With the recent challenges of flooding, bushfires and changes made due to COVID-19 restrictions, local businesses have been doing it tough.From Lismore’s laneways to Nimbin’s redevelopment – what do you think our towns need to revitalise our business centres?Lismore City Council’s CBD activation officer Kathy Gray wants locals to come along to two meetings this week to feed their ideas into Council’s new Business Activation Plan for Lismore and Nimbin.What does the future hold for Nimbin?Kathy said the meetings on Thursday and Friday hope to tease out the possibilities for strengthening business and economic success of our towns, by understanding the aspirations of the local community better.“Nimbin and Lismore both have unique offerings and we want to create short term outcomes, in partnership with community, that create a big impact in our area," she said.“We want to know how can we leverage our unique strengths and help make the spaces more vibrant for people working here, as well as visitors to the Northern Rivers region.Themes “We have already identified some themes and want to share insights from that learning with the community and also generate new ideas to activate CBD areas.”“For example, we already have some possibilities emerging in the laneways project - how can we activate the new facilities in this? How can we work with more with the parklets being trialled?“We also have some events to work with, including new ones being developed – such as the Shine Festival.”Kathy said the implementation of the new Business Activation Plan will be funded by the Special Business Variation Rates and will be actioned swiftly.“We look forward to hearing from business and property owners, CBD residents and workers, and community members frequenting the central business areas of Lismore and Nimbin,” Kathy said.Workshop details and registrationLismore workshop: Thursday, 15 April, from 6pm to 8.30pm, at Lismore Workers ClubNimbin workshop: Friday, 16 April, from 12.30 pm to 3pm, at Nimbin Community Centre.  The workshops will be held in small groups of about 20 and people are encouraged to register online.To register or find out more about the Business Activation Plan, visit http://www.yoursay.lismore.nsw.gov.au (numbers are limited and COVID safety measures will be followed). The Business Activation Plan is currently overseen by the Business Activation Plan Working Group, which includes representatives from the Lismore and Nimbin business chambers, Lismore Square and Regional Development Australia - Northern Rivers.

Being told her brother David Roberts had committed suicide while in Grafton jail has made Widjabul Wybal woman and community organiser Cindy Roberts angry. Being told that the cameras in the jail were not working at the time of his death made her even more angry.Now, Cindy wants to see big changes in the legal system – and she is calling the Lismore community to join with her tomorrow at 12pm (Saturday, April 10) to rally as part of a national day of action that highlights the shocking lack of reform that’s taken place in the 30 years since the final report was released on the Royal Commission into Aboriginal deaths in custody.“When my family were told my brother was dead and committed suicide, it didn’t make sense,” Cindy said. “I knew he had a life."Murdered"“The coroner said it was suspicious and we knew he was murdered. The people who were in prison at the time who knew what had happened are now dead too.“He was found hung in a cell, but how could he hang himself 10 feet up? He was still alive when they brought him to hospital, but he was in a morgue bag when he left.“There was no justice back then and there is still no justice now.” Royal Commission 30 years on “It’s been thirty years since the Royal Commission into Aboriginal deaths in custody made recommendations and nothing has changed. "The core recommendations have not been implemented - 30 years on and the situation is worse than ever. “Our people are still dying." “There have been more than 440 Aboriginal deaths in custody since the report was released and five have occurred in the last two months.  “The government has failed to implement laws to protect our lives.” What needs to change? “We need to see constitutional reforms made so that black people have a voice in our government and can protect our people and save lives,” Cindy said.“If we don’t have these changes, the murders will continue.“White Australia was built on racist foundations and we have nothing to lose if we have another referendum. In the 1967 Referendum, our ancestors fought for changes and now we have rights because of them. Referendum “We need another referendum to see us have a voice in parliament.” In 2017, the Uluru Statement From The Heart was created, which Cindy said was a statement that brought all of the Indigenous tribes of Australia together to speak as one voice and work towards a Treaty.TreatyHowever, before any sort of Treaty can be made between Indigenous people and the Australian government, Cindy said reforms in law must first be made.“The government should be meeting us halfway and creating reform from the top down – from the constitution, down to the grass roots of our communities,” she said.“If we have a voice, a platform in government, we can do what is best for our people.“We can take care of the lives of our people – we know the we destruction caused in our communities from alcohol. Our people grow up around drugs and alcohol and this fuels rapes, crime, intergenerational trauma – and our people end up in jail - and dead. “Enough is enough. This needs to end now." “We need to stop the high incarceration rates of Indigenous people and stop children being taken away and the resulting intergenerational trauma," Cindy said. Rally Saturday’s rally begins at 12pm followed by a march to the Lismore police station at about 1.30pm.  Cindy has invited along Thomas Mayor - a passionate advocate of the Uluru Statement and the three reforms contained within it. Thomas will talk about the Statement and its invitation to all Australians - to "walk with us" and support the proposed reforms to create a better future for the entire Australian nation. Other speakers include local Aboriginal men who will tell about their experiences of being in jail.At the rally, Cindy said she will record people’s recommendations to put forward to government to see the end of Aboriginal deaths in custody and help bring about constitutional reform.“We are all in this together and black lives do matter,” Cindy said.

