MELBOURNE (TIP): More than 100 people are believed to have been killed on May 24 in a landslide in a remote part of Papua New Guinea, Australian Broadcasting Corp. reported.
The landslide reportedly hit Kaokalam Village in Enga Province, about 600 kilometers (370 miles) northwest of the South Pacific island nation’s capital of Port Moresby, at roughly 3 a.m. local time, ABC reported.
Residents say current estimates of the death toll are above 100, although authorities have not confirmed this figure. Villagers said the number of people killed could be much higher.
The Papua New Guinea government and police did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Friday.
Papua New Guinea is a diverse, developing nation of mostly subsistence farmers with 800 languages. There are few roads outside the larger cites .
With 10 million people, it also the most populous South Pacific nation after Australia, which is home to 27 million. (AP)
Tag: Melbourne
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More than 100 people believed killed by a landslide in Papua New Guinea, Australian media report
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Sinner ends 10-time champion Djokovic’s Australian Open streak
Melbourne (TIP)- Jannik Sinner ended one of Novak Djokovic’s perfect streaks in an Australian Open upset and then got to relax while Daniil Medvedev rallied from two sets down to beat Alexander Zverev after midnight to secure the other place in the final.
For a self-described tennis fan, just everything went Sinner’s way in the semifinals on Friday.
The 22-year-old Italian broke Djokovic’s serve twice in each of the first two sets in a surprisingly lopsided 6-1, 6-2, 6-7 (6), 6-3 victory that ended the 10-time champion’s unbeaten streak in semifinals at Rod Laver Arena.
Almost an hour after missing a match point in the tiebreaker, Sinner converted his second to complete his third win in four head-to-heads since losing to Djokovic in last year’s Wimbledon semifinals.
“I learned a lot from that,” he said of that Wimbledon loss and his subsequent wins. “It gives you a better feeling when you know that you can beat one player.
“The confidence from the end of last year has for sure kept the belief.” Third-seeded Medvedev appeared down and out after two sets, and was two points from losing in the fourth, but rallied to beat Zverev 5-7, 3-6, 7-6 (4), 7-6 (5), 6-3 after 4 hours, 18 minutes. “I was a little bit lost, but during the third set I started saying If I lose this match, I just want to be proud of myself,’” said Medvedev, who has lost two finals in Australia, including one from two sets up. “I’m proud of myself.”
Zverev’s run drew attention on and off the court after news emerged that a German court set a trial date in May over an assault allegation dating to 2020. The Olympic gold medalist has denied the accusations since last July when details of the case became public.
After winning the first two sets, Zverev got within a couple of swings of the racket of making a second Grand Slam final. Instead it will be Medvedev, the 2021 U.S. Open champion whose run here included a grueling second-round win that finished at almost 4 in the morning, who will be aiming for a second major title. Sinner will be the youngest player to contest the men’s final in Australia since Djokovic won the first of his 10 titles here in 2008.
A record-extending 11th Australian and 25th major title overall will have to wait for Djokovic.
He hadn’t lost a match at Melbourne Park since a fourth-round exit in 2018, had never lost after reaching the final four, and was on a 33-match winning streak at the season’s first major.
Source: AP -
Indian community mourns tragic death of 4 compatriots who drowned at unpatrolled beach in Phillip Island, Australia
MELBOURNE (TIP) : The Indian community in Australia is mourning the tragic death of four compatriots, including three women, who drowned at an unpatrolled beach in Phillip Island this week.
Jagjeet Singh Anand, a 23-year-old male nurse, Suhani Anand and Kirti Bedi, 20-year-old nursing students, and Reema Sondhi, 43, died in the tragic incident on Wednesday. They were part of a group of about 10 people who were enjoying a day out at Phillip Island, near Melbourne in Victoria.
A close relative, who was too devastated to speak at length, said Sondhi was visiting her family in Australia and had arrived there two weeks earlier, the media reported.
Sondhi was the daughter-in-law of industrialist Om Sondhi from Phagwara in India’s Punjab state. Reema’s husband Sanjeev, too, was part of the group but he survived.
Jagjeet Singh Anand, a Melbourne-based nurse, was a permanent resident in Australia while Suhani Anand and Bedi were on student visas. The three younger victims were all residents of Clyde, a suburb of Melbourne.
Ravinder Singh, who is close to the family of the victims and is organizing a fundraiser, said the community was struggling to comprehend the scale of the tragedy.
“It is so sad, we have no words,” he media.
