New South Wales swelters through a major heatwave as ambulance services report a spike in calls; Israeli forces pound the Gaza Strip from north to south in an expanded phase of its two-month-old war with Hamas; Perth Glory move to the top of the A-League Women's table with a victory over Melbourne City.
Listen to Australian and world news, and follow trending topics with SBS News Podcasts.
TRANSCRIPT
- New South Wales swelters through a major heatwave as ambulance services report a spike in calls.
- Israeli forces pound the Gaza Strip from north to south in an expanded phase of its two-month-old war with Hamas.
- Perth Glory move to the top of the A-League Women's table with a victory over Melbourne City.
A total fire ban is in place for parts of New South Wales as a heatwave that has gripped much of the state starts to wane, while soaring temperatures in South Australia give way to flooding rain.
Temperatures climbed into the low to mid 40s [[degrees Celsius]] across central western and coastal parts of New South Wales on Saturday before a strong southerly buster swept up the coast, bringing thunderstorms and dropping temperatures by up to 10 degrees.
The strong winds caused damage to several homes on the Central Coast, with roofs ripped off during a short but strong storm burst.
The Rural Fire Service was battling at least 70 fires across the state, with several uncontained by Saturday evening.
Warm temperatures will continue into Sunday.
Tens of thousands of people sweated it out at several concerts at Homebush in Sydney's west on Saturday, with the mercury climbing to 43 degrees Celsius before a southerly change swept through after 6pm.
.
New South Wales Ambulance Service says they saw a 20 per cent increase in calls yesterday compared with a normal summer Saturday amid a sweltering heatwave.
The ambulance services estimates that increase to have added up to 500 extra calls by midnight.
Chief Superintendent with New South Wales Ambulance Service Mark Gibbs says the ambulance service was able to accommodate the increase in demand but were monitoring the situation closely.
He also advises people to keep an eye on those who may be vulnerable to the heat as more temperature surges are expected over the summer.
"We ask the community to keep an eye out for vulnerable members of the community. Follow up on elderly relatives, check in on your neighbours, ensure that people are rehydrating, monitor people for signs of dehydration or effects from the heat. And that may be decreased level of consciousness, vomiting, lethargy, feeling fatigued, potentially muscle twitching. And in those cases ,if you're concerned, ring triple zero."
.
Israeli forces have pounded the Gaza Strip from north to south in an expanded phase of its two-month-old war against Hamas after the United States wielded its United Nations Security Council veto to shield its ally from a global demand for a ceasefire.
Thirteen of the Security Council's 15 members voted for the resolution calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire that was blocked by Washington.
Britain abstained.
Since a truce collapsed last week, Israel has expanded its ground campaign into the southern half of the Gaza Strip by launching the storming of the main southern city Khan Younis.
Simultaneously, both sides have reported a major surge in fighting in the north.
Residents of Khan Younis said on Saturday Israeli forces were ordering people out of another district just west of positions the Israelis stormed earlier this week, suggesting a further assault could be imminent
.
An expert in migration issues has warned the link between cost-of-living and numbers of migrants is not clear-cut, ahead of a major overhaul to the migration system expected to be announced on Monday.
The Prime Minister signalled his government will be responding to the once-in-a-generation review which found the migration system was effectively "broken", announcing plans to scale back migration to pre-pandemic levels.
Opposition spokesman on immigration Dan Tehan has criticised the government's approach to migration, saying it has added pressure to the cost-of-living and housing crisis.
But Deloitte analyst Fiona Webb has welcomed the government's promise to simplify the system, saying it's important to recognise the value of attracting migrants into the Australian workforce.
"Again we have to balance it out, that any of our migrants are also contributors to the economy, from the point of view of spending, they pay taxes, there is the net benefit as well. So it's really hard to unscramble that egg, in terms of knowing which of the factors are linking in to driving things like cost-of-living pressures and potential recession factors."
.
English striker Millie Farrow has scored a hat-trick to steer Perth Glory to a 3-1 win over Melbourne City, moving her side to the top of the A-League Women table.
Hannah Wilkinson headed City in front early in the first half, but Farrow struck in the 32nd, 51st and 73rd minutes to score three points for Glory.
The win was enough for Perth to leapfrog City on goal difference.
Meanwhile, in yesterday's other A-L-W match, new Western United coach Kat Smith got a win in her first game at the helm as Adriana Taranto scored twice - with both goals assisted by her twin sister Mel - in a 3-1 victory against Adelaide United.