Put down your cooking knives and pick up your musical instruments. The Iron Creative challenge calls local musicians and artists to put their talents and imaginations to the test - and create from a list of ingredients.Playing on the idea of the popular Japanese TV show, Iron Chef, where chefs are challenged to make dishes based on unusual secret ingredients, the project is the brainchild of Northern Rivers Conservatorium’s Resident Creative Artist."We hope to create some truly original works," Mr O'Boyle said."We are looking for six teams which will have three hours to create a new 5-8 minute performance work - from scratch - using a list of 'ingredients' assigned to them.“The process will be fun but challenging as none of the participants will have any idea what they’re going to get.“They may be assigned ingredients like the kazoo, paint tin drums, voices, marimba, dance and an ingredient of their choice. In addition they’ll be given a musical ingredient to incorporate, for example: a rhythm, a chord sequence or several musical notes.“From there, the teams will have three hours to be as creative as possible with all those ingredients to produce a work that they’ll then perform.“We could see composition, movement, visual arts, film or some other type of performance."The possibilities are endless, and that’s what makes it exciting for both the participants and the audience."Free!The Iron Creative is free for all participants and open to anyone with an interest in creative expression.Mr O’Boyle said he wanted to create an annual event that tapped into the wealth of artistic talent in the Northern Rivers and inspired creativity.“The Iron Creative will encourage ingenuity, originality, innovation, teamwork and artistry,” he said.Mentors“The Northern Rivers Conservatorium has engaged six mentors to work with the teams in the six weeks prior to teach them how to successfully collaborate within the parameters of an Iron Creative event.”“The mentors are already coming up with interesting ideas and are now eagerly awaiting their teams. It’s completely free to take part, so we’re calling on all musicians and artists who are up for the challenge to get their nominations in to the Conservatorium as soon as possible.The inaugural Iron Creative event will be held on Sunday, May 23. Teams will create and rehearse their works at the Conservatorium during the morning, then present them at a public performance at 2pm at Lismore City Hall, where the winners will be announced.Applications close on Friday, April 23. Musicians and artists can register their interest online at enrol.nrcac.edu.auFor more information, contact the Northern Rivers Conservatorium on 6621 2266 or by email: admin@nrcac.edu.auFor more information, visit https://nrcac.edu.au/iron-creative-world-first/

As many people will be hitting the roads this week for school holiday travel there are some changed traffic conditions taking place to be aware of on the Pacific Highway.There will be no roadwork on the Pacific Highway between Kew and the Queensland border from 6am Monday 5 April to 6am Wednesday 7 April and 6am Friday 9 April to 6am Monday 12 April due to the high traffic volume expected for the school holidays and Easter period. Emergency maintenance and safety repair work will be carried out as required.Motorists are advised of changed traffic conditions on the Pacific Highway and local roads from Monday 5 to Sunday 11 April for the Woolgoolga to Ballina upgrade, weather permitting.  From Wednesday, there will be two days of work on the Pacific Highway between Woodburn and Mororo to remove signage, transport materials and carry out landscape maintenance and finishing work. Motorists can expect lane closures, traffic control and reduced speed limits at times between 6am and 6pm. The northbound U-turn at Serendipity Road, New Italy will be temporarily closed between 7am and 6pm for two days from Wednesday. The next available U-turn for northbound motorists is about one kilometre north. The southbound U-turn at Swan Bay New Italy Road, New Italy will be temporarily closed between 7am and 6pm for up to two days from Wednesday. The next available U-turn for southbound motorists is one kilometre south. Additional changes to local roads From Tuesday, there will be four days of work on Broadwater Evans Head Road and the on and off-ramps at the Broadwater interchange, Broadwater to construct a shared pedestrian and cycle path. Motorists can expect shoulder closures, lane closures and traffic control at times between 6am and 5pm. Also from Tuesday, there will up to be five days of work on Tuckombil, Gap and Woodburn Evans Head roads at Woodburn to carry out fencing, paving and private access work. Motorists can expect lane closures, traffic control and short stoppages at times between 6am and 6pm. Further south from Tuesday, there will be five days of work on Nardi Road at New Italy to carry out fencing, private access and finishing work. Motorists can expect lane closures, traffic control and short stoppage at times between 6am and 6pm. From Wednesday, there will be three days of work on Old Bagotville Road at Bagotville to install a culvert and carry out finishing work. Motorists can expect lane closures and traffic control at times between 7am and 6pm. On Thursday, there will be one day of work on the western roundabout of the Coolgardie interchange to carry out finishing work. Motorists can expect lane closures, traffic control and short stoppages at times between 7am and 6pm. On Friday, there will be one day of work on the Chatsworth Road north overpass to carry out maintenance. Motorists can expect lane closures, traffic control and short stoppages at times between 7am and 6pm.For the latest traffic updates download the Live Traffic NSW App, visit livetraffic.com or call 132 701.

