Summer of extreme heat just the start

Hundreds hit the beach during the heatwave in Bondi. Picture: Katrina Tepper Source: The Daily Telegraph

CATASTROPHIC bushfires, damaging rain and the most intense heatwave on record this summer are just a taste of what climate change will bring, a new report says.

Climate Commissioner Will Steffen said the extreme weather of 2012/13 was climate change in action, and more events are on the way.

In his Climate Commission report, Angry Summer, released today, Prof Steffen also said Queensland's one-in-100-year flood was one part of a "very, very unusual summer".

"We've been storing extra heat in this system for about a century now, due to increasing greenhouse gases," he said.

"When we do the sums, as we do in the climate models, for the next couple of decades you're going to see increasing likelihood of very hot weather and more record hot weather."

That means wilder weather than last summer, when a staggering 123 records were broken throughout Australia in 90 days.

It was the hottest summer, capped by the longest and most extreme heatwave on record. Sydney, Newcastle and Hobart sweltered through their hottest days on record. The average temperature in Australia was 40.3C on January 7.

Rainfall records were smashed along eastern Australia, tropical cyclones wreaked havoc, bushfires raged in every state and territory and tornadoes hit Bundaberg.

Prof Steffen acknowledges Australia has always had extreme weather.

But he argues the way these events are shifting "tells a very, very compelling story" because extreme weather events are occurring in a climate system that is warmer and moister than it was 50 years ago.

Prof Steffen said action taken now to cut greenhouse gas emissions would have a big influence on how hot it would be in the second half of the century.

Climate Commissioner Professor Tim Flannery argues the events of summer didn't happen out of the blue and were forecast decades ago by scientists warning of the dangers of man-made climate change.

"As these record-breaking conditions continue, it gets ever more difficult to deny there is a link between them and human activity," he said.

Recent news China would cap its coal use by 2015 was a "real landmark" and should give other nations the confidence to curb their own emissions more than ever before.
 

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AIDS breakthrough at Vic hospital

Under the microscope: The HIV 1 virus burgeons on a lymphocyte. Photo: AFP Source: AFP

MELBOURNE researchers have made a breakthrough in the search for an AIDS cure.

A team from The Alfred hospital have uncovered HIV's genetic hiding place and found a drug able to wake it up so that it can be destroyed.

The results will be presented to the world's leading HIV experts in the US today.

The Alfred's director of infectious diseases, Prof Sharon Lewin, said waking up the killer virus with doses of a highly toxic cancer drug was a huge step in curing a disease that has already claimed an estimated 30 million lives.

"What we thought would happen happened: the virus woke up, and we could measure it," Prof Lewin said. "That is a big step.

"There are more possibilities of getting rid of it by making it visible to drugs and visible to the immune system (and) that we now know we can do.

"Now the big challenge is working out, once it is visible, what are the ways to get rid of that infected cell."

Traditional antiviral medications have been able to stop the virus infecting cells, giving patients a greater life expectancy.

But the virus remained "sleeping" in their DNA, unable to be found or treated, so patients had to take expensive medication daily to suppress its effects.

"It jumps in, buries itself into the DNA and sits there lurking. At any time, if the cell becomes active, the virus then becomes active," Prof Lewin said.

"It is like having the embers of a fire sitting there . . . the minute you take away the anti-HIV drugs, the embers relight the fire and the whole thing gets going again."

But by using cancer drug, Vorinostat, for two weeks, Prof Lewin had been able to turn on sleeping HIV-infected cells so they could be detected.

Researchers at The Alfred were able to bring the virus to notice in 18 of 20 HIV patients in a trial that concluded in January.

Prof Lewin hopes a new generation of drugs able to kick-start the immune system may now be able to kill the virus.

Prof Lewin and her team -- which included collaboration with Monash University, the Burnet Institute, the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre and the National Association of People Living with HIV/AIDS -- will soon publish their full results.

For David Menadue, who has lived with HIV for almost 30 years, the results bring a new hope.

"Just having the existence of HIV in your body does do damage to your body every day. It puts pressure on your organs, your heart, your kidney, your liver.

"People with HIV would just love to get rid of this and go back to a normalised life. We are never really going to be able to get on top of the virus in developing countries without some sort of magical cure."

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Shots fired in armoured car hold-up

Customers and staff at a Sydney shopping center capture the moment a Armaguard was robbed at gunpoint

SHOTS have been fired during an attempted robbery of an armoured car in Sydney early this morning.

