Woman Badly Burnt In House Fire At Swansea

BY IAN CROUCH

A woman has been flown to the burns unit at Sydney's Royal North Shore Hospital following a house fire at Swansea.

Crews from Belmont and Swansea were called to the Compass Housing property in Catherine Street at 12.10am on Thursday to find a fire in the lounge room.

They managed to contain the blaze to the one room.

A 32-year-old woman suffered serious burns to her arm - the cause of the fire has not yet been determined.

Meanwhile, fire has caused extensive damage to a home at Jesmond.

Three crews from Lambton arrived at the single level weatherboard home in Janet Street just after 1.30am on Thursday to find the rear of the house well alight.

They took just over an hour to extinguish the blaze.

No-one was injured and all occupants were accounted for.

The cause of the fire is being investigated.

Stockton Erosion Closes Childcare Centre

BY KAYNE STEPHENS

Significant safety concerns have caused a childcare centre in Stockton to close after engineers warned accelerated erosion rates of the coastline have rendered the site no longer safe for occupation.

The Mission Australia Early Learning Centre will be permanently closed from today due to the rapid erosion of the Barrie Crescent Reserve.

Parents and staff were advised the centre is now permanently closed, after specialist advice of significant safety risk due to erosion.

Coastal engineers carried out testing which found over 9-thousand cubic metres of sand has washed from the coastline at accelerated rates.

Newcastle City Council says it will work with the childcare to allow safe removal of property before the building is demolished.

Council was advised the not-for-profit would vacate the site ten months before the lease agreement expires.

Newcastle Council CEO, Jeremy Bath, says Council will work with Mission Australia in the closure of the site.

"Both Mission Australia and the City’s independent coastal engineering advice highlight the significant safety risk from the continuing occupation of the building," he said.

“We’ll now take steps to ensure the safe removal of all existing equipment and personal contents before the structure is demolished and the site cleared".

Council says once the building is demolished, the former site on Barrie Crescent Reserve will be restored to a community recreational space.

Independent coastal engineering advice found a significant safety risk due to the accelerated erosion. Image: Mission Australia Early Learning Centre

GoGet Car Sharing Services Coming to Newcastle

BY HANNAH-LOUISE ANDERSON

The development company Thirdi Group is teaming up with GoGet to launch it's car sharing services in Newcastle, starting with the company's own Westend Precinct.

Over one hundred cars and vans are set to be scattered over the city centre and fringes in an attempt to assist those who can't afford a vehicle of their own or have no access to parking facilities.

"As a developer this sort of partnership makes complete sense." says Thirdi Group's Director of Sales and Marketing Luke Perry.

"When you think about connectivity and transport, any form of transport that a city explores that's flexible and sustainable will be greater for all residents in Newcastle."

"The platform's been created to give people that may not be able to afford a full-time car or need a secondary car flexibility where you can become a member, and within minutes hire a car you can use to go about your daily business."

The aim of the arrangement is to provide property owners with the chance to access the vehicles for hire, with 'free driving credits' available to cover the basic needs of Westend residents.

"We've worked out the average urban dweller needs about twenty-five kilometres per week and university students or individuals who don't want to carry the cost of owning a car can become a member and take advantage of the GoGet credits and the wavering of the membership fees that we've negotiated for our projects." says Mr Perry.

An estimated ten percent of GoGet's fleet is set to be permanently located in the Westend or in the basements of the Union and Hannel Street Thirdi Developments due for completion in 2020 with the hope of expansion in the future.

Photo belonging to GoGet

Petition for Bridge Over Barnsley Weir

BY KAYNE STEPHENS

Calls for a bridge over flood-prone The Weir Road at Barnsley will be brought to Council in a petition started by Councillor Kevin Baker.

The road remains closed after Lake Macquarie Council carried out an inspection this morning, reporting water levels and clarity from the weekend rain are still too high for the road to safely carry vehicles.

Council also says it's working with Telstra to resolve issues with the traffic warning lights on the road.

Cr Kevin Baker opened the petition last night, and intends to present the signatures to Council asking for the construction of The Weir Road bridge to be a priority.

He says the road is a key link for the region and needs to be brought to standard.

"Someone's only got to flush a toilet and the road floods. The significant closures cause all sorts of trouble for trucks, locals, and commuters.