Lismore City Council’s $8.2 million South Lismore Flood Mitigation Project is officially complete and has already passed the test of two floods.Lismore City Deputy Mayor Neil Marks and local Nationals Member of the Legislative Council Ben Franklin jointly cut the ribbon on the project today. “I’m delighted that the flood mitigation project is ‘officially’ complete – it will make a significant difference in protecting the CBD from floodwaters,” Mr Franklin said. “Thomas George, as the Nationals Member for Lismore for nearly 20 years, was instrumental in securing funding for this project and ensuring the risk of serious floods would reduce the damage to local businesses, homes and communities. “With the recent natural disaster, the completion of this work could not have come at a better time.”Cr Marks said it was great to open this new project that had been discussed for decades.“As we saw in the 2017 flood, the levee alone cannot keep floodwaters out of our CBD if we get too much rain,” he said“Since this project was ‘unofficially’ completed, we have had two floods and the mitigation works has shown it can help protect our city from floodwaters.“I’m also happy to say that due to savings that were realised during construction, we were able to work with the State Government to extend the scope of work to include the upgrade of Caniaba Street which will ensure road access to the newly created industrial lots meet contemporary standards.”The project, which was funded by the NSW Government, involved the removal of 410,000m³ of soil from a 58-hectare area of land owned by Council to reduce flood levels to the north.Flood modelling suggests the project should reduce peak water levels in the CBD, North Lismore and South Lismore by as much as 100mm in a 1-in-100-year flood event.The excavated material has been used to fill nearby industrial land within Lismore’s floodplain and facilitate the expansion of the South Lismore Industrial Estate.Council’s Director of Infrastructure Services Peter Jeuken said the project has already improved Lismore’s disaster resilience.“This project was endorsed by the Lismore Floodplain Management Committee and is part of a range of measures detailed in the Lismore Flood Mitigation Plan to help safeguard the community and increase disaster resilience,” he said.“During the last two floods, you could see water being diverted around the CBD and flowing through channels back into the Wilsons River.”SEE Civil carried out the work which was overseen by NSW Public Works Advisory and CouncilDuring preliminary works, Council relocated two major sewer mains, which were ‘bedded’ (backfilled with material to protect the pipe) using 1500 tonnes of crushed glass from the Lismore Recycling & Recovery Centre.“This is a great example of reusing a waste material plus there is a significant cost saving to the project from using this bedding material as opposed to traditional crushed rock,” Mr Jeuken said.

Goonellabah resident Lisa Connell lives on 200 metres from a telecommunications tower that’s earmarked to become part of the 5G communications network rollout.Telstra have already installed a 5G transmitter on top of the tower and Lisa said she is scared and has health concerns about its effect – especially as her home on Duke Street is so close to this new technology.“I’d already been writing submissions to stop the East Lismore 5G tower development on Crawford Road,” Lisa said. “Then I got really depressed when they proposed a 5G installation on the tower closest to us.”Lisa is concerned about the potentially dangerous electromagnetic energy (EME) emissions that the 5G transmitter will emanate – and says it’s also dangerous close to the old people’s home on the street.The potential health concerns of 5G technology have become a contentious issue that has already fired up public protests in Mullumbimby.Legal challengeWith the help of Indigenous Advocacy Network legal advocate Al Oshlack, Lisa has begun a legal proceeding which challenges the legality of the tower’s 5G extension, in the hope it may stop it being used.UnprecedentedIt’s a legal case which Mr Oshlack says is “unprecedented” and if successful, will change the future development of any 5G extensions on communications towers.Mr Oshlack said the 5G extension does not currently need to have a local council development approval, because it is deemed low impact.“This is another case where there is an existing tower used by Telstra, Optus and other carriers – then they install a 5G transmitter on top of the tower and call it 5G,” Mr Oshlack said.“The telcos are installing the extension using a code under the Telecommunications Act which says a tower extension less than five metres up and two metres out is classed as a low impact development - therefore does not require a Development Approval (DA) – and local council doesn’t get involved.“Our legal proceeding challenges Telstra’s claim that the development is low impact. Our case is that it is not low impact and requires a DA from council.“The construction of the extension itself might be low impact but, the working transmitter installation is high impact – so we are arguing that the 5G installation is actually development without consent.Summons issuedThe legal case is being held in the NSW Land and Environment Court, which Mr Oshlak said is one of the most effective courts in the country“We have issued a summons to Telstra, the extension contractors and Lismore City Council – who is the development consent authority,” he said. “We want to see all 5G extensions to towers go through a DA process in council.“At the moment, we have very little say about what happens with these tower developments. If a 5G extension has to get a DA and Council approval, then we get procedural rights and will be able to challenge the decision in court.”Mr Oshlack said Telstra have given him an undertaking that the transmitter won’t be switched on and used until the proceedings have played out – and they iron out a technical fault with the installation.“It’s also because Telstra don’t want to go to an injunction hearing – and it could take a long time if we did,” he said. “This case is the first of its kind and it is quite a big precedent.”Mr Oshlack said the next step in the case will be for the court to issue documents and make direction for the filing of evidence to the court.Emissions concerns“We are hoping to get evidence on the EME emissions from the tower,” he said. “We believe that assessments of radiation from the 5G towers have not been done properly, on site – that it has been done from existing data on their files.“We know that the 5G transmitter will emit double the EME emissions of all the existing 4G and 5G transmitters combined already on towers.”Lisa said it’s been difficult to find reliable and updated information about the status and operation status of any of Telstra’s 5G installations and she has health concerns for not only people, but animals and wildlife.“A study was done by Mark Broomhall over 15 years at Mount Nardi, where he documented how hundreds of animal and bird species disappeared or moved away from the Mount Nardi tower as they switched on the 2,3,4G and radio waves over time,” she said.Power and communityLisa has concerns about how her concerns and submissions are not being taken into consideration as the 5G rollout continues“I think it seems to make no difference no matter how many people make submissions about it,” she said.“Too much power is given to telcos now. Local council say they have no power, but that’s not true -so many places around world won the battle and stopped 5G and all had council support.”Read more about the opposition to the East Lismore 5G tower

