Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
ABC News
ABC News
Health

Sydney News: First of five funerals for teenage victims of Buxton crash today

Here's what you need to know this morning.

First Buxton crash funeral today

The grieving community of Wollondilly will hold the first of five funerals in Picton today for the teenage victims of a car crash at Buxton last week.

Picton High will move to online learning from today until Monday to allow students and staff to attend the funerals, with some teachers onsite for students who need to attend the school.

The Department of Education said counselling support continued for students, staff and the community. 

Wollondilly Mayor Matt Gould said the coming days would be difficult and the community had suggested a way to commemorate those lost and show their support for their families.

"We just started a really lovely thing that came up from the community. We are asking everyone in the community to put out some streamers or balloons in the kids' favourite colours just so the kids and their families, they can see that the Wollondilly community does have their back during this really difficult time," Mr Gould said. 

Sydney Science Park controversy

It was supposed to be Sydney's answer to Silicone Valley.

But six years after plans for this $5 billion tech hub were approved, its near 300-hectare site is still a paddock. 

The blueprint was bold: gleaming laboratories, office towers, a school and 12,000 much-needed jobs in the city's booming south-western suburbs.

But there are now fears the Sydney Science Park dream is an expensive "mirage", at risk of being turned into another housing estate on the city's fringes, where residents must commute long distances to work.

NSW MP Mark Latham said the project had “received preferential treatment” on a scale "never seen before in Western Sydney".

"I think there's been a deliberate state government policy over many years to do whatever the developer wants," he said.

In a statement, project developer Celestino CEO Matthew Scard said the company had "not had any preferential treatment".

Opal closures 'not lawful'

Sydney Trains doesn't believe plans by the rail union to turn off Opal card readers next week is lawful. 

The Rail Tram and Bus Union (RTBU) will shut down Opal card reader machines indefinitely from next Wednesday as part of its ongoing industrial dispute with the state government.

The union has been leaving the gates open but Premier Dominic Perrottet said 90 per cent of commuters continued to tap on and off.

On Wednesday, the RTBU said it was confident the action was legal and could be withdrawn if the dispute over an enterprise bargaining agreement and its concerns over train safety were resolved.

But a spokesperson for Sydney Trains said it was seeking legal advice and didn't consider the action protected.

The government and union will be back before the Fair Work Commission in Sydney on Friday.

Winter spike in insurance claims 

New national data released by the NRMA shows the majority of insurance claims made during winter were from NSW. 

More than 19,000 claims were made for damage caused by wild weather during winter.

It is the highest number of winter claims the company has recorded since 2016.

About 8,000 home claims in the state were the result of severe weather.

The Illawarra, Hunter Valley and Central Coast regions topped the list with the highest number of claims, while Campbelltown, Liverpool and Blacktown in Western Sydney recorded the greatest number of home and motor claims of any towns or suburbs in the state.

Paracetamol overdose increasing

The Therapeutic Goods Administration has published a report examining intentional paracetamol overdose, with recommendations looking at possible amendments to the Poisons Standard.

It found self-poisoning using paracetamol had increased over the last decade, particularly in young women.

Black Dog Institute board director, Professor Helen Christensen, said it provided an opportunity to prevent the problem by restricting access to the drug.

"We found, particularly in young people, that self-harming was impulsive and young people take what's available in homes and it's often a first attempt," she said.

"The report made recommendations that we restrict the number of packets that could be purchased from supermarkets, we restrict the number of tablets within packets and we restrict the age of people being able to purchase packages if they're under 18."

The review also found there was limited recent research in Australia about the causes of self-poisoning and the motivations of young people to self-harm.

Regional inequity in Lymphoma treatment

Lymphoma Australia is calling for national reform after new research found regional Australians face significant inequities accessing diagnoses and treatment.

It found delayed diagnoses, limited knowledge of new treatment options and poorer outcomes compared to city-based communities.

Findings show that two in three people living with lymphoma in regional areas are unable to access treatment locally with more than one in three saying distance had prevented them from receiving treatment.

Lymphoma Australia CEO Sharon Winton said better care is needed across Australia.

"It's not just lymphoma, it can be patients with any type of cancer and so we need to be looking at it at both the federal and state levels to see what we can do to make sure all Australians are getting access to the best treatments to give them the best chance," she said.

Over 7,000 Australians will be diagnosed with lymphoma this year.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.