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The weather's so calm here in Brisbane this morning, it would be easy to ignore what's going on up north. But Cyclone Debbie is a doozie and will cause damage to crops and property. Let's hope there's no loss of life when the system crosses the coast tomorrow morning. This tracking map is an easy way to visualise what Debbie is expected to do next.
Don't judge me, but I have been sucked into the Married at First Sight vortex. I know it's not for us to say what's right for other people, but how on earth did both Susan and Nadia get it so wrong last night? Here's what you need to know.
1. Cyclone Debbie is the real deal
The numbers tell the story. Bowen has a population of 10,000 but there's only room for 800 in the town's cyclone shelter. With Cyclone Debbie expected to cross the coast tomorrow morning as a severe category 4 system, time is running out for people to evacuate. Flights have been cancelled and schools closed. You can listen to ABC North Queensland's live rolling coverage here.
2. Raw sewage pours into the Brisbane River
Reader Harry Audus correctly pointed out that I mixed up my sewage with mysewerage last week in The Gateway. There's no mistaking it this time. The raw stuff, untreated sewage, flowed into the Brisbane River on Friday night at Toowong, Lytton and Eagle Farm. As much as 5000 litres per second for two hours. State government experts will this morning inspect the Eagle Farm pumping station believed to be the source of the problem. The question is: how often has this been occurring?
3. Sleeping Trad inspires Premier to make changes
We love to bag politicians for the money they earn and the perks they enjoy but do you really want a job that involves debating complex legislation until 3am and then attempting to drive home safely? Last week, Deputy Premier Jackie Trad fell asleep during a late-night debate. Now Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has told The Courier-Mail she wants Parliament to adopt more family-friendly working hours. Opposition leader Tim Nicholls says Ms Palaszczuk made the same promise as recently as December. What neither side seems keen on is random breath-testing for MPs, asthreatened by another Labor premier.
4. 'It's only sexual assault if you scream'
It's easy to criticise a court verdict or sentence from the sidelines. And, as I've said previously, you can't properly judge a case unless you've seen and heard all the evidence. But on the surface, this is hard to fathom. A judge in Italy has acquitted a man of a sexual assault charge because the woman did not scream . She said "stop it" and "enough" but did not cry out or call for help. Italy's justice minister has ordered an investigation into the acquittal.
5. How four children saved six lives
Just as emotion-wrenching is this story about four children from Chambers Flat in Logan and how they've earned themselves the Star of Courage bravery award. It all began when mum Rachel's ex-husband Daryl Fields turned up unannounced and armed. What the four oldest children did next takes courage to a whole new level.
Also catching my eye ...
Think you know Pauline Hanson's supporter base? Think again, writes David Marr. In this extract from his new Quarterly Essay, Marr says One Nation voters are "richer, more urban and more liberal than you might expect". Speaking of Hanson, while most of the recent immunisation debate has focused on young children, this piece in The Conversation reveals that most unvaccinated Australians - a whopping 3.8 million of them - are adults. Only a fraction (8 per cent) are children. And it's putting us all at risk.
I've only ever braved the Boxing Day sales once. It's not a word of a lie to say that the human lava flow pouring from those escalators scared me. So this video from Hong Kong plays right into that fear. Here's what happens when the up escalator starts going down.
What's coming up?
- The state remains on cyclone watch as evacuation orders roll out and damaging winds hit the shore
- The woman charged with the murder of her mother at The Gap last year is mentioned in court
- A Federal Court Justice decides whether to issue an arrest warrant for Clive Mensink, the nephew of Clive Palmer
And finally ...
What's with this Chelmer road sign? I noticed it for the first time yesterday. Did someone accidentally apply the Oxley stickers where Corinda was meant to go? Twitter went slightly nuts when I posted the photo. Local councillor @CrNicJ was the first to comment: "Looks new. Council do have trouble getting things done properly here though". @DavidTopp responded: "It's been that way for decades". @PaulTavatgisjumped in: "This has annoyed me forever. How much can we chip in to fix it?" And from@TheOtherTara: "There has to be a reason. Has to. Please let there be a reason". Perhaps there is a simple explanation. If there is, we need it. Now. Emailspencer.howson@fairfaxmedia.com.au or find me @SpencerHowson on Twitter.