In 2015, paramedic Bill Rathbone jumped into fast flowing flood water in a rescue that saved the lives of trapped people.So, when he received an email from the Australian Government in 2021 that he was to be awarded a national Bravery Medal - six years on - it came as a bit of a surprise.The rescue happened when Bill lived in Stroud and the award recognised his considerable bravery when undertaking multiple rescues of people trapped in floodwaters on April 21, 2015.When recounting the rescues, Bill said it was different to any other situation he has been in in his job - and he luckily hasn’t had to do it since. Ironically, it’s an echo of the floods currently happening again on the mid North Coast now.“As paramedics, we put ourselves into precarious situations and save people’s lives every day, but I’d never seen that before in Stroud,” he said. On that day, Stroud experienced extreme weather conditions, with rain falling quickly, causing flash flooding and wind gusts reached in excess of 100kmph.Bill, along with other members of the public, saw that a vehicle had been washed from the road and was stranded in the rising flood water. The driver had managed to climb onto the roof of the vehicle.The group of men were able to throw a rope to the stranded man, anchoring it to a light pole. Bill and the other three men then waded into waist deep water, placing a ladder on the roof of the stranded car, and allowing the trapped man to climb to safety.Meanwhile, a couple were swept away from their caravan and were clinging onto a brick amenities building, near the showground's grandstand.Bill being reunited with a lady he rescued in the 2015 Stroud flood.A police officer sourced a boat and Mr Rathbone and another police officer climbed aboard. They were joined by two other men in a second boat and together made their way to the distressed couple. Bill jumped into the fast flowing water and reached the couple and he assisted in keeping the woman's head above water. He was then joined by other rescuers and they worked together to get the woman to one of the boats.Bill and two others took the woman for medical treatment while the elderly man was assisted to safety.“In the past, I received a bravery citation from the ambulance sector for that job,” Bob said. “But the unsung hero in my story was the elderly gentlemen who I helped. “He saved his wife’s life and stopped her from being swept away. He had managed to climb to the top of a toilet block, but couldn’t get his wife up there, so he tied her by her cardigan to the building because he wasn’t able to hold her.”Pictures taken at the time of the event showed Bill with a torn trouser leg and scrapes and bruises from being in the flood water. His advice now to people is to stay away flood waters.“The bloke in the vehicle we rescued was in the SES and the vehicle was an SES vehicle – so it’s a good lesson in not driving in flood waters.”Bill has been a paramedic for 22 years and said recues like that are not something paramedics do every day, “but that’s what we are there for”.“I joined the Ambulance brigade to help people,” Bill said. “I came from the private sector and didn’t even have a first aid certificate at the time. I was inspired to join by my brother in law who was a paramedic – and I learned on the job. Bill and his wife moved to Goonellabah five years ago and he now works for the NSW Ambulance Service, stationed at Evans Head.Bill recieving his citation in 2014.This is also not the first event that Bill has been awarded a citation for. In 2014, he received a citation of courage after he and nine other paramedics went to the aid of two injured people in a truck accident north of Gloucester.At the time, two semi-trailers went over the edge of the Thunderbolts Way, resulting in the death of one of the drivers. The truck driver in front slowed down to help the truckdriver behind, who had radioed to say he had lost his brakes.Bill was the first paramedic on the scene, and was then assisted by police, firies and the SES.As ever Bill, remained humble, saying in an interview with the Dungog Chronicle at the time that “it was nothing special”.“It’s what we do, it’s our job,” he said. 

The rumours can be now be laid to rest – Lismore’s Repco store is definitely moving from its current location on Carrington Street. Lismore Repco store manager Bob Brown has been working for Repco for 45 years and knows pretty much everything about what the shop sells - automotive parts, accessories and solutions. But, Bob was surprised when he heard that members of the public had announced on social media that the shop was moving – particularly when he himself hadn’t been told so by his manager.Bob said after a phone call with his area manager late yesterday afternoon, he finally received confirmation that the shop move was actually going to happen.Repco will be moving to a new location on the Bruxner Highway, next to Bunnings.“The contract on the new building has been signed, sealed and delivered,” Bob said.“It’s on the old Masters Home Improvement site. As you drive into the car park, you will see it on the left hand side.“People can already see that the building is all painted, but it’s not finished and still needs to be fitted out.“So, we don’t yet have an opening date and we have no solid timeline about when it’s going to open.”Bob said he will let the Lismore App know when he gets more details about when the shop will be moving and opening in the new location.Bob also said this is a good lesson in people being careful about what they say and read on social media - especially without confirmation from the people involved.

