When an elderly woman doesn’t feel safe in her own home, we have a problem
Nita was lying awake in bed at 2am in her unit in Casino. She was waiting for the radio to come on. She looked up and a figure was standing by her bed. He wore a hoodie, was barefoot and looked about 16, Nita said. He fled when Nita screamed. “I’ll never forget it,” Nita, 86, said ... They used to steal things out of the garage and off the porch but now they are coming into our homes, she said.
Gates shut on Evans Head development
“Refused!” That one word on the Community Against Iron Gates Development Facebook page said it all. Ian Rankin from the protest group was elated and found it difficult to put the Northern Rivers Planning Panel’s decision into words ... The panel said they would announce their decision on the DA by Gold Coast Coral for 183 houses at Iron Gates in Evans Head at 5pm. At 5.30pm the panel chair Paul Mitchell made the announcement.
Dogs wait for their departed master, Robert Johnston
Robert Johnston’s dogs wait for their master’s call – all 20 of them. Every afternoon, Robert would take the dogs on a run across the paddocks of his Tatham property. He’d be on the quad bike and the dogs would run behind, tongues hanging out as they followed their master ... The dogs are waiting for their run. Waiting for Robert. There’s no way to tell them he isn’t coming.
Church goes retail and brings Light to main street with new op shop
A new op shop opens on Wednesday, August 24 in Walker St, Casino. In a town with six op shops, St Mark’s Anglican Church will have prime spot ... The space won’t only be an op-shop. It will have the parish and priest’s offices and there will be a drop-in area where people can have a coffee or tea and a chat.
NSW funds for farmers come a cropper
Cane farmer Tony Carusi said time was critical for planting sugarcane. “It takes time to get the ground ready and we have ideal weather conditions,” Mr Carusi said at his farm near Woodburn ... A Primary Producer Grant was announced by the State Government five months ago to help farmers after the floods. The criteria for the grant are still unknown and the grant has stalled. No money has been given to farmers yet.
Six homes for seniors could spring up on old farmland
Developer wants seniors to take root on land that used to be farmed. A 2.5ha property at Geneva on the edge of Kyogle may be rezoned to allow six units for seniors to live in ... The proposal includes keeping the existing house as a hub and creating six residential lots targeted towards seniors.
Somewhere over the rainbow, Millie became cancer-free
Being cancer-free is something to shout about. Or in 11 year old Millie Trustum’s case, something to inspire you to draw a rainbow ... Millie’s awareness rainbows were selected by the Kids Cancer Project to be included on a whale tail statue as part of the Waterfront Whale Tales sculpture exhibition in Sydney.
Leadership vacuum left people struggling – flood report
The report on the floods is in and it is a riveting and sobering read. With 21 findings and 37 recommendations, the NSW Legislative Council Select Committee has tackled the government’s response to the floods, the operations of the SES and the difficulties of getting grants from Resilience NSW.
Can community gardens increase our food security?
Bernice Shepherd. Community gardens and city farms have been around for a long time, but they are enjoying a resurgence in popularity in Australia ... We are lucky to have several gardens in our area and I visited three of them; one well established, one partway there, and another in the beginning phases.
A lot rides on the man who will lead the flood rebuild
“Failure is not an option,” David Witherden said. The civil engineer has a massive job ahead of him as chief executive of the Northern Rivers Reconstruction Corporation that will lead the rebuild and recovery after the floods ... The Northern Rivers Reconstruction Corporation was set up on July 1 and the actions it takes will be defined by the State Government flood inquiry findings.