The mobile phone footage was filmed from inside a building across the road from Broadway Shopping Centre in Glebe while the hold-up was in progress about 8.15am.

"Call the police, call the police," a person screams as the men surround two guards outside the van.

"Don't let them see that you've got your phone.

"He's carrying an AK-47, an assault rifle."

Moments laters, armed police arrive in Bay St and seal off the area.

Witnesses said the gang wearing balaclavas and armed with a pistol pulled up in front of an Armaguard truck in a black station wagon.

One of the guards was struck to the back of the head, possibly with the butt of a firearm. The other offender has fired a shot into the air, which struck a glass awning.

Leichhardt Police Commander Michael O'Toole said it appeared the robbery was planned.

"Given the fact they were wearing balaclavas and armed, it would appear there was some degree of planning that's gone into this," he said.

"Of course we are worried they will strike again. It's a concern for something like this to happen at that time of the day when there are so many people around."

Witnesses described the attack as "crazy".

"They had tried to open the passenger side door first and when they failed they went around the back of the truck to open it manually," witness Barry Zambrano said.

"It's crazy stuff."

An employee from the coffee shop across the road, who gave her name only as Lauren, said she saw two of the men wearing balaclavas.

"We heard a shot being fired...a couple of people were a bit scared and we all ducked under the counter," she said.

A crime scene has been set up and armed police are still in the area. Officers will today review CCTV footage as part of the investigation.

Mr O'Toole said the gang failed to escape with any money.

Police seal off the area outside Broadway Shopping Centre on Bay St in Glebe. Picture: Chris Mckeen

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WA woman scammed, murdered in South Africa

VICTIM: Wagin woman, Jette Jacobs, 67, has been found dead in a South African villa after meeting her online lover. Source: PerthNow

NIGERIAN LOVE: Jesse Orowo Omokoh, a Nigerian man who seduced Ms Jacobs through an online dating website and persuaded her to send at least $80,000 to him over four years. Source: PerthNow

A WEST Australian woman who went to South Africa to find love has been found dead in her rented villa in a suspected romance scam.

The body of Jette Jacobs, 67, of Wagin, was found in her rented Johannesburg villa by police on February 9.

Ms Jacobs had travelled from Wagin, about 200km south-east of Perth, on November 22 last year to visit a Nigerian man she was having a relationship with on the internet.

Her death is being investigated by local police.

According to WA Police, it is the first such WA death as a consequence of an online scam.

Ms Jacobs, a widow with six grandchildren, lost her husband in 2002 and her subsequent partner in 2009.

She then met a man purporting to be "Jesse Orowo Omokoh" from Nigeria on a dating website and they had regular contact over a four year period.

Ms Jacobs had sent at least $80,000 to Nigeria during this time and met the man known as Jesse during a visit to Johannesburg in 2010 without incident.

During her last visit, Ms Jacobs was to meet Jesse for a second time but he said he could not get a visa to join her immediately.

A letter from Project Sunbird was sent to Ms Jacobs warning that she may be a victim of fraud, but it arrived shortly after she had left Australia.

Project Sunbird is a joint operation between WA Police and Consumer Protection that tracks large amounts of money being sent from WA to West African countries and attempts to warn the senders that they could be victims of relationship fraud.

WA Police and Ms Jacobs' son believe she may have died in suspicious circumstances, with her money, credit cards, jewellery, laptop computer and other personal items missing from the villa.

Detective Senior Constable Robert Martin from the Major Fraud Squad today said such scams had now revealed  "tragic consequences".

"We were hoping with our operation we would be able to prevent this from occurring," he said.

"Unfortunately with Ms Jacobs, she did receive a letter from our Operation Sunbird team, informing her of the dangers, however she had departed for South Africa prior to receiving the letter. Her friend had the letter sitting in the room when I went to visit, it was sitting on the table."

Const Martin said detectives had found an extensive paper trail showing the relationship stemmed back four years, with a number of emails between the two, including one where Ms Jacobs tells Jesse she is raising money for him – the money was meant to go to sick children.

"I am try as you know to raise the money and by the way you are the only one who know this ok," she wrote.

"I will never tell anybody what I am doing here foe (sic) you ok. That is betwin (sic) you and me ok."

"Thank you my sweet woman. Yes I know," Jesse replied.