As the Covid vaccine rollout began at Lismore Base Hospital vaccination clinic, Intensive Care Registered Nurse, Rachel Benson was the first to receive the vaccine yesterday."It is important for everyone able to be vaccinated to protect each other from COVID-19,” Ms Benson said.“It’s another layer of protection for myself and my family, and my community, so I’m very excited to be receiving the vaccine today."She is one of many local healthcare workers who rolled up their sleeves yesterday to receive the first jabs of the Oxford/AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine at the Lismore Base Hospital vaccination clinic.Staff will receive two doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine, given approximately 12 weeks apart.  Dr David Stephenson receives vaccination from Janelle Wilson.Infectious Diseases trainee, Dr David Stephenson, who has worked with patients who have had COVID-19, also received the vaccine today and encouraged others to do the same when it’s made available to the broader community. “By getting the vaccine, I’ll have more confidence in treating any future COVID-19 patients we may have,” Dr Stephenson said. “When it comes to the community’s turn, I would say ‘roll up your sleeve!’” Northern NSW Local Health District Chief Executive Wayne Jones said the clinic opening was a fantastic development in the pandemic response. Rachel Benson ICU Nurse and Roger Revill, Nurse Immuniser.“It’s a great milestone today that we’re providing our first COVID-19 vaccines just 366 days after our very first case of COVID-19 in Northern NSW,” Mr Jones said. “We are more than excited to be at this point.” “Every staff member and clinician who works in Northern NSW Local Health District will be offered a vaccination.” Mr Jones reiterated the strong evidence around the efficacy of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine to protect against severe illness and death, which is great news for our communities and for staff working in our health facilities. “Every box that needs to be ticked in the development of the vaccine has been ticked,” Mr Jones said. “I’ll be stepping up and getting the jab when my number comes up.”NSW is working closely with the Australian Government to implement a safe and effective COVID-19 vaccination program.  For more information about COVID-19 vaccination in NSW, visit the NSW Health website. AstraZeneca vaccine.

UPDATE: 3.07pm:The rain brought with it a series of unfortunate events on the road today, with multiple incidents creating havoc on the Bruxner Highway and surrounding suburb roads in Goonellabah.Read more about incidents today: Oil spill causes Goonellabah shops carpark to closeBefore 9am this morning, a large fuel spill from a bus caused major traffic delays on the Bruxner Highway - as the fuel spread over a large road surface area and traffic slowed to a crawl.Richmond Police District Superintendent Scott Tanner said the cause of the fuel spill was a ruptured fuel line on a bus."The area of road affected by the fuel spill was from Rotary Drive to Pineapple Road," Supt Tanner said."Lismore Council and Fire and Rescue NSW are cleaning up the spill and the road is now completely open."The bus was located and is back in the depot getting fixed."Unrelated accidentSupt Tanner said a car accident further up the Bruxner Highway, closer to the speed camera at Wollongbar was not related to the fuel spill."But it's certainly a reminder to motorists to drive to conditions in wet weather to avoid accidents," he said.Car spin out eye witnessThe Lismore App was contacted by a member of the public earlier today to report the major spill, which stretched from Goonellabah shops roundabout to the bottom of Cynthia Wilson Drive.The person reported seeing a car with a trailer spin out and a motorbike rider go down, between Rous Road and Kirkwood turn off, on a stretch of road with no hazard or warning signs.Council clean upA Council spokesperson said Council was working with Fire and Rescue NSW to clean up and wash down down the roads, with both sides of the road affected by the fuel spill.EARLIER UPDATE 10.25am:A large diesel fuel spill in Goonellabah has already resulted in a number of car accidents and police are asking motorists to avoid a number of local roads.The roads are:• Rotary Drive roundabout along Ballina Rd to Pineapple Rd• From Pineapple Road to Oliver Ave• Rous Road and Oliver Ave roundabout to Ballina Road• Cynthia Wilson Drive• Clifford Street• Holland Street• Invercauld RoadMembers of the public have also reported on social media that near council chambers and the health clinic all the way along to Rous Road has a lot of spill. Also avoid the crossroads at Oliver Ave and Holland St, outside Parkview funeral home.ORIGINAL STORY:Traffic on the Bruxner Highway in Goonellabah has slowed to a one lane crawl after what appears to be a car accident near the Rous Road roundabout. Goonellabah resident Luke Kane contacted the Lismore App to report that about a kilometre of fuel has been spilled on the highway north of the roundabout up toward Deegan Drive – turning a journey that would normally take less than a minute into more than ten minutes of waiting. “We came out of Deegan Drive about 8.55am and saw the traffic piled up on the way toward Lombardos.” Luke said. Car crash“We saw a 4WD vehicle in a garden there and another car with front end damage. It looked like it might have crashed near the roundabout and its fuel had leaked on the road.“It’s very slippery because of the fuel spill on the road. I saw a couple pf police drive past and I think they will need to get a hazmat onto the road to soak up the petrol."The Lismore App contacted Lismore Police and was told that local police do not yet have any cars on scene, but that police have received numerous calls from the public about it.We will update you as more information comes to hand.Read more news: Government waives dumping levy on storm and flood wasteRead more news: Hospital reports elective surgeries back to pre-pandemic levels

The car parking area at Goonellabah Shopping Centre has been closed to the public today after a car accident in the car park this morning.Richmond Police District Superintendent Scott Tanner said that at 9am this morning, a motorist tried to park in a space near Coles in the shopping centre car park and accidentally lunged into a gutter.Read more news: Local bus leaks fuel and causes traffic chaos in Goonellabah"The driver collided with a pole and as a result the engine was damaged, causing a large oil spill in the car park," he said."It was in part due to the persistent rain that oil went onto the surrounding surface area."Fire and rescue NSW and Lismore City Council were called and Council closed the car park due to safety concerns."

