TRANSCRIPT:
- A handful of Queensland homes still without power after wild weather;
- A toddler dies after being hit by a ute in a New South Wales holiday park;
- Pro-Palestinian protesters rally at the national road cycling championships.
Just 1500 homes remain without power in south-east Queensland after a series of severe storms forced almost 130,000 properties off the grid.
Damage assessments meanwhile are continuing, with the State Emergency Service confirming 10 homes have been completely destroyed.
Just over 59,000 applications for state disaster grants have been paid out so far to help in the recovery, with $5 million processed in the last 24 hours alone after extra public servants were hired to avoid a backlog.
He says that's not all the government is doing.
"The Housing Department will continue to support people who need assistance with temporary accommodation while they get their homes repairs. But it's true, recovering from this disaster, particularly when it comes to these severely damaged or destroyed households, that's going to take years."
Emergency Services Management Minister Murray Watt says the federal government will continue to do all it can to support those recovery efforts.
He has announced a new round of federal financial assistance for those whose homes have been damaged or jobs affected by the natural disaster.
"These are two significant events. They will take time to recover. But the Albanese and Miles governments are working very closely together, we're really standing by Queenslanders and we want to see this state get back to what it does best."
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A one year old boy has died after being hit by a car near the New South Wales central west town of Dubbo.
The toddler was critically injured when he was struck by a ute at a holiday park in Mumbil, about 75 kilometres southeast of Dubbo.
He died in the Children's Hospital at Westmead in Sydney after being airlifted in a critical condition.
Police say their inquiries into the circumstances of the boy's death continue.
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Nationals leader David Littleproud has called on the consumer watchdog to launch an inquiry into the cost of fruit and vegetables at major supermarkets.
Woolworths says prices of fruit and vegetables in stores are determined by what's paid to farmers for each variety of food - and that producers received a fair amount.
A Senate inquiry was launched in December to examine supermarket price setting, but it's not set to hold hearings until February.
David Littleproud has told Channel 9 there are price disparities that need to be closely examined by the ACCC, not politicians.
"We saw it with the beef prices where we saw a 60 70 percent reduction in the farm gate (price) but only 8 percent reduction at the checkout, and the same is happening with fruit and veg. Melon producers getting paid a $1.50 a kilogram, yet they're (supermarkets) charging over $5. So the markup is extraordinary."
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Boeing says it supports a decision by federal aviation authorities in the US to ground their fleet of 737 Max planes, after a piece of the cabin door and window appeared to blow out on an Alaska Airlines flight.
The Federal Aviation Administration has ordered the safety inspection of an unspecified number of Boeing 737 MAX 9 jets before they are allowed to fly again.
Boeing has released a statement saying safety is its top priority, and they're already cooperating with the regulator's investigation.
Aviation expert John Strickland says everyone wants to know why this incident happened.
"It's far too early to tell why this piece of fuselage structure became detached. I think it is of note that the aircraft was a very new aircraft, only produced and entered service a couple of months ago in November 2023. Of course, we would not expect to see such an event on any aircraft, no matter what age in service, with a good maintenance regime, so I think it is of particular relevance that this was a very new aircraft."
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Russian missiles have killed eleven people in Ukraine's east, five of whom were children.
The strike has hit what Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskky says are "ordinary private homes" around the city of Pokrovsk, which lies in Ukrainian-held territory, about 80 kilometres northwest of Donetsk [[dah-nyesk]], the Russian held centre of the region.
Regional governor Vadim Filashkin has accused Russian forces of trying to inflict as much grief as possible.
Zelenskyy has said in his nightly video address that Russia must be made to feel the consequences of every such attack.
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A small group of protesters have staged a pro-Palestinian demonstration at the national road racing championships near the regional Victorian city of Ballarat.
About half a dozen demonstrators staged a rally near the start finish line at Buninyong, before the men's race.
It's understood police and officials took them from the course as the national anthem was being played and they continued their protest on the side of the road, with the race going ahead as scheduled.
