Hail, winds, rain to hit NSW

Hail has fallen on Newcastle and severe thunderstorms are likely to hammer parts of New South Wales. Source: AAP

HAIL has fallen on Newcastle and severe thunderstorms are likely to hammer parts of NSW with damaging winds and heavy rainfall.

THE storms could also cause flash flooding in areas around Newcastle, Gosford, Armidale, Tamworth, Moree, Narrabri, Dubbo, Parkes and Wagga Wagga, the Bureau of Meteorology said in a severe thunderstorm warning issued Monday afternoon.

Almost 43 millimetres of rain has fallen on Newcastle and two centimetres of hail has hit the city's Bar Beach.In Dubbo about 2.5 cm of hail came down.The storms, which are moving towards the east to southeast from Newcastle, have prompted the SES to remind people to avoid from fallen power lines and bodies of water.It also advises people to grab their pets, stay indoors, unplug computers and appliances and stay away from windows.The BOM is predicting the foul weather to return to NSW on Tuesday, with showers likely everywhere except the state's north.It expects temperatures ranging from the mid-20s down to as low as 12 degrees, the forecast minimum for Camden in Sydney's southwest.The temperature is due to dip to 7 degrees in parts of the Southern Tablelands.An update is expected from the BOM on Monday evening.

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Gordon should stay: Cape York mayors

OUTCAST Queensland MP Billy Gordon should remain in parliament until allegations against him are properly investigated, say indigenous mayors in his Cape York electorate.

MR Gordon is weighing up his options after being dumped by the Labor party over domestic abuse allegations and his undisclosed criminal record.

Nine mayors in the Aboriginal Shire Council in the indigenous MP's far north seat of Cook have discussed backing him until police finish investigating the abuse claims."All the indigenous communities voted for him so we better get behind him and support him until we find out which way this is going to go with the police," Kowanyama Mayor Robert Holness told AAP."It's really a bit of a witch-hunt at the moment. The man's innocent until proven guilty - don't crucify him for something that hasn't been investigated yet."Mr Holness brushed off the MP's past convictions because "all of us do stupid things when we're young fellas".He also stressed Mr Gordon could have reformed since the alleged abuse occurred."People who have been involved in domestic violence and changed are actually great advocates against it," he said."Never discount the ability of people to change over time."But Mr Holness felt Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk had the right to sack Mr Gordon from the Labor party because he had hidden his criminal past and the abuse allegations."If he had been up front he wouldn't be in this crap right now," Mr Holness said.Lockhart River Mayor Wayne Butcher wanted to see the evidence."We need to see if these accusations of domestic violence are valid or not," he told AAP."That's really the make or break for Billy."Hope Vale Mayor Greg McLean said that as an independent MP, Mr Gordon would be "the most powerful man in parliament" and it was his choice whether or not to stay or go."The people have gone to the polls and voted Billy Gordon for the seat of Cook," Mr McLean told AAP."It's his decision at the end of the day."However, Cook Shire Mayor Peter Scott said Mr Gordon should resign."People have to be sure policy-makers are honest and have a clean background," he told AAP."So he's done the wrong thing."Mr Scott said with neither Labor nor the LNP willing to accept Mr Gordon's vote, he could not see the point of him remaining in parliament.

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More airline deaths in 2014, fewer crashes

THE number of deaths in jetliner disasters spiked last year despite there being fewer accidents in total.

THE International Air Transport Association said in its annual safety report that 641 people died in airline accidents in 2014.

Its figures don't include the 298 people killed when Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 was downed over Ukraine.There were 210 deaths in 2013 and the five-year average is 517 deaths.IATA said last year was marked by two "extraordinary and tragic events" both involving Malaysia Airlines: Flight 17 and earlier in the year the disappearance of Flight 370 which was carrying 238 people.The IATA numbers don't include Flight 17 because the plane was shot down by anti-aircraft weapons and was therefore not classified as an accident.The number of fatal aeroplane crashes fell to 12 last year from 16 the previous year and the five-year average of 19.The group said there was one accident for every 4.347 million flights, a record low.

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Three shot dead near Toowoomba

THREE people have been shot dead at a property on Queensland's Darling Downs, police say.

OFFICERS were called to an address in Biddeston, 25km west of Toowoomba, shortly before 7pm (AEST) on Monday.

A crime scene has been established, a police spokesman said.Police have cordoned off a red brick bungalow house belonging to a single-parent family with several children, a neighbour told AAP.The man said the house, about 30 metres from his own, was frequented by police."It's put Biddeston on the map for all the wrong reasons," he said.Forensic officers and detectives will remain at the scene throughout the night.

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Girl found safe and well in Brisbane

A six-year-old girl is believed to have been abducted from a school in Brisbane, Police say. Source: AAP

A SIX-YEAR-OLD girl has been found safe and well after fears of a possible abduction from a Brisbane school.

