UPDATED! Missing Kahibah Man Found Safe And Well

BY IAN CROUCH

This just in from Police:

A man reported missing from his Kahibah home overnight has been located.

The man, aged 76, was last seen on Monday 13 May 2019, at his Frith Street home.

Officers from Lake Macquarie Police District were notified and commenced an extensive search.

He was located safe and well at Newcastle West about 11am this morning.

Police would like to thank the public and media for their assistance.


EARLIER:

Police have released new information as the search continues for missing Kahibah man, Robert Sims.

It's now believed the 76-year-old may have attempted board a bus heading to the Newcastle C.B.D at about 2.30pm on Monday.

Officers have also been told his ATM card was used at Marketown Shopping Centre, Newcastle West about 6pm yesterday.

An updated description has been compiled for Mr Sims.

He’s described as being Caucasian in appearance with white/grey hair. He was last seen wearing long dark blue pants, a blue spray jacket, with a green suitcase and a walking stick.

If anyone knows the whereabouts of Robert Sims they should contact police immediately.


EARLIER:

Lake Macquarie police are appealing for help to locate a man who's gone missing from his Kahibah home.

76-year-old Robert Sims left his Frith Street home at about 3 o'clock on Monday afternoon to go for a walk and failed to return.

There are concerns for his welfare as he suffers from a number of health concerns including epilepsy and diabetes which require medication.

Police are about to resume searching bushland near his home.

Mr Sims is described as being of Caucasian appearance with white/grey hair and is possibly wearing dark pants and a shirt.

Anyone who knows his whereabouts is urged  to contact police immediately.

Motorists Heading To Sydney Urged To Delay Travel After Fatal Truck Crash on M1

BY IAN CROUCH

Motorists hoping to head from Newcastle to Sydney on the M1 Pacific Motorway are being urged to take the train or delay their journey following a fatal truck crash.

A B-Double and a pantec truck collided in the southbound lanes at Wahroonga at the bottom of the 'Big Dipper'  at about 10.40pm on Monday - the driver of the B-Double died when his rig careered 50 metres down an embankment.

The driver of the pantec has been taken to hospital.

Two of three southbound lanes of the M1 are expected to remain closed at the crash scene until after the morning peak and motorists are being advised to delay travel or consider catching the train to Sydney.

UPDATE: One Dead in Belmont North Crash

BY MADELAINE MCNEILL

Police have confirmed a woman has died in a head-on crash at Belmont North this morning.

Around 7:25am, emergency services were called to the intersection of Avonlea Street and the Pacific Highway where a Ford Falcon and a Mitsubishi Colt had collided.

The 50-year-old driver of the Mitsubishi died at the scene.

The female driver of the Ford, believed to be 35-years-old, was rushed to the John Hunter Hospital in a critical condition.

Woman Charged Over Cessnock Stabbing

BY MADELAINE MCNEILL

A woman has been charged over a stabbing at Cessnock last weekend.

On Sunday, May 5th, an argument broke out between two women, aged 25 and 33, at a licensed premises on Vincent Street.

The 33-year-old was evicted but later returned to the premises as the 25-year-old was leaving, when it's alleged she stabbed the younger woman several times in the back and face.

The victim was taken to hospital for treatment and released the next day.

Following extensive inquiries, the alleged attacker attended Cessnock Police Station around 5 o'clock yesterday afternoon where she was charged with wounding a person with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.

Hunter Business Chamber Welcomes High-Speed Rail Commitment

BY LILLY HAINES

Labor will promise $1 billion dollars to begin securing a corridor for a high-speed rail link along the East Coast between Brisbane and Melbourne if elected to government.

A high-speed rail link would help improve connectivity between major cities and regions and would stop at key cities including Canberra, Sydney, and Newcastle.

The promised funding would be used to buy a land corridor for the future construction of the route and is a lengthy but essential step towards making the high-speed line a priority.

CEO of the Hunter Business Chamber Bob Hawes says the Newcastle and Hunter region would benefit from a high-speed line with faster rail connections, to Sydney in particular.

