Toowoomba News

• 'Murdered' Queensland mum's home pops up on Airbnb as 'absolute bush paradise'

  The belongings of Frances Crawford, who police say was murdered, were cleared from her home in the weeks after her death, before her husband advertised it on Airbnb.  

• LNP promises $30m funding injection to Queensland's agriculture industry if elected

  Would-be premier David Crisafulli has told the state's agriculture sector that the LNP will "supercharge" farming productivity if elected, committing to a $30 million funding boost.

• Fraud allegations involving Tara bushfire and Cyclone Jasper disaster funding referred to police

  Two cases of alleged fraud have been referred to police after one employee was suspended and seven contract staff were terminated at a Queensland government agency responsible for distributing disaster funding.

• Couple turns down wind turbines worth millions due to decommissioning concerns

  Fiona and Rob Duff say rejecting the potential cash flow from wind turbines is not an ideological decision about climate change or energy.

• Poor phone service and confusing warnings put lives at risk during fires, floods and cyclones, review finds

  As large parts of Queensland brace for bushfire season, a state government review has been told woefully inadequate phone service in some regional areas poses a "direct threat to public safety".

• Invasive weed dubbed 'thorny horror’ eradicated from Queensland after 15-year battle

  The karroo thorn can overrun landscapes and make farmland unproductive, so farmers and biosecurity officers are rejoicing at this eradication achievement.

• Tailgating drivers to be called out in real-time by warning signs in Queensland

  The signs, which will also detect mobile phone usage, are expected to be rolled out in Townsville and South East Queensland trial sites before the end of the year.

• Far north Queensland fire downgraded as much of state's south under total fire ban

  Machinery has been lost in a large fast-moving fire in far north Queensland, while 10 local government areas in the south have been placed under a total fire ban amid heightened bushfire conditions.

• Family of slain police officer in Wieambilla attack still struggles with 'mental demons' as request for support service skyrockets

  The mother of Rachel McCrow, one of the police officers murdered at Wieambilla, makes an emotional plea ahead of National Police Remembrance Day.

• Telstra registers uptick in calls to helplines from public phones since service became free

  The telco says emergency calls from public phones have risen by about 20 per cent, and the anonymity they provide for people experiencing mental health crises and domestic violence could be a driving factor.

• Conditions imposed on Queensland doctor after allegations they failed to perform rape kit on elderly woman with dementia

  The daughters of Alice Bradley*, a 79-year-old woman with dementia, allege that a doctor at Toowoomba Hospital did not examine their mother with a rape kit as the practitioner feared she "might think" she "had been sexually assaulted".

• Blueberry farm built without approval gets nod after council told it was 'misadventure'

  A council has green-lit a Queensland blueberry farm after it was contentiously revealed infrastructure work began on the site before local government approval.

• Man jailed for at least 22 years over 'cruel, cold-hearted' murder of stepdaughter

  Tane Desatge will be eligible for parole in 2042 after being jailed for the murder of a two-year-old girl in Chinchilla in 2017.

• Man guilty for murder and torture of Chinchilla toddler hit her head with bamboo stick for not going to the toilet

  A Queensland judge has found a 44-year-old man guilty of the murder of two-year-old Chinchilla toddler Kaydence Hazel Mills.

• 95-year-old keeps garden dream alive as flower festival gets underway after beloved wife's passing

  Les Stephson is not letting his age get in the way of maintaining his "pride and joy" — his garden, where he goes to remember his wife who died a year ago.

• Record spring cold snap delivers snow and severe frost to south-east Australia

  Temperatures across south-east Australia have plummeted during the past 48 hours, leading to the coldest spring weather in decades.

• 'Two years in the wilderness' could have been solved by the right menopause care, but still regional women suffer in silence

  The silence around menopause has long been the norm in rural Australia — now a new generation of women are trying to reshape attitudes and services around this normal, natural phase of life. 

• Bullies made school hell for Amy. Now she's a mum backing a new social media age limit

  Amy Ballinger hates to think of the consequences if the persecution she suffered had followed her home. As her own children start school she wants them banned from social media until they're 16.

• This ancient religion is growing fast in Australia, but it isn't included in the census

  Yazidis living in Australia are petitioning to be recognised in the 2026 census to help ensure they are considered in future policy making and their unique culture is not lost.

• From a carpark to 'beautiful' homes, not-for-profit developer seeks to fast-track affordable apartments

  A developer is working to speed up the approval of a 75-unit apartment complex in the heart of Toowoomba under a new state planning initiative, in a bid to get more social and affordable housing onto the market.

• What it's like growing up disconnected from your culture as a Tongan in Australia

  Isabella Murphy always knew she had Tongan heritage, but she didn't know what that meant until her grandmother died.

• Queensland's rural debt increases by 8.2 per cent, but economists say it's a good thing

  Rural debt in Queensland has increased by more than 8 per cent in three years, with the beef industry seeing the biggest increase.

• 'Elizabeth is sleeping': Father accused of daughter's murder tells court he believes she will be resurrected

  Multiple members of a religious group charged over the death of eight-year-old Elizabeth Struhs have told a court she will be resurrected and will rise again more than two years after her death.

• The ramping crisis meant Marilyn waited 11 hours to get to hospital and onto a bed

  After Marilyn Anstiss had a fall and waited eight hours for an ambulance, she got to hospital late at night and remained ramped outside until early the next morning — much like more than 40 per cent of other Queensland patients.

• Body of man found in bushland near Queensland home weeks after disappearance

  Dale Cook was missing for more than three weeks after leaving home with a water bottle to go for a walk around the block.