April 24, 2026
New $65m flood recovery package for the Mid North Coast Scotts Head Road during the May 2025 flood event. Photo: Nambucca Valley SES.
Local News

New $65m flood recovery package for the Mid North Coast

THE State and Federal Governments have committed more than $56 million in new funding to support Mid North Coast communities as they continue to rebuild following the severe weather of May 2025 and ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred. The nearly $56.3 million package, delivered through the joint Commonwealth-State Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements (DRFA), targets the long-term work […]

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AI cameras spotted more than 1000 bushfires over summer The technology is assisting firefighting forces to monitor more areas and predict the spread of more bushfires. Photo: NSW Rural Fire Service.
Local News

AI cameras spotted more than 1000 bushfires over summer

ARTIFICIALLY intelligent cameras detected more than 1100 bushfires in Australia over summer, including some that would have been missed by humans until they posed a greater risk. One fire outbreak caused by lighting strikes, for example, could have damaged a pine forest if cameras had not alerted firefighters. Pano AI revealed the findings on Tuesday […]

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Stargazing: April showers set to thrill
Local News

Stargazing: April showers set to thrill

EVER stood under a quiet night sky and caught a sudden flash, like the heavens just struck a match? That fleeting streak we casually call a “shooting star” is anything but ordinary. And over the coming week, the sky is set to put on a show that rewards patience, curiosity, and a willingness to lose […]

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Coffs Coast astronomer awarded after discovering giant planetary ring A visualisation of the ring that Jonathan, Renato and John found. Photo: European Space Agency.
Local News

Coffs Coast astronomer awarded after discovering giant planetary ring

A visualisation of the ring that Jonathan, Renato and John found. Photo: European Space Agency. Coffs astronomer Jonathan Bradshaw with his telescope. Amateur astronomers Jonathan, Renato and John with their story in Nature. Renato Langersek and Jonathan Bradshaw receive their Page Medals from Fred Watson. MOONEE amateur astronomer Jonathan Bradshaw has been honoured by the […]

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Colour and culture as Songkran Festival hits Coffs Miss Songkran competitors. Photo: Kate Pye.
Local News

Colour and culture as Songkran Festival hits Coffs

  Miss Songkran competitors. Photo: Kate Pye.   Ola Williamson and Anne Kavanagh from Grafton. Photo: Kate Pye.   Event organiser Roung Sommer with her helpers. Photo: Kate Pye.   Jane and Itsarad Boonmak from Coffs Harbour. Photo: Kate Pye.   Joey Jarrett getting amongst the action. Photo: Kate Pye.   THE sights and sounds […]

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Aboriginal organisations combine in vision for ‘healthy country’ Crew leader Grant Brown.
Local News

Aboriginal organisations combine in vision for ‘healthy country’

ABORIGINAL organisations from across the North Coast have combined to care for Country, protect threatened species and strengthen intergenerational cultural knowledge. The Visions for Healthy Country project continues to build momentum across the region as Aboriginal organisations lead practical, on-ground conservation work across multiple sites in coming months Funded by the Australian Government Natural Heritage […]

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Farmers hit hard by food waste Data shows Australian horticulture experiences average food loss rates of about 20 percent per farm.
Local News

Farmers hit hard by food waste

AUSTRALIAN fruit and vegetable growers are missing out on the sale of up to a million tonnes of produce annually that never makes it to market. That’s a whopping $2.5 billion a year but a figure dwarfed by the costs linked to such a huge loss. Data shows Australian horticulture experiences average food loss rates […]

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Stargazing: What if we had no Moon? Image a world without a moon.
Local News

Stargazing: What if we had no Moon?

IMAGINE a world where the Moon never showed up for its nightly shift. No silver spotlight draped across oceans, no quiet companion hanging above late-night thinkers. Just a blazing Sun clocking out each evening and leaving us with… a blackout. Romantic? Not exactly. Mysterious? Maybe – but mostly inconvenient. Let’s start at the beach. Without […]

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Concerns raised over proposed battery storage facility at Karangi Karangi residents at the community information session at Upper Orara Hall. Photo: Kate Pye.
Local News

Concerns raised over proposed battery storage facility at Karangi

Karangi residents at the community information session at Upper Orara Hall. Photo: Kate Pye. Sharon Few at her property overlooking the proposed battery storage site. Photo: Kate Pye. A map of the proposed battery facility location in Karangi. SYDNEY-BASED developer Avenis Energy is proposing a 10-hectare lithium-ion battery storage facility in Karangi, with construction and […]

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Coffs apprentice plumber among increasing number of women taking up trades Casey Cowgill is one of a growing number of local women launching a career in the construction trades.
Local News

Coffs apprentice plumber among increasing number of women taking up trades

WOMEN in Construction Week in March revealed the number of women enrolling in construction trades courses in NSW more than doubled in the five years to 2025. One local example is 20-year-old Coffs Harbour apprentice plumber Casey Cowgill, a self-described “accidental plumber”. The daughter of a bricklayer, Casey is a proud Dunghutti woman who chose […]

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