The doors to Silly Solly’s on Keen Street are still closed, but inside, the staff are unpacking crates and boxes and frantically trying to get over 10,000 lines of stock on the shelves.If you’ve been watching the exterior transformation of the old blue Blockbuster video shop building into a new red Silly Solly’s discount store and wondering when it’s going to open, the answer is within the next two weeks.The shop’s owner Adrian Serafin said it’s a big job getting the huge space decked out with shelving and he’s still waiting for more than 10 pallets of stock to arrive. “That’s what is holding us up now,” he said. “It’s possible we can open in 10 to 15 days, but it’s not definite yet. The stock hasn’t left the wholesaler’s warehouse in Sydney yet.“We will definitely be open by the end of the month - we were aiming for March 18, but it may be the following week.“We’re also waiting for some of the shop fittings to arrive, then we have to put it all together.“When you open a new business, there’s always some delays – you don’t go into it expecting it all to be smooth.“I’ll be happy to get it all set up and open and begin trading.”Adrian said he has employed ten local staff to keep the shop trading seven days a week – selling goods that are all priced at $5 or under.“We are opening stuff every day and I’m surprised at what there is for the price of it,” he said “I post them online on the Silly Solly’s Lismore Facebook page so people can see the products.“There’s a lot of different variety lines – everything from rock t-shirts to 100% cotton work shirts and socks, to the usual variety lines, food and cleaning stuff.“We might even have a TV advertising campaign to give people notice of the opening day.”Read more about the new shop opening.

Many local Lismore businesses owe their survival through Covid shutdown thanks to the business-mind of 27 year old Sally Flannery.Sally started her own online fashion business when she was 16 years old and it was so successful she opened her first physical shop by the time she was 19.Luckily for Lismore, she moved here six years ago and brought her business acumen to help out the local community.Sally was recognised for her contribution to the Lismore economic sector this week when she received an award at the International Women's Day luncheon. Read more about the awards: Ros Irwin, Sally Flannery and Jex Lopez shine at IWD awards ceremonyThe award recognised the incredible support she gave to local business when she started the Support Lismore Small Business Facebook page a year ago during Covid shutdown.“It was the beginning of other initiatives that I also started – like a hospital fundraiser and a Lismore business web directory,” Sally said.Hand sanitiser in Covid“When Covid restrictions started, I helped provide mandatory hand sanitiser when it was in short supply and we weren’t sure when it was going to become available again.“I saw that other councils like Lane Cove Council in Sydney were offering hand sanitiser for free.“So, I spoke to a distillery about bulk buying it, with intention for Lismore Council to get behind it - but they weren’t in a position to. So, I bought 80 litres of it and designed labels for containers and printed them myself at Officeworks, then set up a market stall at Lismore produce market. I sold them for cost price and we sold out within a couple of hours.“A lot of market stall business owners came and got some and I saw it on their stalls.”Facebook and web directoryWhile the web directory is now defunct, Sally said the Support Lismore Small Business Facebook page has replaced it in terms of function.“The Facebook page had 3000 followers in the first week and one year on there’s about 6,500 followers,” Sally said.“At Covid shutdown time, one of the most important things was for business to have a platform to communicate. People wanted to support local business but weren’t sure how to reach them all.“Now, the landscape has changed, but it’s still a positive and uplifting support for the community.Social proofing“I still go to local businesses I have supported and post pictures and info and show other people they can do that too. Others also do it – it’s called social proofing.“I work in the Lion and Lamb design agency and I know if you show something being used, it’s more effective than an ad.”Sally said the agency asked her to manage the business in June last year. With her entrepreneurial background in business, she has awareness of what businesses need.“So, when Covid started, I knew what business owners were going through – it’s emotionally very involving – and I decided to do something to help,” she said.“When the bushfires and floods happened in Lismore, I felt helpless, but Covid brought my skill set into play.Now, she’s taking her unique skill set and drive into the future and intends to run for local Council elections in September this year.Let’s see where she takes Lismore next.