Const Martin said the task force was now creating a database of scammers to see if Jesse had more WA victims.

Ms Jacobs' son, who did not want to be named, said her friends and family had tried to talk her out of going to South Africa, but she could not be swayed.

"Mum went over for a couple of months and did not return," he said.

"So as you can see, one consequence of the internet scammers has taken her life."

He urged others who find love on the internet to be cautious.

"Don't go, because at the end of the day, they are running a business or a scam or what they want to believe it is, to lure people to go to Africa, and no saying it's a one way ticket, but there's a possibility it's a one way ticket and no return," he said.

"If you do meet someone who is truly in love with you, money doesn't buy it."

WA ScamNet's top tips to avoid relationship fraud:

  *   Do not respond to out-of-the-blue social media messages from strangers requesting romance, such as a friend request on Facebook.
  *   Be on your guard if someone you meet on an online dating site asks you to take the conversation over to email or instant messaging.
  *   Be wary of overseas-based singles especially if they confess their love for you after a short amount of time or want to know about your financial status.
  *   Remember that just because someone shares personal photos does not mean the pictures are of them – scammers often steal other people's photos.
  *   Don't be fooled into thinking that talking to somebody on the phone means you know them and that they are who they say there are.
  *   Be concerned if a person refuses to chat real-time via a webcam and be mindful that even Skype is not scammer proof – watch out for pre-recorded videos.
  *   Alarm bells should ring if someone you do not know personally (have met face-to-face) requests money, particularly by a wire transfer service such as Western Union or even direct bank transfers, which could be going to an account set up with a stolen identity.

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Premier rubbishes PM's $1bn road offer

Julia Gillard defends her visit to Western Sydney saying 'her visit like any other visit in the past'. Courtesy Sunrise Network Seven

NSW Premier Barry O'Farrell has rubbished an offer by Julia Gillard for a $1 billion-plus down-payment to start building the western Sydney motorway network as election grandstanding by a government which "hasn't done its homework".

Mr O'Farrell said the Prime Minister's proposal, revealed in The Daily Telegraph today, could add five to eight billion dollars to the West Connex project.

"The Prime Minister is prepared apparently to offer a billion dollars," Mr O'Farrell said.

"A billion dollars with what is estimated to be a five to eight billion additional price tag.

"That's half a billion dollars less than what Tony Abbott's offering for the existing program."

He said the increased cost would come from the construction of additional works and removing tolls from the M4.

Mr O'Farrell revealed he had not been informed of the plan by the PM despite talking to her on Saturday about other announcements.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard arrives at the Rydges Hotel at Rosehill to attend a special dinner reserved for Labor members ahead of her long week out in the Western Suburbs. Picture: Adam Taylor

"The first I heard about today's plan was when I picked up the newspaper," he said.

"This is back of the envelope stuff."

"The only plan the Prime Minister has is to try and win the September election."

 The PM's offer is from the second tranche of the government's Nation Building program.

But it is dependent on the state meeting its conditions.

Ms Gillard said extending the project was vital for the residents of western Sydney.

"My offer to Premier O'Farrell is the day that he produces for us a plan that meets those three conditions - people to the city, freight to the port, no tolls on current roads - we will make a funding offer," she told reporters.

''What we have so far is a plan that doesn't meet those vital needs.''

Federal Transport Minister Anthony Albanese said NSW had asked for a $1.8 billion Commonwealth contribution for WestConnex in its initial assessment given to Infrastructure Australia.

It received $25 million from last year's federal budget for planning work.

Mr Albanese said his department's secretary would be available to help NSW to complete the requested reassessment.

''We need to make sure this work is got right," the minister said.

 Earlier, the PM's breakfast on the campaign that isn't a campaign began with a protest.

More than 30 Rooty Hill residents waved banners and electricity bills at the Novotel hotel where the PM is staying during her five day western Sydney sleepover in protest of rising power prices and the carbon tax.

"We shouldn't have to live like this," Rooty Hill locals Keith and Laura Seeley said. "Every electricity bill is a struggle."

"We don't use our freezer, we don't cook in the oven, we have to make sure to unplug everything."

The couple said they felt betrayed by Ms Gillard.

"She made all these promises last time she was out here and not one was honoured," Ms Seeley said.

"The West Link, the carbon tax, the mining tax. She doesn't keep the promises she makes."

