Day: January 12, 2016

THE two vessels integral to the success of Victorian Maritime Centre being built at Hastings are in trouble. The Otama, an Oberon class submarine, is anchored off Crib Point and needs new mooring cables by May if it is to survive winter storms. Cost of the cables is put at $50,000. The other vessel owned by the Western Port Oberon Association, the Wyuna, was built in 1953 and donated to the association in 2013. Although extensively refitted and undergoing sea trials she remains in Tasmania because there is no berth available in Melbourne. Association president Max Bryant said the Wyuna…

BALNARRING Freemasons have given $5000 to the Hastings Police Senior Citizens Register. Lodge master Barry Hodder handed the donation to register coordinator Denise Palmer. The register has been run by volunteers for 15 years and has 1000 clients. It operates out of Hastings police station. The money will go towards a new car for follow-up action when concerns are held for a registered person, especially when daily phone contact fails. Volunteers check on each client’s wellbeing. If, for any reason, there’s no answer within a certain time, a nominated emergency contact is notified. If this fails police or a staff…

THE car park near Western Port Marina will be filled on Sunday 17 January with 300 eye-catching cars of all makes and models setting off on one of Victoria’s largest veteran, vintage and classic car rallies. Hastings is one of three designated starting points – and perhaps the biggest – for the RACV’s Great Australian Rally which runs from Melbourne to Mornington and attracts almost 1000 entries. The 15-year-old rally aims to promote the pleasures of classical motoring and raise funds for the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre. Last year the rally raised more than $72,000. Organiser, the All British Classics…

FAST food was the common denominator in the charging of two Western Port drink-drivers last week. A Baxter woman will be charged after being found in Somerville with a blood alcohol level four times the legal limit. Hastings police spotted the woman in a fast food drive through on Eramosa Rd, 1am, Monday 4 January. The 33-year-old was breath tested and returned a reading of 0.202 per cent. She will be charged on summons. Senior Sergeant Michael Lamb said the intercept was potentially a lucky escape for both the woman and the community. “With a blood alcohol level this high,…

CRIB Point and Hastings CFA crews yesterday battled a grass and scrub fire off The Esplanade between Disney and Lorimer streets. Police were called to investigate the cause of the blaze. Duty officer Andrew Turner said 15 appliances and up to 50 firefighters on the scene were awaiting the arrival of a water-bombing aircraft at about 3.30pm. However, with a cooler wind change and light rain the fire was classed as “safe” at 4pm. Firefighters said it was lucky the wind did not pick up at the start of the blaze. First published in the Western Port News – 12…

THE future of the estimated $25 million Victorian Maritime Centre at Hastings now rests on harnessing “people power”. A petition calling for government support and a public meeting planned for either February or March are both seen as crucial to enlisting widespread support from the community, particularly in its hometown of Hastings. However, the two vessels at the heart of the project – the 2030 tonne submarine Otama and former Port Phillip Sea Pilots ship Wyuna – languish at anchor, both unable to find a permanent berth. The Otama has been at Crib Point for 12 years and needs $50,000…

THE Baxter woman pinned against a wall by her car at the Grant Rd storage facility early last week was in “a stable condition” yesterday, Monday. The 59-year-old staff member was airlifted to The Alfred hospital with serious injuries after being stuck for five hours outside the Somerville business. Police and emergency services crews stabilised the woman on Monday 4 January before the car could be moved. The officers then had difficulty evacuating the woman to hospital as locked bollards blocked their way onto Fruitgrowers’ Reserve where the air ambulance was waiting. A Mornington Peninsula Shire officer arrived with the…