Police will prepare a report for the Coroner following the death of a man Portsea on Sunday, 17 December. Emergency services were called to reports of two snorkellers in trouble in waters off Portsea about 8.10pm. One man, who is yet to be formally identified, died at the scene. The second snorkeller was taken to hospital for observation. The exact circumstances surrounding the incident are yet to be determined but the death is not being treated as suspicious. Victoria Police News – Sunday 17 December 2023
Author: MP News Group
SUMMER has arrived, with Country Fire Authority already declaring total fire bans in some areas and the Mornington Peninsula’s fire danger rating period starting on Monday 18 December and ending 1 May 2024. The CFA has also reminded Victorians to consider their pets and livestock when making bushfire survival plans. Chief Officer Jason Heffernan said bushfire relocation kits for pets should be kept within easy reach during high-risk bushfire days. “It can take longer than you think to move your pets, so make sure you can transport them efficiently and have towels and woollen blankets on hand to protect them,”…
Peta Murphy: fondly remembered … as an exceptional role model I am writing to express our sincere condolences concerning the tragic passing of Dunkley MP Peta Murphy. She was much loved and deeply admired by all the members of The Southern Women’s Action Network (SWAN). Peta was a woman of great integrity, strong convictions, kindness and compassion. Like so many others who met her, we truly appreciated Peta’s warm and engaging personality, her willingness to listen and delightful sense of humour. Most especially we admired her determination to advocate for justice, particularly in support of those who were marginalised. Peta’s…
ROADS around Rye and Tootgarook are about to get a safety upgrade as part of a program to target dangerous intersections. Seven intersections will be upgraded with compact roundabouts, speed cushions or raised intersections, courtesy of the federal government’s Black Spot program. Black Spot projects target road locations where crashes are occurring or are at risk of occurring. The intersections to receive compact roundabouts are Field Street and Shirlow Avenue, Hygeia Street and Bimble Street, Ozone Street and Bimble Street and Government Road and Waratah Street. Speed cushions will be installed at Field and Marshall streets and Alma and Plain…
THE warm weather has returned and with it are the visitors who love the Mornington Peninsula’s beaches as much as its dolphins do. With only weeks to go until the influx of summer crowds, watercraft users and swimmers are being reminded that “dolphin distancing” is important to protect the marine mammals and allow everyone to enjoy the beach safely. Boats and paddle craft must stay at least 100 metres away from dolphins, jet skis must be at least 300 metres away, and swimmers and surfers must keep a distance of at least 30 metres. The Conservation Regulator, a state government…
RSPCA Victoria is looking for nearly 140 volunteers to join its network of op shops this summer. The organisation’s op shop volunteers are key to paying for the care required for arriving at RSPCA Victoria, many of which require veterinary treatment. “Volunteers are crucial to our work in animal welfare, and this includes the amazing volunteers in our op shops across Victoria,” Nadine Hutchins, RSPCA Victoria volunteer program manager, said. “Our op shop volunteers raise vital funds for RSPCA Victoria and the thousands of animals in our care every year, which is more important than ever right now. “We’re recruiting…
PARENTS have been warned to be alert after thumb tacks were found scattered around two children’s playgrounds in Somerville. Mornington Peninsula Shire Council is urging anyone who discovers vandalism of any sort to contact it after the thumb tacks, or drawing pins, were found at the playground Pembroke Drive, Somerville on Sunday 3 December. The council’s rapid response team went to the playground on Monday to clean up any remaining thumb tacks. Posts on social media reports also show a similar thing happened at Clairmont Close Reserve at around the same time, with thumb tacks left on equipment and playground…
SAFETY Beach actor, singer and film producer Cindy Pritchard will be part of a Q&A following the screening of her new film, Christmess, at Rosebud Cinema at 7pm on 14 December. Pritchard is one of the producers of the Australian indie film, written and directed by Heath Davis. The film stars Steve le Marquand (2 Hands, Broke) Darren Gilshenan (Colin from Accounts) and Hannah Joy from indie band Middle Kids, while Pritchard also has a role. Le Marquand plays a once famous actor with an alcohol addiction who is fresh out of rehab and gets a gig performing as Santa…
THE second annual Flinders Fringe Festival in February will be headlined by Sea Wolves Howl, a theatre piece based on a group of women who daily plunge into the sea at Mount Martha. Written and performed by Mornington Peninsula artist Carole Patullo with Jane Bayly, Melanie Beddie and Kelly Nash, the piece was commissioned by the festival. Direction and dramaturgy are by Melanie Beddie with music by John Thorn. The Mount Martha Sea Wolves, an intergenerational group of up to 60 Mornington Peninsula-based women and non-binary people, gather on the beach daily at dawn. As they hold hands and enter…
AN unlicensed labour hire company that provided workers to farms in Rosebud, Devon Meadows, Koo Wee Rup and Torquay has been issued a total penalty of $617,916 – the highest in Australian history for breaches of labour hire law. A L Star Express, of Keysborough, was found to have knowingly and repeatedly contravened the Labour Hire Licensing Act 2018 (Vic) when it supplied workers to four separate horticulture businesses, without holding a labour hire licence. The workers jobs included picking fruit and vegetables and other horticulture tasks. In its judgement, the Supreme Court of Victoria noted that the contraventions “must…
