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Sea ripped a drowning child from hero's grasp
HEROIC fisherman Robert Brown, who dived from Tathra Wharf to try to save Shane O'Neill and his two sons, had hold of the pram containing 15-month-old Travis but it slipped from his hands.
Three times he pulled the pram to the surface and was trying to unclip Travis when he was smashed against a pylon -- the impact ripping the pram from his grip.
The heartbreaking story of the rescue emerged yesterday as the historic wharf on the Far South Coast became a memorial to Mr O'Neill and his two lost boys, Travis and Riley, 4.
At the Horizon Credit Union's offices along the South Coast, about $18,000 in donations was made to the appeal for Mr O'Neill's partner Stacey Lambert and the O'Neill family, with electronic transfers made through banks around the country expected today.
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No respite as rains bring region to knees
SOUTHEAST Queensland is reeling from a succession of violent storms that have so far claimed two lives and led to traffic chaos in Brisbane as well as the worst flooding in 30 years of some of the state's best farmland.
Just after midnight yesterday, another violent storm moved into Brisbane and surrounding areas from the west, dumping up to 250mm of rain in some areas in a matter of hours.
The city of Ipswich and the Brisbane Valley to its immediate west were the worst hit in yesterday morning's storm, and one woman died when her car was swept away by raging floodwaters. The 85-year-old woman had been driving with her husband along a road near Laidley in the Lockyer Valley when the car was swept off the road by rising floodwaters just before 8am yesterday. Her body was recovered later in the day.
Her death was the second storm fatality in southeast Queensland this week -- on Sunday night a 20-year-old man was killed after being stuck in a stormwater drain.
During peak hour last night,
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I turned down the world's sexiest man
HE has been officially named the sexiest man alive -- but Sydney mother Martine Bruce can remember a time when she knocked Hugh Jackman back.
``I remember him chasing me around the playground, trying to kiss me,'' Mrs Bruce said yesterday, recalling the romance she shared with the Australia star at Pymble Primary School on the North Shore.
People magazine in th US yesterday anointed Jackman ``sexiest man alive'', with the father of two nudging out James Bond star Daniel Craig, High School Musical's Zac Efron and soccer superstar David Beckham.
And in an interview with the magazine, Jackman named the girl he knew as Martine Craswell as his first girlfriend, recalling picking her up after she fell during a school race.
``My Dad said, `Oh, I always knew you were romantic because you were running in a race and Martine fell over and you stopped and went back and picked her up.' Chivalry was there,'' he told People.
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Very personal brush with a bear
IT'S the type of trust usually shared by a mother and child.
But with toothbrush poised in the mouth of Taronga Zoo sun bear Mr Hobbs, carnivore keeper Justine
Powell, knows there is more chance of being licked than torn apart, despite the species' fierce reputation.
``You do have to be very careful because they can get cranky, but we've got a good trust going,'' Ms Powell joked yesterday of 13-year-old Mr Hobbs and his sibling Victoria, who were rescued from a cage in a Cambodian restaurant in 1997.
Armed with an ordinary electric toothbrush, Ms Powell and a team of keepers share the five-minute manual brushing chores every second day.
The hands-on care began two years ago as a means of bypassing six monthly vet visits, which required anaesthetising the bears to remove tartar from the inch-long canines.
``They are very smart bears and now completely enjoy the experience. Mr Hobbs in particular gets very excited,'' Ms Powell said.
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The Kiwi teenager who slew our stars
THE teenage son of a Kiwi sheep farmer last night told of his delight at feasting on Australia's batting order as New Zealand dreamed of their greatest Test win.
Storm-ravaged Brisbane was declared a disaster zone and so was Australia's dressing room as 19-year-old swing bowler Tim Southee (4-63) became a fresh-faced giant killer.
In an incredible uprising, superstar Australian egos were punctured as the $9.50 underdog Kiwis bowled the world champions out for 214 in front of a stunned Gabba crowd of 12,498.
It was Southee, a former rugby prodigy who was raised on a farm north of Auckland, who destroyed Australia's top order and added more misery to a dressing room already reeling from a poor Indian tour.
``I think the Aussies would have liked to score a lot more than their 214 and anyone would take knocking the Aussies over for 214,'' Southee said.
