Rodney Stevens, Clarence Valley Independent

Wallabies’ backrower and former Yamba Buccaneers junior Jed Holloway played his 100th game for the NSW Waratahs in a Super Rugby Pacific clash against arch rivals the ACT Brumbies in atrocious conditions at Allianz Stadium in Sydney ... Watched on by Buccaneers supporters in the crowd, Holloway set up a try as torrential rain fell, and despite a hardfought effort, the Brumbies defeated the Waratahs 29-21.

A 73-year-old Iluka man who says he became "stuck in paradise" during Covid lockdowns has gained a new lease on life by training at Bodyrock Fitness which recently led to him setting an Australian Powerlifting record in his first competition. When they could escape Victoria following the first Covid lockdown, Grant "Riley" Oppy and his wife hit the road travelling around Australia...

Troy Billin has been catching premium quality seafood and selling it to some of the country’s top restaurants for more than 25 years and last week the second-generation commercial fisherman was awarded for his exceptional quality products when he was announced as the 2024 Sydney Fish Market Seafood Excellence award winner in the Primary Producer category.

It was standing room only at Yamba Golf and Country Club on Sunday as more than 250 Clarence Valley residents proactively engaged in a flood awareness and resilience meeting, leaving with vital knowledge to help them survive and conquer the next stormwater and Clarence River flood event.

Two karate prodigies from "The Dojo" Maclean are hard at work practicing techniques and perfecting new moves in preparation for the World Martial Arts Championships in Portugal ... Mr Wilks said 16-year-old Ruby Martini, who he has been training on and off for 10 years, and 10-year-old Joe Bougen, enjoyed success at three regional championships which continued to the national titles.

A General Practitioner who retired from clinical practice to live in Yamba and took five months to secure an appointment with a local doctor whose books were open, says a large percentage of GPs don’t have their own doctor ... Dr M has offered some solutions to the health crisis in the region, which could ease the pressure on local GPs and enable doctors to access consultations with colleagues.

The lives of more than 200 residents of Yamba’s Hometown Australia owned Grevillea Waters, whose average age is in their mid-70s, are at significant risk if a proposed 16 townhouse development adjacent to the village is approved by Clarence Valley Council. That was the strong message the Grevillea Waters Residents Committee Focus Group GWRCFG delivered to the Member for Clarence, Richie Williamson, and the CV Independent when we were invited to tour the village...

Lower Clarence residents will hear the sound of Royal Australian Air Force supersonic fighter jets in the skies over the next two months as squadrons conduct training exercises from the Evans Head Air Weapons Range. The training of pilots in the Number 1 Squadron and the Number 2 Operational Conversion Unit involved training flights and air-to-ground bombing training in both F/A -18F Super Hornets and F-35A Lightning II jets during April and May.

Clarence Valley Council will make a submission to a NSW Government inquiry looking to impose a levy on councils with dams calling for the idea to be scrapped, as it is another means of shifting costs onto councils ... Mayor Peter Johnstone said a previous attempt by the NSW Government to impose a levy on councils with dams failed.

The plight of Yamba residents whose homes are shaking and cracking from excavators moving and trucks carrying fill into floodplain development sites will be broadcast to a national audience following a visit by A Current Affair last Wednesday … greeted the reporter and camera crew ... in Park Avenue, Yamba, displaying “Stop The Fill” signs, while chanting “Stop The Fill, Don’t Drown Our Town.”