Lights. Camera. Action! Lismore local Magnus Dean (also known as DJ Magnus) took his iPhone down to Spinks Park yesterday to see if he could catch a glimpse of his favourite Hollywood star Melissa McCarthy who was filming Netflix comedy 'God’s Favourite Idiot' on location in Lismore.When Magnus got to the Lismore Transit Centre about 11am, he was told by a yellow coated security guard that he couldn’t walk through the park.So, Magnus took a walk along Molesworth Street to behind the fire station and discretely pointed his iPhone through slits in the fence at the collection of crew, cranes, cameras and filming equipment in the park. Magnus came back to the location again at about 4pm and found the Lismore City Bowling Club had been opened and there he took more shots, while some of the film crew smiled at him while they made coffee in a van.Read more about the shoot: Lismore's roads and park close as Netflix comedy filming begins tomorrowPhoto by Magnus Dean.His shots were the closest he could get, but they were pretty good – and Magnus was stoked he got so close to his beloved Hollywood star.“I’m a huge fan of Melissa McCarthy,” Magnus said. “I first became a fan and fell in love with her in 'The Heat', where she starred with Sandra Bullock, I think she’s hilarious and was born to be comedic.“When I knew she was coming to town I was so excited. I knew there would be security, but I wanted to see if I could get in there to take photos and share my experience with the community.“I’ve worked on TV shows as an extra before and I saw all the crew were being Covid safe and wearing masks and sweating.”Melissa McCarthy in a blond wig and brown coat. (Picture courtesy of Media Mode Photo Agency)Photo by Magnus Dean.Magnus said he is well known for taking good photos and said it’s because of his eye for photography, as well as his awesome new iPhone.“I think the fact they are filming here is a great injection into our small town’s economy, bringing tourism and dollars,” he said. “I’ve heard a few negative comment made though - like ‘we can’t house homeless or fix potholes, but we can bring in film crews.“It’s not all negative and I love being able to share this buzz with Lismore through my photos. You don’t have to be a great fan to appreciate that the filming employs 300 people to be here, working on the project.“Today, they were filming at the Sherwood Hotel on Molesworth Street. At 10am this morning, the windows were all blacked out and there was police and security out the front.“I think it’s brilliant marketing for the new hotel, which doesn’t even open until Saturday."The new Netflix series stars US actors Melissa McCarthy and her husband Ben Falcone and will be filmed in the Northern Rivers this year, over the next few months, with assistance from a $10 million grant from the Federal Government's $540 million Location Incentive program.(Picture courtesy of Media Mode Photo Agency)PaparazziLismore resident SJ McKay who owns Media Mode, an entertainment photo agency, has also sent some great paparazzi photos to the Lismore App of the location shoot yesterday, featuringMelissa McCarthy and her husband Ben Falcone.Angel in the sky?Interestingly, The Lismore App journalist Liina Flynn took her Samsung phone to the site and got some far shots. Unfortunately, she wasn't able to capture what she saw on camera before security asked her to move on.Liina witnessed a person wearing a harness being lifted high into the sky, like he was flying. Perhaps an angel character in the new series?We will have to wait to find out when 'God’s Favourite Idiot' is finally released.(Picture courtesy of Media Mode Photo Agency)(Picture courtesy of Media Mode Photo Agency)(Picture courtesy of Media Mode Photo Agency)(Picture courtesy of Media Mode Photo Agency)(Picture courtesy of Media Mode Photo Agency)Photo by Liina Flynn.Photo by Liina Flynn.

A man has died after being hit by a car in Wollongbar.Shortly after 1pm today (Wednesday March 10), emergency services were called to a home on Callicoma Court, Wollongbar, after reports a man was trapped underneath a vehicle in a driveway.The man – believed to be aged in his 60s – died at the scene.Officers from Richmond Police District attended and have commenced inquiries into the circumstances surrounding the incident.A report will be prepared for the information of the Coroner.Anyone with information about this incident is urged to contact Crime Stoppers: 1800 333 000 or https://nsw.crimestoppers.com.au.Information is treated in strict confidence. The public is reminded not to report information via NSW Police social media pages.

Sally Flannery, Ros Irwin and Jex Lopez were just some of the amazing women of Lismore who received awards for their contributions to our city at an International Women’s Day awards ceremony on Monday. Other award winners were hockey player Gloria McPherson and midwife Andrea Brooks.Lismore Mayor Vanessa Ekins said the winners of the five award categories were voted on by Lismore City Council’s female-identifying councillors – and there were quite a few entries to choose between. Read on to find out more about the category winners…“We announced the winners at a women’s luncheon on Monday at Lismore City Hall,” Mayor Ekins said. “The event was the culmination of the fifth Lismore Women’s Festival and it was a great weekend.“We had a great day of inspiring speeches and women gathered in a positive and inclusive way. There was a session on trans women and a feminist’s panel. I even went to a laughter yoga workshop.”Jex Lopez on stage at the awards with Mayor Vanessa Ekins.While our society talks about creating equality for men and women, why is it still so important to acknowledge and celebrate the women in our communities with events and award like this?“Because women are still fighting for equal rights in workplaces, equal pay and being represented in decision making roles,” Mayor Ekins said. “Childbirth in hospitals can make women afraid and we need to advocate for midwives and choice to birth at home.“There are so many areas we need to still advocate in for women so they can walk safely down the streets and be in a workplace free of sexual harassment.“The luncheon keynote speaker Karley Banks talked about being left handed, having and Aboriginal mother and dealing with being at school. She played cricket and was great at it, but in primary school she wasn’t allowed to because she was a girl. Later she was able to play and did it well and finally took on a career as an elite football coach, being a world class trainer in a man’s world.”THE AWARD WINNERSArts Sector Contribution Award - Jex LopezJex Lopez has been captivating audiences with her art noir style, intersectionalist and feminist messaging. She articulates social justice issues to uplift and empowers audiences for positive change. Find out more about Jex Lopez at the following site https://www.facebook.com/jexlopezmusic/ and https://etsy.me/3ozBgirJex Lopez with her Hanging Rock flowers awarded to her at the ceremony.Community Sector Contribution Award – Ros IrwinRos Irwin has been involved with Friends of the Koala for many years and has taken the organisation from its humble beginnings in koala rescue, rehabilitation and release to becoming a multi-functional, all-inclusive facility with paid staff and functioning treatment rooms. Read more about Ros Irwin.Ros Irwin with Mayor Vanessa Ekins.Economic Sector Contribution Award -  Sally FlannerySally Flannery set up the Support Lismore small Business Facebook during the Covid-19 lockdown and had almost 5000 followers overnight. She also created a web directory and many businesses say they survived because of it. Sally also set up the Netflix and chew events and the spend $50$ in Lismore campaign. Now, other councils have contacted her to do the same for them.Health Sector Contribution Award -  Andrea BrooksAndrea Brooks has given 30 years of service to the midwife profession - both hospital based and home birth. She has been working to help hundreds of mothers and families through their journey, as well as family planning and sexual reproductive health.Gloria McPherson with Lismore Councillors.Sports Sector Contribution Award – Gloria McPhersonGloria McPherson has been committed to playing hockey since 1969. She’s been a player, coach, mother and grandmother. She was the first woman to play for Far North Coast Hockey, NSW amd Australia. She is over 70 years old and is still playing representative hockey and assisting with all aspects of the game.