"Improved connectivity would also allow the Sydney people to have better access to our region which might have flow on benefits in terms of tourism and business investments, so that is where we see the potential main benefits coming from if such piece of infrastructure was put in place," Mr Hawes said.

Mr Hawes says the region would also benefit from an influx of residential and business investment, enhanced employment options, less road congestion, and better synergies with economic centres in Sydney and other areas along the route although it would take some time, possibly decades, before the benefits could be realised.

Although Mr Hawes welcomes Labor's commitment to securing a rail corridor, he says that it is a long-term solution and work on improving the current rail line between Newcastle and Sydney must continue.

"We certainly think that those two things have to run concurrently because we are of the view that the high speed rail would be some time off compared to the ability for government to be able to do something now to the current link that would make it faster."

Newcastle to Sydney Train Service. Image: Transport NSW

Labor Promises 2.4 Million-Dollars To Secure The Hunter's Clean Energy Future

BY HOLLIE HUGHES


The University of Newcastle has been granted another funding promise from Labor should it win the next election to support its next wave of cutting-edge renewable energy projects.

Federal Member for Newcastle, Sharon Claydon alongside Federal Member for Shortland, Pat Conroy today announced a pledge of 2.4 million-dollars from Federal Labor to support work designed to look at some of the most challenging problems facing the national energy grid and find ways to get more renewable energy into the system.

Mr Conroy says the Newcastle Institute of Energy and Resources based at The University of Newcastle is a world class-research institution well-deserving of increased funding,

"These projects will look at ways to deliver stability to national electricity grid and support Labor's commitment to deliver 50 percent renewables by 2030 part of the Hunter's clean energy future...Newcastle has long been at the forefront of research to create smart energy, so it is perfectly placed to do the work and drive the breakthroughs of the future."

One of the projects established through the funding will create a 'living laboratory' for researchers and industry to demonstrate and test new technologies and applications to address challenges facing our electricity network grids,

"Researchers and industry players will have the opportunities to test solutions that will lead to a more resilient, efficient and reliable electricity network with the capacity to incorporate more distributed and renewable energy sources."

University of Newcastle Vice Chancellor, Professor Alex Zelinsky AO says the funding will provide long-term energy solutions benefiting both the environment and the economy,

"The need to find more reliable and sustainable ways to generate and store energy is vital if we are to meet our social and environmental responsibilities and our University is committed to being apart of that solution."

Image Sourced: Hollie Hughes, 2NURFM Journalist.

Toronto Residents Balk at Bath Street Budget Allocation

BY LILLY HAINES

Lake Macquarie City Council has allocated $25 million over the next four years  to progress commercial development of the Bath Street site for economic tourism in the latest Draft Operational Plan.

The council-owned site, located at the northern end of the Toronto Foreshore next to the Royal Motor Yacht Club, is set to see a six-storey tourism and residential complex developed if plans go ahead.

The Council has been criticised for their lack of community consultation regarding the site and for the site's exclusion from the Toronto Foreshore Master Plan.

The draft Toronto Foreshore Master Plan cites the need for better access and amenities at recreational areas  to create enticing destination points along the Foreshore where publicly accessible shoreline is limited, but council insists on excluding the Bath Street site from this plan.

Suzanne Pritchard from the Toronto Foreshore Protection Group (TFPG) says community views and ideas for the site have not been acknowledged by the council. 

"We have made hundreds of comments to date and they have been misrepresented, they have been undervalued and they have been ignored," Ms Pritchard said.

"Toronto has the least amount of public accessible foreshore for any town within the city; we have about 500 metres and council wants to take about 10% of that for a commercial development."

Ms Pritchard said the TFGP wants to see the foreshore land used as a community parkland.

"With recreational facilities to support the community getting together, not excluding them by having private interests purchase high-end apartments."

Lake Macquarie City Council's Draft Operational Plan is open for community consultation and comment regarding plans for the site until the 29th of May.

The vacant land between Bath Street and Victory Parade which makes up the "Bath Street site". Photo: Google Maps