Derrimut factory fire: fire crews work overnight to battle blaze
Firefighters have worked through the night battling a blaze at a chemical factory that sent toxic smoke billowing over Melbourne, AAP reports.
The fire was sparked by a large explosion at the Derrimut factory in the city’s west yesterday morning.
Chemical drums were sent flying into the air at the height of the blaze, making the emergency response more dangerous for firefighters.
No one was injured and it was declared under control in about four hours, but the fire is expected to burn for days.
Fire Rescue Victoria deputy commissioner Michelle Cowling said it was the most significant blaze in Melbourne in recent years and required an aggressive attack.
The nearby Western Freeway was shut for several hours and thousands of residents were urged to stay indoors because of health risks.
Here’s our full story:
Key events
Good morning
Emily Wind
And welcome back to the Australia news live blog – many thanks for Martin for kicking things off for us. I’m Emily Wind, and I’ll take you through our rolling coverage this Thursday.
As always, you can get in touch via X, @emilywindwrites, or you can send me an email, emily.wind@theguardian.com, with any thoughts, tips or feedback. Let’s get started.
After a childhood ‘messing about in boats’, V-Adm David Johnston becomes new defence chief
The incoming chief of the Australian defence force will relive his childhood past time many times over as he officially steps into his new role, AAP reports.
V-Adm David Johnston, who spoke at a changing-of-command parade in Canberra yesterday, is taking over the military as it focuses on expanding naval efforts to counter threats in the Pacific region after a major defence review.
He said:
From a childhood that my wife described as ‘messing about in boats’, I have lived all my life in the ADF.
I have witnessed the extraordinary contribution ADF members make in war-like operations, peacekeeping and protecting our border and engaging with our partners.
It is a great honour to be in your service and I commit to giving you my all, every day, as your (chief).
A review into the defence force recommended it refocus on being able to project its firepower deeper into the Pacific to meet the rise of China, with new nuclear-powered submarines a core element.
Johnston said his career moves around the Indo-Pacific and Asia would be useful in his new role. He said:
This experience greatly aids my understanding of our history and role in the region.
A review of the navy’s surface fleet led to a decision by defence minister Richard Marles to scrap a planned build of larger ships to make room for a bigger fleet.
The number of navy warships will increase from 11 to 26 by the mid-2040s, with the fleet to include remote-controlled vessels as the military places a greater emphasis on drones.
The vice admiral took over from Gen Angus Campbell after serving as the vice chief.
Alice Springs curfew may be extended after further violence
Renewed violence in Alice Springs has raised the possibility that the town’s 72-hour curfew declared on Monday could be extended this morning.
Police say most residents have complied with the restrictions this week but yesterday afternoon they arrested five people involved in a family feud on Bath Street in the town’s centre.
Police say the families are known to each other.
There are reports they are the same families at the centre of a feud that sparked a three-week curfew in March and April following the death of an 18-year-old man, who had been left trapped under a stolen vehicle.
While no-one was injured in the latest clash, weapons – including nulla-nullas, spears, a baseball bat and a machete – were seized by police.
Acting Southern Commander Drew Slape says the “reprehensible behaviour” has no place in the community.
“Our dedicated officers have responded to calls to assist and we will have extra members working tonight, giving up their time off in order to keep Alice Springs residents safe.”
It is not known if the curfew will be extended because of the disturbance.
Northern Territory police minister Brent Potter says the decision to extend the curfew will be made this morning after he and police commissioner Michael Murphy have reviewed the “most up-to-date” information.
Derrimut factory fire: fire crews work overnight to battle blaze
Firefighters have worked through the night battling a blaze at a chemical factory that sent toxic smoke billowing over Melbourne, AAP reports.
The fire was sparked by a large explosion at the Derrimut factory in the city’s west yesterday morning.
Chemical drums were sent flying into the air at the height of the blaze, making the emergency response more dangerous for firefighters.
No one was injured and it was declared under control in about four hours, but the fire is expected to burn for days.
Fire Rescue Victoria deputy commissioner Michelle Cowling said it was the most significant blaze in Melbourne in recent years and required an aggressive attack.
The nearby Western Freeway was shut for several hours and thousands of residents were urged to stay indoors because of health risks.
Here’s our full story:
Welcome
Good morning and welcome to our rolling news coverage. I’m Martin Farrer and I’ll be bringing you the top overnight stories before Emily Wind picks up the slack.
Our top story this morning is an exclusive story about another flashpoint between the Australian military and China in the South China Sea underlining continued tensions in the disputed region. An Australian helicopter was flying south-east of China’s Shandong peninsula but outside its territorial waters when a Chinese fighter aircraft released flares in its path, new documents show. Australia’s HMAS Hobart warship was also being shadowed by a People’s Liberation Army navy destroyer and another Chinese helicopter at the time of the 4 May standoff. It adds to the in-tray of Vice Adm David Johnston who took over as head of the ADF yesterday. More coming up.
The immigration minister, Andrew Giles, had released one murderer and one person convicted of “attempt or solicit murder” into community detention even before the high court ruled that indefinite immigration detention was unlawful. In June Guardian Australia revealed that 25 of the then 153 people affected by the high court’s ruling had already been released into community detention by ministerial discretion but Giles refused to say if he was responsible for the release of those with the worst offending. Now a freedom of information release shows the minister did sign the release of two of the detainees in question in December 2022.
Fire crews have worked through the night to try to contain the huge blaze that broke out at a chemicals factory in Melbourne’s west yesterday. Although firefighting chiefs say the fire in Derrimut is under control, it is expected to burn for days and cause a health hazard for the city from plumes of toxic smoke. More coming up.
Northern Territory police minister Brent Potter will meet police commissioner Michael Murphy this morning to decide whether or not to extend the 72-hour curfew that was set for Alice Springs on Monday. Although police said most residents had abided by the restrictions, there were renewed clashes in the town yesterday afternoon in what police said was a feud between two families. Potter said a decision on any extension would be made today with the “most up-to-date” information. More coming up.