"It's a really key link between the Western side of Lake Macquarie and the Northern side of Lake Macquarie"

Council says it's considering detailed assessments and concept designs for the future of The Weir Road.

Cr Baker says he has spoken with residents who say the road hasn't been fit for purpose for decades.

"The locals identified it as one of the big key infrastructure priorities out on the north-western side of the lake," he said.

"While there other routes you can go around, they add significant travel time. It really is a key bit of infrastructure; locals rely on it, businesses rely on it, trucks rely on it, commuters rely on it."

Councillor Kevin Baker plans to present the signatures from the petition to Council and make the bridge a priority. Image: Cr Kevin Baker.

Houses Shaken By Small Earthquake At Muswellbrook

BY IAN CROUCH

Some Muswellbrook residents have reported feeling their homes shake as a small earthquake struck early this morning.

The quake measuring 2-point-5 on the Richter scale was recorded about 10 kilometres below the earth's surface at Muscle Creek, about 11 kilometres south of Muswelbrook around 4.00am.

There are no reports of damage however one resident has posted on social media saying it's the strongest tremor she's felt in 7 years living in the town, saying her whole house shook and it was enough to make her two children stir.

She says normally windows just rattle during an earthquake.

8 Puppies Rescued From Raging House Fire At Muswellbrook

BY IAN CROUCH

A litter of 8 puppies has been rescued from a raging house fire at Muswellbrook overnight.

Fire crews from Muswellbrook, Denman and Aberdeen were called to a single level timber cottage on Buddens Lane just after 8.00pm on Monday to find the property up in flames.

Crews were alerted to puppies inside the house and carried out a search and rescue, finding at least 5 puppies in the laundry and one outside before tackling the flames.

It's believed one puppy is unaccounted for.

A woman at the house was also treated at the scene for chest tightness.

It's taken about 2 hours to fully extinguish the fire, which has caused extensive damage to the house.

Police have set up a crime scene as investigations into the cause of the fire continue.

The guttered remains of the house in Buddens Lane Pictures P Voigt and Muswellbrook Fire & Rescue

Appeal for Information over Cockle Creek Death

BY IAN CROUCH AND MADELAINE MCNEILL

Police are appealing for the public's help to establish Danielle Easey's movements in recent weeks as investigations continue into her death.

Homicide Squad detectives and Lake Macquarie Police have established Strike Force Furzer to determine the circumstances of the 29-year-old's death after her body was discovered tightly wrapped in plastic floating in Cockle Creek at Killingworth.

Danielle Easey was born on the grass outside the former Western Suburbs Maternity Hospital as the Newcastle Earthquake shook the city in 1989, and had two young children of her own.

Police say it's unknown when Danielle's body was dumped in the creek but it had been several weeks since her family had heard from her.

Detective Chief Inspector Grant Taylor said Danielle lived at Booragul but had since been staying at multiple locations, and investigations revealed she had been associating with people involved in drug-related activity.

"We know that Danielle was staying at different locations over the last three weeks and we are keen to establish where those locations were and speak to who she stayed with during that time,” said Detective Chief Inspector Taylor.

“Of particular interest to us is any sightings or contact with Danielle since early to mid-August, and we are appealing for those people to contact us as soon as possible."

Police say they are also keen to hear from motorists who may have dash-cam footage filmed in the Wakefield Road area over the past three weeks.

Anyone with information which may assist investigations into Danielle Easey's death is encouraged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or online at https://nsw.crimestoppers.com.au. 

EARLIER:

Police have formally identified the woman found dead at Killingworth as Booragul woman Danielle Easey.

The 29-year-old lived in the suburb with her family but had recently been staying at multiple locations around the area.

Danielle was one of a number of babies born on the grass at the former Western Suburbs Maternity Hospital during the 1989 Newcastle Earthquake.

Her body was discovered wrapped in plastic floating in Cockle Creek on Saturday.

Police will front the media this afternoon to appeal for public assistance as investigations continue into Ms Easey's death.

EARLIER:

Police are expected to announce today they've formally identified the body of a woman found wrapped in plastic in Cockle Creek at Killingworth.

A passing driver made the grim discovery on Saturday - the remains are believed to be those of a 29-year-old Hunter woman.

Homicide detectives will await the results of an autopsy to be carried out today to determine how and when the woman died.

It's still not known how long her body had been in the creek.

Police set up a crime scene on Wakefield Road Picture smh.com.au