``We had to make the most of the conditions early because it was a bowler-friendly wicket, and we did so.''
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Mums injured as veranda collapses
IT was the traditional mothers' luncheon to celebrate the graduation of their boys from one of Brisbane's most prestigious private schools.
But as more than 30 of the 75 guests crowded on to the front veranda of the renovated Queenslander, the floor gave way, spilling the women into a mess of bodies and debris, trapping three and injuring 26. One mother is fighting for her life.
Emergency services were called to the exclusive inner-north suburb of Ascot just after 1pm as the women's Year 12 sons enjoyed an outing on the Gold Coast.
Police and city council investigators are unsure what caused the collapse, but have not ruled out overcrowding on the veranda of the $2 million home during the catered lunch. Witnesses reported hearing a crack before the enclosed veranda fell 3m.
The women taken to hospital were suffering a range of injuries from cuts and bruises to broken legs and suspected spinal fractures.
One woman, with life-threatening injuries, underwent surgery.
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Hero mum takes on invaders
HERO Betty Paranomos, aged 71, ``did what any good mother would do'' when she took on thugs attacking her son in a terrifying home invasion.
She fronted three louts twice her size in a bid to stop them beating Sam, 40, who was curled up on the kitchen floor of their Georges Hall house covered in blood.
Her sleeping family woke at 11.30pm on Wednesday to three burly men knocking on their door.
When Sam answered it, his attacker asked: ``Do you know who I am?'' before punching him in the face and forcing his way inside the house. Alarmed at the noise, Mrs Paranomos ran down a flight of stairs to see her son in the foetal position as three men kicked him in the face and body.
``I just did what any mother would do, I grabbed one and pushed him away from my son,'' Mrs Paranomos said.
``It was automatic, I didn't think about it, I just didn't want them to hurt him any more.''
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Farewell to Digger bashed for 50 cents
WAR veteran Ernest Evans ``gave his best for his country'' but six weeks after being bashed for 50c he died without his injuries healing and with horrific trauma akin to shell-shock.
His attacker, unemployed 30-year-old Kristopher Cowie, was on bail when he allegedly punched Mr Evans, sending him flying over a park bench in Miranda last month.
After the attack, Mr Evans reverted to jumping out of bed, as he had done after the war, and yelling out for his mates to ``get down'' to avoid Japanese fire.
He would then cry out, ``The bastard wants 50 cents,'' his son Bob said yesterday.
``He was having nightmares every night. It brought back the nightmares about being in the jungle with the Japanese. It had taken psychologists many years to get that out of him.''
Lacerations to Mr Evans' legs did not heal, his feet swelled so much he was unable to wear shoes and he needed a wheelchair before succumbing to a heart attack on Friday.
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Bring on Lance -- Evans welcomes Armstrong's Tour challenge
HE'S a man who usually lets his legs do the talking on the toughest roads in Europe, too spent at day's end to waste air on idle chat.
But yesterday a relaxed Cadel Evans was talking up a storm, expounding his views on everything from Lance Armstrong's comeback, the war on drugs, his new energy bar and his all-consuming passion to win the Tour de France.
In a candid interview during a one-month break from the bike, Evans claimed cycling is now cleaner than most sports and that he would have won the Tour de France but for a high-speed crash in the epic race in August.
The man born in the outback who plies his trade on the high peaks of Europe said his lifelong passion for the sport remains undiminished and believes he can win the 2009 Tour, despite the course favouring rivals more than him.
``Can I win? I think so, yes,'' he said.
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Twiggy's mystery buyer
FORTESCUE Metals Group has announced that a mystery Chinese steel mill has agreed to boost its offtake agreement with the iron ore miner for 2009, increasing its contract by 3.5 million tonnes to 5.5 million tonnes.
News of the deal came as the company's beleaguered share price sank to $1.29, well down from the $13 mark the group hit in June.
Fortescue chairman Graeme Rowley said after Fortescue's annual meeting yesterday that the company was one of China's top five steel mills and that theincrease was at the same contract price.
Mr Rowley played down reports out of Hong Kong that sovereign wealth fund China Investment Corp was in talks with the company, saying Fortescue had ``been talking with a number of Chinese investors for a long, long while''.
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Historical Australia
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