Protesters said they were disappointed the Prime Minister did not meet with them.

"She said she was here to talk to people," resident Tony Robinson said. "Where is she? Why did she lie?"

The protesters were joined by climate change sceptic Lord Christopher Monckton.

On Sunday night, Ms Gillard said western Sydney residents needed recognition and respect and shouldn't be viewed as second-rate,  in an address to about 1000 Labor faithful.

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Noise a dampener on high-speed rail

Transport Minister Anthony  Albanese says a high-speed rail track between Melbourne and Sydney would need to be 1750km long. Source: The Australian

HIGH-speed rail will have significant noise issues and will not be a perfect solution to the nation's transport challenges, federal Transport Minister Anthony Albanese has warned.

It would also face huge costs and involve big tunnels being built to make sure the track could be in a straight line for swift travel.

Mr Albanese said he was not arguing against the project but wanted to caution those calling for high-speed rail that it  "will have effects that are not desirable or perfect''.

He said the noise level would reach 100 decibels when a high-speed rail train passed.

The Federal Government has commissioned a study into high-speed rail that it will release in coming months.

Mr Albanese told the Sydney Institute the track between Melbourne and Brisbane would need to be 1750km long and the only way it could be built was to have 144km of tunnels.

"It requires a substantial corridor in as straight a line as possible in order to facilitate the 350km hour speeds,'' he said.

Mr Albanese said the national economy was being held back by Sydney's failure to build a second airport but high-speed rail was not a simple solution.

"The critics of aviation often raise high-speed rail in a manner that pretends that this infrastructure project is free from any environmental or disruptive consequences,'' he said.

He predicted when people were faced with the "reality'' of what the ambitious project involved, they might suddenly become opponents.

"The reality ... has a wide corridor, major tunnelling, significant noise impacts and that's before we consider the significant economic costs,'' he said.

Greens MP Adam Bandt is one of the strongest supporters of high-speed rail and last year said a network on the east coast could generate benefits of $48 billion.

Mr Bandt said it would mean fewer accidents, lower greenhouse gas emissions, less air and noise pollution, less congestion on roads and at airports and substantial time savings.

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Jill accused on rape charges

Murder victim Jill Meagher. Source: Supplied

ACCUSED killer and rapist Adrian Bayley has been charged with raping two women in the months before the alleged rape and murder of Jill Meagher last year.

Sex crimes squad detectives charged Mr Bayley, 41, with the alleged rape and false imprisonments of the women in separate attacks on April 5 in Elwood and July 15, 2012, in Balaclava.

It is the third unsolved rape case Mr Bayley has been accused of since the alleged rape and murder of Jill Meagher.

The Herald Sun understands the charge relating to the alleged attack on July 15 involves a 27-year-old Dutch backpacker, 27, who claims she was sexually assaulted in a lane off Westbury St, Balaclava, after which a photo was released by Victoria Police.

The woman, who spoke to the media in August, was walking home along Carlisle St between 2.30am and 3.30am from St Kilda pub the Elephant & Wheelbarrow when a man allegedly approached and told her she was being followed by a black car and persuaded her to get in his car.

She claims the man, who drove a red car, took her about 500m before pulling into a dark laneway off Westbury St and locked the doors.

After the alleged attack the woman convinced him ''it was OK'' and that she would not report him to police in a bid to escape with her life.

The man accused of murdering and raping Jill Meagher has been charged with two new offences.

The man then drove her to her share house and as they walked to the front door she ran from him screaming. He fled the scene.

A Victoria Police statement said: ''Sexual Crime Squad detectives have charged a 41-year-old man with two sexual assaults in the St Kilda area last year.''

''The man has been charged with rape, false imprisonment and intentionally cause injury relating to an alleged incident on April 5, 2012, in Elwood.

''He has also been charged with rape and false imprisonment relating to another alleged assault in Balaclava on July 15, 2012.''

On February 1, Mr Bayley was charged with another rape that allegedly occurred in St Kilda in November, 2000.

A filing hearing in the Melbourne Magistrates' Court is listed for Friday.

Accused rapist and killer Adrian Bayley.

Investigators are still appealing for a witness, who drove a blue Hyundai Excel with sheepskin seat covers, to come forward or contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or crimestoppers.com.au.

Mr Bayley is set to face a committal hearing in relation to the Jill Meagher case on March 12.

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