Emergency services are at the scene of a two-car collision in Red Hill. The vehicles collided on Arthurs Seat Road about 5pm. A male passenger in one of the vehicles has died at the scene, the male driver has been airlifted to hospital in a serious condition. The male driver and only occupant of the other car was taken to hospital as a precaution The exact cause of the crash is yet to be determined and investigations are ongoing. For the current provisional lives lost tally please see https://www.police.vic.gov.au/road-safety-0 Anyone who witnessed the incident or has information is urged to contact…
NEW rules exempting certain community accommodation from planning permits are expected to speed up construction of a new purpose-built NDIS development in Rosebud, potentially paving the way for similar accommodation elsewhere on the Mornington Peninsula. The project by builders Balmain and Co to be launched on Monday (4 December) with a turning of the sod and welcome to country ceremony, is expected to fill a need for NDIS housing in the area. According to data, around 75 per cent of NDIS housing is older stock, and not fit for purpose for a range of client needs. There is also a…
Time running out for comment on harbour options Have readers taken part in any community consultation about the proposed plan to commercialise Mornington harbour, put up by Parks Victoria? Not likely, as there is no publicity. Do we want to see another long jetty built alongside the existing one? Do we want to lose the moorings for the yachts that are part of our harbour landscape? Yes, Fisherman’s jetty needs rebuilding – and the government has budgeted $4 million to do so – but now Parks has come up with further options for the future. That jetty may have an…
A NEW sculpture has been installed at the Peninsula Link’s Cranbourne Road, Frankston ramp. Compass 2023 by artist Natasha Johns-Messenger was installed last week. The steel pole sculpture stands 14 metres high and lights up after dark. Johns-Messenger said the sculpture “responds to site – its scale, topography, light, spatial orientation, materiality and context. Engaging perceptual shifts inside simple geometric framing, my artworks aim to question our expectations of space and three-dimensional form”. “The forms of Compass 2023 are based on the navigation pillars of north, south, east and west, the smallest semi-circle pointing due north. The sculpture’s semi-circular forms…
CRIB Point Fire Brigade is holding an open day on Sunday 3 December from 10am to 2pm. This year the focus will be on families, and there will be activities for children. Anyone new (or not so new) to Crib Point is invited to join in, there will be a jumping castle and coffee, plus information on fire safety and smoke alarms, the fire danger rating system, getting ready for summer, and being a CFA volunteer. First published in the Western Port News – 29 November 2023
Federal cuts to transport needs are no surprise The cancellation of the extension of Frankston to Baxter line is no surprise as the federal government has no infrastructure revenue to fork out (“Budget cuts end travel plans” The News 21/11/23). Governments in Australia are not as wealthy as they used to be, partly because most of our gold was sold by a former Liberal treasurer for $300 an ounce and the rest what is left is in the vaults at the Bank of England not in the Reserve Bank of Australia, which is a government bank. Victoria is in debt…
POLICE from Rosebud responded to multiple calls on Sunday 20 November of a motorcycle being ridden dangerously in the Capel Sound area. Police were able to identify the offender and searched premises in Capel Sound early Monday morning. The 36-year-old suspect was found hiding under a bed and was arrested and charged with several driving related offences. He was bailed to appear at court at a later date and his Yamaha R1 motorcycle was impounded. Anyone with information about criminal activity is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or via crimestoppersvic.com.au First published in the Mornington News…
By Zoe McKenzie* THE failure of the Victorian Labor government to address local infrastructure needs last week resulted in our loss of $300 million. The 90-day review, which took more than 200 days, saw two local projects dumped due to a lack of matching or completion contributions from the Andrews/Allan government: $225 million was lost to electrify the Baxter rail line, and $75 million cancelled for the Jetty Road, Rosebud overpass. Now, $100 million of the peninsula’s funding will be spent on a road project in Ballarat, in the infrastructure minister’s own backyard. Other funds that would have been spent…
By Despi O’Connor* THE Mornington Returned and Services League (RSL) has its first female president in Meryn Cooper. Cooper joined the Women’s Royal Australian Navy in 1981 and was based at HMAS Cerberus, Crib Point for her new recruits’ course, proudly wearing her uniform. She completed her category training on the base and as a cook was then posted to HMAS Albatross, Nowra Hill, NSW home of the Fleet Air Arm. Eighteen months later Cooper was posted to HMAS Coonawarra, in Darwin. Prior to 1985, women were not able to go to sea, so for her four years of service…
NEWLY elected Mornington Peninsula Shire Council mayor Cr Simon Brooks says he is honoured to have received the support of his fellow councillors. Brooks was appointed at last Tuesday’s (21 November) annual council meeting at Rosebud, along with deputy mayor Cr Antonella Celi. A second term councillor, Brooks first represented the Seawinds Ward from 2016 to 2020. In February this year, after losing the 2020 election, he was elected on a countback following the December 2022 resignation of Kerri McCafferty (“Brooks back in council on countback” The News 7/2/23). With a background in building and design, and five years as…