“They were very kind members [of Melbourne’s Indian community], they were very down to earth.
“This is a loss that will never be filled. It is the darkest day of my life.”
Singh said he also wanted to raise the community’s awareness of the danger of swimming at the beach, to try to prevent future heartache.
“It is very important to teach the community about rip currents,” he said.
Friends have also started a GoFundMe campaign to help “fulfil the wishes” of the family.
“Shivam, a registered nurse with a heart of gold, saved many lives throughout his career but was unable to be saved when needed himself. Suhani and Kriti, both nursing students, had planned to stay home and focus on their studies, but life had other plans,” campaign organizer Ankur Chhabra said.
“In this time of immense grief, we can come together, not just in mourning, but in a tide of compassion that lifts their families above the depths of despair.
“We can help by raising funds to assist the family in fulfilling their wishes, whether it be transporting the remains back to India or supporting the cremation ceremony in Australia,” Chhabra told a media channel.
The Indian high commission in Australia on Thursday in a post on X spoke about the “heartbreaking tragedy” in which “four Indians lost their lives”.
The commission said the consulate general of India in Melbourne was providing support to the family and friends.
Bass Coast Mayor Clare Le Serve, expressing her condolences to the victims’ families, said the Forrest Caves tragedy and other recent drownings had deeply saddened the Phillip Island community.
“Whilst we live in a beautiful region surrounded by beaches, this is sadly a tragic reminder of how dangerous the ocean can be,” she said.
Victoria Police Eastern Region Assistant Commissioner Karen Nyholm said the victims entered the water near Forrest Caves — close to Cape Woolamai — on the Bass Strait side of the Phillip Island’s south-eastern peninsula.
Off-duty lifeguards surfing nearby rushed to their aid after the group got into difficulty, pulling three people from the water unresponsively.
Life Saving Victoria commander Kane Treloar said lifeguards from Cape Woolamai were called at about 3.40 pm on Wednesday and a rescue boat retrieved the fourth person—all required CPR.
Three of the victims were pronounced dead at the scene while one of the 20-year-old women was resuscitated and flown to The Alfred. She died in hospital, police said on Thursday morning.
“We all worked tirelessly to help those people,” Ambulance Victoria manager Paul James said. “It’s tragic…only a week ago we had three other separate drownings here in Gippsland.”
Treloar said Wednesday’s tragedy was the worst drowning incident in Victoria in almost two decades.
“It’s not since 2005, [when] a tragedy occurred at Stingray Bay, that we’ve seen these sorts of numbers,” he said, referencing a drowning at Warrnambool’s Middle Island that killed five people from one family.
Treloar urged those on Phillip Island to swim at three patrolled beaches, including Cowes Beach on the protected Western Port side of the island.
“The exposed beaches along Bass Strait…are a dangerous, but really beautiful stretch of coastline that a lot of people want to come and enjoy this summer,” he said.
A spokesperson for Phillip Island Nature Parks, which manages the Forrest Caves area, said the authority would review warning signs at the beach, which already had a no-swimming symbol and met Australian standards.
Police are still trying to piece together what led to Wednesday’s tragedy but are not treating the deaths as suspicious. Emergency services warned against swimming at the relatively remote Forrest Caves beach.
Police will prepare a report for the coroner. -
Indian student killed in road accident in Australia
MELBOURNE (TIP): A 22-year-old Indian student working as an Uber Eats driver in Australia was killed after his bike collided with an SUV in Sydney, a media report said.
Akshay Deepak Doultani, a Mumbai native pursuing a master’s degree in Australia, died in a crash last week in New South Wales while working as a food delivery driver, the Australia Broadcasting Cooperation reported on Wednesday, August 2. Doultani received a scholarship for a master’s degree in finance at Macquarie University and came to Australia in February. He worked as an Uber Eats delivery rider at least three times a week to cover his expenses. He was taken to the Royal North Shore Hospital after the crash but died hours later, the report said.
“The only reason why he wanted to come abroad was not [just to] have a good life for himself but to provide more amenities for his family so they could live a lifestyle that was much better,” his cousin Pratik Kamath was quoted as saying in the report. With Doultani’s death, the number of food delivery riders killed in Australia since 2017 rose to 12, according to the Transport Workers Union.
“Akshay’s tragic loss is another reminder of how dangerous the gig economy can be , where workers are forced to push themselves to the limit just to make ends meet,” Labor senator for New South Wales Tony Sheldon posted on social media platform X. In a statement, Uber Eats said it was committed to the safety of delivery workers and had policies in place to enhance road safety. “In Australia, Uber Eats delivery people are covered by a support package designed specifically for them,” a company spokesperson was quoted as saying in the report.
