car while they were attempting to leave a Yarrawonga campsite during a storm.
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Dec 16, 2024 | 
abc.net.au | Jason Katsaras
The family of a 10-year-old-boy who died after being locked in a car boot at Mooroopna, north of Melbourne, on Sunday has described his death as a "tragic end to a game of hide-and-seek". In an online fundraising campaign, the boy's aunty, Lainey Sutton, said his family and friends were utterly devastated. "December 15th will forever be the day that we pause for a moment to remember our inquisitive, car-loving, Minecraft enthusiastic, neurodiverse 10-year-old," the post read.
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Dec 10, 2024 | 
abc.net.au | Jason Katsaras
After a nearly 18-year hiatus, Victoria's historic Mount Buffalo Chalet will be reopened as an outdoor education centre for schools. It comes after the state government struck a 40-year lease deal with private operator, Belgravia Outdoor Education. More than 5,000 students are expected to lodge at the 114-year-old building annually, creating 50 jobs, including traineeships in outdoor education and hospitality.
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Dec 4, 2024 | 
abc.net.au | Rachel Holdsworth |Jason Katsaras |Jess Scully
A 21-year-old Filipino man was not paid for at least 200 hours' worth worth of work before he died, a coronial inquest has heard. Jerwin Royupa arrived in Australia in February 2019 on a 407 training visa, which allows a candidate to participate in workplace-based occupational training activities. Mr Royupa began working for a southern New South Wales winery, but died five weeks later on March 15, 2019 after he allegedly exited a moving vehicle.
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Nov 28, 2024 | 
abc.net.au | Jason Katsaras
Nearly half of Victoria at an increased risk of fire activity this summer, according to a seasonal bushfire outlook from the National Council for Fire and Emergency Services (AFAC). The report said a lack of rainfall across most of western and north-eastern Victoria, parts of greater Melbourne, the Mornington Peninsula and south-west Gippsland had resulted in more potential bushfire fuel and an "increased chance of fires in these areas".
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Nov 22, 2024 | 
abc.net.au | Jason Katsaras
Flies are rarely a welcome guest at a family barbecue, sports ground, or outdoor event, but this spring has seen Victorians take to social media irritated over their abundance. Senior curator of entomology at the Museums Victoria Research Institute, Dr Ken Walker, said it could be directly linked to climate change. "[Flies] go through egg, larvae, pupae, to adult, and that means they can go through the winter during non-feeding stages," he said.
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Nov 18, 2024 | 
abc.net.au | Jason Katsaras
The former mayor of the Wangaratta City Council says local governments should have no part in stamping out the illegal tobacco trade, after revealing his former council spent thousands prosecuting cases against unlawful sellers. Dean Rees retired from council this year and said his council's efforts to curtail the rising presence of illegal tobacco sales were next to fruitless. "We did prosecute at one stage, a number of years ago, and it took six months or more to get the prosecution," he said.
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Nov 5, 2024 | 
abc.net.au | Jason Katsaras
The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) is warning Australians of a "shock to the system" as the temperatures rise across parts of the country. A total fire ban is in place for Victoria's Mallee region, and the BOM is warning of increased fire danger and the first taste of temperatures not seen since last summer. A cool front from Western Australia will ease temperatures in Victoria and NSW from Wednesday evening.
