-With AAP
1. The chilling Snapchat of teenager before he fell to his death at schoolies.
A NSW teenager fell from a Gold Coast balcony and died during schoolies, just hours after his friends shared a Snapchat video of him celebrating.
Hamish Bidgood, a student at Turramurra High School on Sydney’s upper north shore, was found dead next to the swimming pool at the Surf Regency Holiday Apartments in Surfers Paradise after a night celebrating the end of high school.
The Daily Telegraph reported a friend of Bidgood as saying “this is the beginning of the end for Hamish Bidgood” in the Snapchat video, which has since been deleted.
Police believed the teen had been ingesting nitrous oxide after a night of drinking, the Daily Telegraph reported.
A Queensland Police spokesperson said the death was not being treated as suspicious.
Bidgood’s family were on their way to Surfers Paradise on Thursday and his friends had cut the rest of their schoolie celebrations short.
Bidgood was a keen sportsman and member of Berowra Cricket Club.
2. Horror Queensland bushfire crisis rages on.
There is no end in sight to the bushfire crisis in Queensland, with severe heatwave conditions forecast to spread across the state.
Thousands of people have been forced from their homes as firefighters battle up to 140 wildfires during the unprecedented six-day emergency.
Queensland Fire and Emergency Services Commissioner Katarina Carroll says crews have been confronted with high temperatures and “unimaginable” conditions.
“(But) due to all the proactive work conducted over the last several days, we have lost a minimal amount of houses, thankfully,” she told reporters on Thursday.
Two houses, two cabins and 15 sheds have been destroyed, with a further 14 homes damaged, since the crisis began on Saturday.
“This number could have easily been greater,” she said.
Ms Carroll says the extreme temperatures have also taken down 15 firefighters with heat stress, with more hot days forecast.
Three blazes of significance continued to burn late on Thursday at Tinnanbar, south of Hervey Bay, Deepwater and North Stradbroke Island.
The small isolated community of Tinnanbar was cut off by bushfire and told to seek shelter as fire bombers and more than 20 fire crews fought the blaze.
Six other towns were ordered to pack up their valuables and evacuate as fires continue to rage in central Queensland.
In the state’s south, a blaze on the eastern side of North Stradbroke Island threatened campers and powerlines.
The Bureau of Meteorology has forecast a severe heatwave that began in the state’s north to move south in coming days.
“Around Capricornia, up around MacKay and inland, it’ll be very hot again, so we’re talking temperatures getting well up into the mid to high 30s for a lot of places, maybe even touching 40 in the odd spot,” meteorologist Rick Threlfall told AAP.
“The hot conditions will persist over the weekend and continue in the fire areas, and in fact spread to many other parts of the state.”
3. Study links Paleo diet to heart disease.
Eating more red meat under the Paleo diet paired with a lack of whole grains results in higher levels of a biomarker linked to heart disease, new research suggests.
In the world first study, researchers compared the gut health of 44 people on the Paleo diet with that of 47 people on a traditional Australian diet.
The Paleo diet involves eating meat, vegetables, nuts and limited fruit, while excluding grains, legumes, dairy, salt, refined sugar and processed oils.
Researchers at Perth’s Edith Cowan University measured blood levels of trimethylamine-n-oxide (TMAO), an organic compound produced in the gut, and found more than twice the amount in those on the Paleo diet.
High levels of TMAO has been associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease.
Head researcher Angela Genoni says the findings question the gut health benefits of the diet.
“The Paleo diet excludes all grains and we know that whole grains are a fantastic source of resistant starch, and many other fermentable fibres which are vital to the health of your gut microbiome,” Dr Genoni said.
“Because TMAO is produced in the gut, a lack of whole grains might change the populations of bacteria enough to enable higher production of this compound.
“Additionally, the Paleo diet includes greater servings per day of red meat, which provides the precursor compounds to produce TMAO.”
Dr Genoni will present the findings at the Nutrition Society of Australia conference in Canberra on Friday.
4. Boy in stolen car causes school lockdown.
A Sydney school was put into lockdown after a teenager allegedly crashed a stolen car into its fence following a police pursuit.
About 2.45pm on Thursday, highway patrol police attempted to pull over a stolen Honda Odyssey in West Ryde but it sped off. A chase was begun before being called off for safety reasons.
A short time later, the vehicle crashed into another car before colliding into the fence of a public school on Shaftsbury Road. The occupants ran into the school, forcing police to put the school in lockdown.
A search with the assistance of PolAir and the Dog Unit was conducted of the area and a 15-year-old boy was arrested a short time later at Eastwood Railway Station.
When the boy was searched, police allegedly found the key to another stolen vehicle. He was charged with a raft of offences including car theft and granted conditional bail to appear at a Children’s Court on December 17.
5. WA swim teacher jailed for child sex abuse.
A swimming teacher who sexually abused a 14-year-old girl and sent her inappropriate text messages has been sentenced to two years in prison.
Anthony Craig Dvorak, 50, kissed and inappropriately touched the girl between March 2016 and July 2017, the West Australian District Court heard on Thursday.
Judge Kathleen Glancy described Dvorak’s crimes as “corrupting, abhorrent and detrimental to (the girl’s) wellbeing”.
She said Dvorak committed a breach of trust and took advantage of a vulnerable girl.
“All sexual offending against children is serious,” she said.
Referring to the girl’s victim impact statement, Judge Glancy said the teenager had mental health issues, was socially isolated and withdrawn.
Dvorak pleaded guilty to seven offences including indecently dealing with a child, encouraging a child to engage in sexual behaviour and using electronic communication to procure a child to engage in sexual activity.
Judge Glancy accepted Dvorak was remorseful but said he still lacked some insight into his offending.
She noted he had written a letter to the victim via the court, but said it would be up to the girl whether she wanted to receive it.
The judge told Dvorak he was lucky to have the support of his wife of 25 years, who was also his childhood sweetheart, to which he replied: “Absolutely.”
Many letters of support were submitted on Dvorak’s behalf, describing him as caring and trustworthy.
They also described his offending as out of character.
An expert report concluded he was at low risk of reoffending.
But Judge Glancy said it would be inappropriate to suspend the prison term, given the seriousness of his offending.
Dvorak must spend at least one year behind bars before he can be eligible for parole.
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Top Comments
My thoughts are with the people in Queensland affected by these most terrifying fires. Also a huge thankyou & stay safe to our amazing, brave, self sacrificing fire fighters - these men & women are heroes!
What wife in their right mind supports a man who has sexually abused a teenager and lacks insight in such a way that he would suggest if she hadnt opened her mouth things would be fine. I would kick my husband out so quickly his head would spin