The fatal crash is being investigated by New South Wales Police and Safework NSW, the state work safety regulator.
(Source: PTI) -
Australian Open: Sofia Kenin falls to Kaia, Nadal rolls on
Melbourne (TIP): Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin was unable to bear the pressure of defending her maiden Grand Slam title as the American bowed out in the second round in tears on Thursday following a 6-3 6-2 loss to Estonia’s Kaia Kanepi. Kenin, who was also runner-up at the French Open last year, crumbled in 64 minutes and the 22-year-old admitted the burden of expectation took its toll.
Fourth-seeded Russian Daniil Medvedev celebrated his 25th birthday in style with a 6-2 7-5 6-1 win over Roberto Carballes Baena while Rafa Nadal overcame the challenge of Michael Mmoh as well as an unruly spectator in a 6-1 6-4 6-2 victory. Heavily bandaged top seed Ash Barty survived a near-collapse in the second set from 5-2 to come away with a 6-1 7-6(7) victory over fellow Australian Daria Gavrilova to set up a third round match with Russian 29th seed Ekaterina Alexandrova. An all-Italian affair saw Fabio Fognini beat Salvatore Caruso 4-6 6-2 2-6 6-3 7-6(12) which ended in a shouting match before the court supervisor was forced to intervene but neither player was willing to discuss what was said after the match.
A day after local favourite Nick Kyrgios won in five sets, the crowd at the John Cain Arena got their money’s worth again as Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas beat 267th-ranked Thanasi Kokkinakis 6-7(5) 6-4 6-1 6-7(5) 6-4 in a battle lasting over 4-1/2 hours.
Ukraine’s fifth seed Elina Svitolina produced a clinical display to beat American teenager Coco Gauff 6-4 6-3.
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Indian-origin Punjabi taxi driver’s son makes it to Australia T20I team
MELBOURNE (TIP): Teenaged leg-spinner Tanveer Sangha, son of an Indian-origin taxi driver in Australia, has been named in Australia’s T20 squad for the upcoming five-match series in New Zealand.
Sangha, who represented Australia at the under-19 World Cup just 12 months ago, is son of Sydney-based Joga, who had migrated from Rahimpur Kala Sanghian, a village near Jalandhar in Punjab, in 1997.
Sangha, 19, has been in great form in the Big Bash League 10 regular season.
Playing for Sydney Thunder, he scalped 21 wickets at an impressive average of 16.66.
Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting had also called for Sangha’s inclusion in the national side.
“He’s a young bloke who looks like he’s pretty confident and in control of what he’s doing, and he bowls proper good balls so he might be someone they’d look to get into the system,” Ponting told cricket.com.au
“It’s a hard one for young leg-spinners, because they come along quickly and everyone’s excited by how good they might be, quite often they’re introduced early and they can have a few setbacks after that. But they might have to think about that,” he said.
Sangha was Australia’s leading wicket taker in the under-19 World Cup last year. He scalped 15 wickets in the six matches in the tournament held in South Africa.
Before Tanveer, Gurinder Sandhu was the other Indian-origin player to have played for Australia national team.
The five-match series between Australia and New Zealand will start from February 22.
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Indian Student, Clicking Selfie, Dies After Falling Off Hill In Australia
MELBOURNE (TIP): In a tragic incident, a 20-year-old Indian origin student has died after falling off rocks into the ocean from a popular tourist attraction in Western Australia while trying to take a selfie, media reports said.
Ankit was with friends when he slipped off the 40-metre precipice at The Gap, near the historic port town of Albany, the media reported.
He was studying in Perth, and had been running and jumping on the rocks before he slipped and plunged into the ocean while taking a photo with friends , the report said.
His body was recovered from the water just over an hour later following a search involving a rescue helicopter.
“He was just very careful, just to take a picture and he just slipped down there, on the hill,” his friend was quoted as saying by the report.
Police are still trying to contact the student’s parents.
“A young male has gone into the water, and sadly lost their life. This is such a tragic event,” said Dominic Wood, Great Southern District superintendent.
All I know at this stage is that there is a small group, we think of about five young adults, they were down here within the vicinity of the platform behind me around the rocks,” Wood said.
“It is a dangerous area but if you take precautions and stay between the bounds, then these things won’t happen.”
The site was briefly closed two years ago to add a viewing platform and railings and warning signs near the edge.