EARLIER, police issued an alert that the girl may have been taken from Ascot State School after she was last seen on the corner of Anthony and Massey streets about 2pm (AEST).

Queensland police thanked the public for their assistance and said further details could not be released for privacy reasons.

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Fire crews working to contain Perth blaze

A watch and act alert has been issued for an out of control and unpredictable bushfire in Perth. Source: AAP

FIREFIGHTERS are working to contain a bushfire in Nowergup, on Perth's northern fringe, where an emergency warning has been downgraded.

A WATCH and act warning remains in place for homes on Carabooda Road and south to Hester Avenue, Wanneroo Road and east to Perry Road, in Nowergup and the western part of Pinjar in the City of Wanneroo.

"The alert level for this fire has been downgraded as the fire will be contained shortly," according to a DFES statement.The fire may still pose a threat to homes and lives as it approaches Old Yanchep Road within the next two hours.The fire started south of Wesco Road and west of Hopkins Road about 2.20pm.It is now burning in forest on both sides of Wesco Road towards Old Yanchep Road.The fire front is 600 metres long and has burned around 90 hectares.

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Happy, Frozen top iTunes list

THE soundtrack for Frozen and Pharrell Williams' viral Happy are the year's top-selling album and song on iTunes.

APPLE announced on Monday that Taylor Swift's 1989, just released in October, is behind Frozen.

Coldplay's Ghost Stories, Sam Smith's In the Lonely Hour and the Guardians of the Galaxy soundtrack round out the Top 5 albums.John Legend's All of Me, Katy Perry's Dark Horse, Talk Dirty by Jason Derulo and Iggy Azalea's Fancy follow Happy on the songs list.Frozen is the year's best-selling movie and season three of Game of Thrones is the top TV show.The top paid and free apps for the iPhone are Heads Up! and Facebook Messenger. The top paid and free apps for the iPad are Minecraft - Pocket Edition and YouTube.John Green's 2012 novel, The Fault in Our Stars - which had a film adaption this year - is the top fiction book.Flash Boys: A Wall Street Revolt and Private are No. 1 for non-fiction and free books, respectively.Apple also released an editorial list, naming Swift's 1989 best album of the year. Beyonce earned top overall artist and Azalea's Fancy best song.

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US navy cancels Philippines port calls

THE United States has cancelled scheduled visits of three military ships to the Philippines, where a US marine has been charged with killing a Filipino transgender woman, officials say.

THREE US military vessels were supposed to arrive at Subic Bay Freeport in Olongapo City, 80 kilometres north of Manila, this month, according to Charles Jose, spokesman for the Department of Foreign Affairs.

But the department was recently informed of the cancellation of the port calls, he added.Jose said the cancellation was not related to the murder case against US Private First Class Joseph Pemberton, who is accused of killing transgender woman Jeffrey Laude, also know as Jennifer, on October 11 in a motel in Olongapo City."The reconsideration of visits is a normal occurrence as US ships are deployed in many areas of the Pacific and subject to changing operational requirements," he said."We don't see the ongoing case to be a reason."Pemberton is currently detained inside the Philippine military headquarters in Manila, but the victim's family and activist groups have demanded his transfer to a police detention centre.

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Ban Ki-moon may vie for S Korea presidency

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon could be a presidential candidate in his native South Korea in the next elections, a representative from the country's main opposition party says.

KWON Roh-kap, an adviser to the New Politics Alliance for Democracy, NPAD, said that confidants close to Ban had discussed the possibility of his candidature in the presidential elections scheduled for December 2017.

The UN leader, who will end his term with the international organisation at the end of 2016, would join NPAD and participate in the elections if he wanted, according to the Yonhap news agency, citing Kwon.South Korea's current president, Park Geun-hye, completes her five-year tenure in early 2018 and is not eligible to run for re-election under South Korean law.According to polls, Harvard graduate Ban, 70, is highly respected and popular among South Koreans.Ban served as the country's foreign minister in the government of Roh Moo-hyun, a highly progressive leader who was in office from 2003 to 2008.Both the presidents who succeeded Roh (Lee Myung-bak and current president Park) are conservative politicians of the Saenuri Party which has enjoyed support in a society increasingly divided between leftists and rightists.Experts believe that having an internationally renowned figure such as Ban could give the progressives the opportunity to regain power in Asia's fourth-largest economy.

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Coalition narrows Labor's slim poll lead

Stabbed teen was Islam gang member

A MEMBER of a self-styled radical Islamic street gang is recovering in hospital after he was stabbed at a Western Sydney birthday party.

$15 million for a fracking fuss

A DECISION by the energy minister to halt drilling at a coal seam gas site could cost the state government $15 million as a compensation payout.

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