Fire danger and damaging wind warnings for Victoria, South Australia, and New South Wales; Families of 26 Australians remember Boxing Day tsunami’s devastation 20 years on; Five people are given jail sentences in relation to November incidents in Amsterdam.
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TRANSCRIPT
- Fire danger and damaging wind warnings for Victoria, South Australia, and New South Wales.
- Families of 26 Australians remember Boxing Day tsunami’s devastation 20 years on.
- Five people are given jail sentences in relation to November incidents in Amsterdam.For the families of 26 Australians who lost their lives, the Boxing Day tsunami of 2004 is a painful reminder of unimaginable loss.Triggered by a 9.1-magnitude earthquake beneath the Indian Ocean near Indonesia, the tsunami claimed nearly 250,000 lives, making it the deadliest in recorded history.The earthquake shook the earth’s crust for eight minutes, unleashing catastrophic waves.Around 230,000 people died across 14 countries in southeast and South Asia, and as far as eastern and southern Africa.Nearly two million were left homeless, with Indonesia, Thailand, India, and Sri Lanka bearing the worst of the devastation.The tsunami has resulted in greater awareness among people in Indonesia says Fazli who is the Head of Preparedness at the Aceh Disaster Management Agency."School communities are already aware of vital information about earthquakes and tsunami, hopefully if a tsunami occurs at any time and anywhere, they already have the knowledge. The biggest hope is that there will be minimal casualties when the next disaster occurs.".Dangerous fire conditions are set to hit multiple states as the southeast braces for a Boxing Day heatwave.Damaging winds and extreme fire danger are forecast for today [[26 December]], with hot, dry weather affecting Victoria, southwest New South Wales, and eastern South Australia.Temperatures will soar to the high 30s and 40s across Victoria and inland Australia, with Birdsville in central western Queensland expected to reach a scorching 47 degrees Celsius.According to Bureau of Meteorology senior forecaster Dean Narramore, winds of up to 100 kilometres per hour could topple trees, damage power lines, and cause minor power outages."Winds and extreme fire dangers to impact parts of South Australia and Victoria Over the next 48 hours, and we can see a severe weather warning is already current for damaging winds for large parts of western Victoria, South West New South Wales, and much of East and South Australia. This does include the Grampians, where those ongoing fires are. That means we can see winds gusting at 90 to 100 kilometers an hour tomorrow. That's enough to bring down trees and power lines, cause some minor power outages, but also create dangerous conditions for our ongoing fires through the Grampians.".People all across the country have come together to celebrate Christmas Day, making the most of the great weather.In New South Wales, thousands of people took to the iconic Bondi Beach, enjoying a dip in the water before their Christmas Day meal.Meanwhile, earlier in the day, hundreds of people attended the annual morning mass at St Mary's Cathedral, led by Archbishop Anthony Fisher.And across town, hundreds of people affected by homelessness gathered for a free meal at the Wayside Chapel's annual Christmas Party.New South Wales Premier Chris Minns has thanked all those who are working on the day, including railway workers, extending an olive branch towards the industry after recent disputes."They might be nurses, they might be doctors in our hospitals, they may well be in our railways, who work right through Christmas Day, spending time away from their family. We really appreciate it. The state couldn't operate without you. And as a result of that, the rest of us get to spend time with our families. It's a massive sacrifice. It's really living up to the true traditions of public service in the state. So, a big thank you from all of us who don't have to work on Christmas Day.".Richard Perry, a hitmaking record producer whose many successes included Carly Simon's You're So Vain, has died at 82.Perry, a recipient of a Grammys Trustee Award in 2015, died at a Los Angeles hospital after suffering cardiac arrest.The one-time drummer, oboist and doo-wop singer proved at home with a wide variety of musical styles, achieving No. 1 hits on the pop, R&B, dance and country charts..Five football fans have been handed sentences up to six months in prison by a Dutch court for their participation in violent incidents.The events took place following the Ajax versus Maccabi Tel Aviv match in Amsterdam for the Europa League on November 7.The five men, aged between 19 to 32, were told by the court that their behaviour had little to do with football and was sparked by antisemitism.Judge Claartje Berkhout [[KLAAR-tee-yeah berg-HA-oot]] has explained the reasoning behind her decision."Normally, sentences like community service would be fair for these acts, but this court finds that these riots were harsh and a jail sentence is suitable because of their context."A further six people are awaiting their trial in relation to this case.
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