Last night’s big storm brought black clouds, lightning and winds - and caused damage to houses and caused power blackouts. It also kept the local State Emergency Service (SES) busy, with 31 calls for assistance reported across the Lismore area. Lismore City SES acting unit commander Lacy Loloa said the winds were so strong, people reported seeing horizontal rain in the Goonellabah area. “We had three SES crews out past midnight removing fallen trees from houses and roads, with the majority of the damage in the Clunes and Richmond Hill area,” Ms Loloa said.Read more news: Sally Flannery, Jex Lopez and Ros Irwin shine at IWD awards ceremony“We had 13 jobs in Clunes and several in Goonellabah. There are still more jobs coming in and crews are out there again today, removing trees from houses and clearing access to properties.“There’s a few residents with roof damage and we had to remove the trees from houses first so we can get on the roof and chop the bits up.”Trees were reported down over Bangalow Road and Corndale Road, and the electricity supply was cut in Tregeagle and the Richmond Hill area.“We had the Alphadale SES crew assisting, as well as Lismore City Council and Essential Energy to clear trees and get the power back on,” Ms Loloa said.So, is this kind of storm normal for early March?“It’s the normal summer storm in general ,” Ms Loloa said. “Even though we are in a La Nina weather pattern – La Nina is more about is rainfall increasing.“We have a saturated catchment at the moment so any large downpours of rain will see flash flooding in our region when the water runs off.“We are always monitoring the weather and we have heard reports there will be storms over the next few days, so we advise people to monitor the Bureau of Meteorology websites as well as Lismore City SES and Northers Rivers Weather Facebook pages.“We just need to wait and see what’s going to happen because you don’t know where the storm is going to hit.”

If you didn't get the washing out today or mow the lawn then you may have missed your window for a few days as storms return tomorrow.There were some thoughts of showers later this afternoon but Helen Kirkup from the Bureau of Meteorology says our neck of the woods in the south east corner should be ok, but keep an eye out.Throughout tomorrow a trough makes its way over central NSW into our backyard bringing thunderstorm activity with it. The bad news is that this will last until early next week when a cold front moves through bringing drier, cooler air with it and hopefully sunny conditions. We are talking a forecast six to seven days away so take that with a grain of salt.As for rainfall with tomorrow's storms, we will see a large variance due to the nature of thunderstorm activity so one side of the road could get 2mm while the other gets 20mm.Wednesday's range is 6 to 15mm, Thursday 10-20mm and Friday 6 to 15mm while the weekend is less with Saturday forecast to bring 0 to 4mm and Sunday maybe 1-2mm.The summary: get outside now.

Australia’s economy is one of the strongest in the world, and breaking 60 year records, according to Federal Member for Page Kevin Hogan.“You wouldn’t want to be in any other country in the world,” Mr Hogan said.With the latest National Accounts just released last week, Mr Hogan said our performance on both the health and the economic fronts shows “our recovery plan is working” as Australia leads the world in fighting COVID-19.“Real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) increased in the December quarter by 3.1%. This was above market expectations of 2.5%,” Mr Hogan said.“For the first time since records began over sixty years ago, GDP growth is above 3% for two consecutive quarters.”“In 2020, the United Kingdom’s economy contracted by 9.9%. Italy’s economy contracted by 8.9%, France by 8.2%, Canada by 5%, Japan by 4.8%, and the United States by 3.3%.“By contrast, Australia was only down 2.5%.“There are still sectors and regions that are doing it tough, but our economic support will continue.“As our emergency support is tapering off, the private sector is stepping up. “In the December quarter, direct economic support from the Federal Government halved. Yet at the same time, the economy grew by 3.1%, added 320,000 new jobs and 2.1 million Australian workers graduated off JobKeeper.“This was driven by measures in our economic plan, including HomeBuilder and the expanded Instant Asset Write-Off.“The Australian economy begins 2021 in a strong position. We have maintained our AAA credit rating.“The job is not done and there are many challenges ahead.”