Detectives from the Cybercrime Squad are urging online shoppers to be vigilant and wary of scams impersonating well known Australian retailers over the upcoming Black Friday and Cyber Monday sale weekend. The National Anti-Scam Centre has detected a significant increase in the number of reports of fraudulent websites impersonating the genuine online retail stores belonging to many popular high street brands. Preying on loyal consumers, scammers will often impersonate popular brands using the latest technology to create convincing fake websites using the brand’s logo, designs and layouts. Generally, they’ll include a “.com.au” domain name, and likely the stolen ABN number…
THE National Trust’s Mornington Peninsula branch is holding an auction on Sunday 3 December of paintings, drawings and prints donated by branch members and friends. Branch president Victor Sullivan said a chance remark during a gathering of members inspired the “unique fundraising idea”. “Conversation between colleagues drifted to the topic of what happens after downsizing when people retain some or even all of their much-loved art collections, but do not have wall space to hang items,” he said. “An appeal to members and friends has been hugely successful and we have gathered excellent examples of art for the auction.” He…
Police have discovered what is believed to be human remains in Port Phillip Bay as they continue to investigate a plane crash in Mount Martha on Sunday. They are believed to be the missing occupants of the plane, a 56-year-old Brunswick man and a 30-year-old Surrey Hills man. It comes after police located wreckage from the plane off the shore of Mornington on Monday evening. Water Police, Air Wing and Uniform officers have carried out extensive searches across Port Phillip Bay as part of a complex operation since the crash on Sunday afternoon. Emergency services were called to reports two…
Police have located wreckage following a plane crash in Mount Martha on Sunday afternoon. Water Police, Air Wing and Uniform officers have carried out extensive searches across Port Phillip Bay as part of a multi-agency operation. Emergency services were called to reports two small planes collided over the bay about 1.45pm on Sunday 19 November. One plane crashed into the water, the other safely landed at Essendon airport. After searching water, a large part of the body of the plane was located off the shore of Mornington. Police are working to remove the fuselage of the plane from the water,…
No environmental benefit in brown coal to hydrogen It is pleasing to see that the state government may be finally coming to its sense with regard to the shipping hydrogen to Japan (“MPs under pressure over hydrogen” The News 14/11/23). While shipping the clean fuel hydrogen to Japan seemed like a sensible idea, it was always flawed because of the way the hydrogen was to be made. Had the hydrogen been produce through the electrolysis of water powered by renewable energy then the idea had merit. However, the method chosen, converting brown coal to hydrogen was always flawed for the…
RYE residents and visitors can now enjoy a new public artwork: Ngalamba: to stop and wait a while. Produced by artists David Wood, of Bent Metal, Daniel van de Wiel, of It Stands Out and Shanai Kellett, of Maloga Art, the wall sculpture represents the story of Bunurong’s five seasons. The commission came about after Rye Community Alliance reached out to the Mornington Peninsula Shire Council, in consultation with Binturong elders. Both schematic and organic, the sculpture celebrates the local Bunurong people’s connection to country. Inspired by the life cycle of the leptospermum laevigatum – the coastal tea tree, an…
ZETA Newbound, who recently celebrated her 100th birthday, lives independently, drives her manual car, attends events and participates in discussions regarding current topics. The president of Flinders Probus Club, Rose White, said the club had organised a surprise This is your Life Power Point presentation and a birthday lunch for Newbound following a monthly meeting at Flinders Yacht Club. “Eighty-five of us kept the secret and Zeta was amazed,” White said. The presentation traced Newbound’s life from her 7 October birth 1923 in Lewisham, England, where Australian parents were working. Her mother Meta was a professional violinist and her father,…
THE Rosebud-based four-part Southern Peninsula Choir is evolving and expanding its repertoire under the guidance of musical director Serena Carmel, who took over after the retirement to Germany last year of Antony Ransome. Under her direction the choir conducted a workshop in October as part of the Mornpen Positive Ageing Festival. The choir has a biennial scholarship that aims to promote interest in classical choral singing for young people on the Mornington Peninsula.. Winner of this year’s scholarship program was Ava De Vries, 14, who also won the encouragement award two years ago. Singing teacher Cheryl McDonald began teaching De Vries…
A CREDIT card inside a wallet stolen from motor vehicle at Safety Beach overnight on Saturday 30 September was used the following day at Woolworths, Mornington. The card was used to buy items worth $923.70 and police have released an image of a man (above) who may be able to assist with their inquiries. Anyone with information in urged to contact either the Mornington Peninsula CIU on 5978 1400, Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential report at crimestoppersvic.com.au First published in the Mornington News – 21 November 2023
POLICE numbers will still be bolstered on the Mornington Peninsula for up to four weeks during schoolies celebrations, despite crowds expected to be down this year. But with public drunkenness no longer being a criminal offence in Victoria and police now having to arrange safe options for drunken revellers, could be plenty to keep them busy. Superintendent Fiona Bock, above right, said all indications were that the peninsula would not be the top choice for school leavers this year, with many headed interstate or overseas. “But we will still have a strong police presence because our aim is to allow…