Author: MIL-OSI Publisher

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Credit: Hastings Fire Brigade

Four brigades in Victoria’s south east are part of 26 CFA brigades now trained and ready to respond to select medical Triple Zero (000) calls as part of a new program that officially commenced in 2023.

The Fire Medical Response (FMR) program is a joint initiative of CFA and Ambulance Victoria that sees CFA brigades and Ambulance Victoria dispatched simultaneously to cardiac arrests.

Hastings, Phillip Island, Cockatoo, and Emerald fire brigades went live on 21 of August, with Sorrento and Wonthaggi joining the program earlier in the month. Ultimately, 50 CFA brigades around Victoria will undertake the FMR role in their communities.

Hastings Fire Brigade Captain Mike Willmott said the decision to join the program was an easy one given the benefits it will provide his community.

“When we asked our volunteers about joining the program, the response was overwhelmingly positive. Our members didn’t hesitate to step up,” Mike said.

“I’m just so proud of our volunteers, who are taking on this important role in addition to firefighting. When a person suffers a cardiac arrest, their chance of survival reduces by 10 per cent every minute that CPR and defibrillation is delayed.

“What this program means is that community members who call for an ambulance may receive both a fire truck and an ambulance. There is no specific order in which the services arrive to the incident. Our ultimate aim is to get to the patient as quickly as possible.”

The four brigades have been training extensively with Ambulance Victoria and CFA in preparation for the program, which will complement Ambulance Victoria’s response in those local areas.

CFA Assistant Chief Fire Officer Sean Kerr said the program was a natural fit for CFA because of the 52,000 volunteers across the state.

“CFA has more than 1,100 volunteer fire stations with more than 52,000 members,” Sean said.

“This puts CFA in a unique position to complement the Ambulance Victoria response in 50 locations across Victoria to help deliver early intervention to cardiac arrests.”

Ambulance Victoria Executive Director of Regional Operations, Danielle North, said Victoria has Australia’s best cardiac survival rate and the third best anywhere in the world, thanks to high rates of early intervention.

“The Fire Medical Response program will improve survival rates for people in rural and regional Victoria,” Danielle said.

“Quick intervention with CPR and a defibrillator has the greatest impact on improving a patient’s chances of surviving a cardiac arrest.” 

Source: Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission

There are plans to install eight ‘tophat reflectors’ on remote Heard Island this season to improve the accuracy of satellite imagery used to monitor wildlife and landscapes, and to generate maps.
The reflectors will provide a GPS-located reference point for satellites, so that imagery from different satellites, or the same satellite at different times, can be precisely positioned and aligned.
Australian Antarctic Data Centre remote sensing scientist, Dr Melissa Fedrigo, has been working with Dr Matt Garthwaite of CSIRO’s Centre for Earth Observation, to design a reflector suitable for the wild and rarely visited sub-Antarctic island.

“We wanted a design that was unpowered, required minimal installation, that would be visible to the most number of satellites, and that could accommodate any orbit of these satellites,” Dr Fedrigo said.
The tophat reflectors are shaped like their namesake, with a wide ‘apron’ or brim, and 1.5 metre-high crown.
At the top of the crown is a painted checkerboard design, which produces a pattern in images taken by optical satellites.
The reflectors’ construction in corrosion-resistant stainless steel also provides a target for ‘synthetic aperture radar’ (SAR) satellites. These send out microwave pulses that bounce off objects, creating radar images of the earth’s surface, even when it is dark or cloudy.
“The microwave energy from the SAR satellite bounces off the large centre column of the reflector, towards the apron, and then back to the satellite,” Dr Fedrigo said.
“This creates a bright signal response in the image which we can use to mark the exact coordinates of the satellite, to a position on the ground.
“The checkerboard works in the same way except that we look for the pattern in the image and assign the GPS coordinates to the centre of it.”
Dr Fedrigo said that SAR imagery is used by the Australian Antarctic Division to assess glacier volume, detect crevasses, and observe wildlife during the winter months when optical imagery isn’t available. It can also be used to look at changes in landscape elevation, possibly due to erosion, landslides, and volcanic or tectonic activity.
“The installation of these tophat reflectors on Heard Island will allow us to accurately align radar imagery each time it is captured, despite the regular cloud cover,” Dr Fedrigo said.
Dr Garthwaite said it is common to use ground reflectors to accurately align radar imagery.
“But what is quite innovative here is having a target that can be seen in both radar and optical images and from satellites that fly in lots of different orbital directions,” he said.
The reflectors will provide an important feature in remote sensing imagery, for the Antarctic Division and for anyone wanting to monitor the island.
The 750 kg reflectors will be filled with concrete and positioned near existing survey markers on the island, away from wildlife that may like to “cozy up” to them.
All activities will be implemented in accordance with existing and pending environmental permits.
Dr Fedrigo and Dr Garthwaite worked closely with four space companies from the United States, Finland and Canada, and also the German space agency, DLR, to test prototype reflectors and confirm a final design.
“The companies worked with us to ensure our prototype was visible in a broad range of satellite imagery, and that the final design was fit for purpose before we deploy them,” Dr Fedrigo said
This content was last updated 18 minutes ago on 22 August 2025.

Source: Northern Territory Police and Fire Services

Police are investigating following a large disturbance that occurred in Tennant Creek yesterday afternoon.

Around 2:30pm, the Joint Emergency Services Communication Centre received reports of a large group of people engaged in a violent disturbance at a residence in the community.

It is alleged that a group of over 60 people attended the residence armed with both edged and blunt weapons and began fighting.

Police attended and the group immediately dispersed. One 25-year-old male was located suffering a minor head wound and was conveyed to Tennant Creek Hospital for treatment.

No further injuries have been reported at this stage.

Investigations are ongoing, and police urge anyone with information about the incident to make contact on 131 444. Please quote reference number P25222813. Anonymous reports can be made through Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or via https://crimestoppersnt.com.au/.

Source: New South Wales Community and Justice

Man charged with traffic offences in southern Tasmania

Thursday, 21 August 2025 – 4:48 pm.

Huonville Police have charged a 34-year-old man with multiple traffic offences earlier today (August 21).
About 11.20am, the man was detected travelling at 88km/h in a 50km/h zone on the main road through Franklin.
As police moved to intercept the vehicle, they observed the driver throw a full can from the driver’s side window across the road.
The vehicle was intercepted a short time later, and the man returned a breath alcohol reading of 0.058.
Further checks revealed the vehicle was not fitted with an alcohol interlock device, which was a condition of the driver’s licence due to previous offences.
The man was taken to Huonville Police Station and was subsequently charged with:

Exceeding the speed limit
Driving under the influence of alcohol
Discharging a missile (throwing an object from a vehicle)
Driving a vehicle not fitted with a required alcohol interlock device.

He has been bailed to appear in court at a later date.
Sergeant Simon Ward reminds drivers that speeding and drink driving are a deadly combination.
“When drivers ignore road rules and licence-imposed conditions, they put everyone at risk.
“Road safety is everyone’s responsibility, so please slow down and don’t drive if you’ve been drinking alcohol or consuming illicit drugs.”

Source: New places to play in Gungahlin

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Source: New places to play in Gungahlin

Source: New places to play in Gungahlin

Source: New places to play in Gungahlin

Source: New places to play in Gungahlin

Source: Northern Territory Police and Fire Services