Toowoomba News

• What Queenslanders can expect from the weather to start the week

  Only one part of the Queensland coast is expected to avoid passing showers today, while in most inland areas there is a reprieve from high fire danger conditions.

• Creative visionary, respected leaders win at National NAIDOC Week Awards

  The winners of this year's National NAIDOC Week Awards have been revealed in Mparntwe (Alice Springs), with leaders, advocates, artists, educators, innovators and community champions recognised for their work.

• 'All women feel it': Four killed in alleged violence in less than two months in Qld

  Four women have been killed in alleged violent incidents in Queensland in less than two months, a statistic that advocates say should unite the community in grief.

• 'Pack a poncho': Gusty winds and short storms for south-east corner

  South-eastern and central Queensland may see thunderstorms on Monday, with strong winds and short, sharp rainfall with "meagre" totals. With some regions enjoying an Ekka public holiday, they are advised to "pack a poncho".

• Jana Armstrong's family says her son will know 'just how special mum was'

  A month after her alleged murder, Jana Armstrong has been laid to rest beside her parents at Millmerran after a moving service at the small country hall.

• Nurses and midwives' union calls out 'gendered violence' after survey

  Annalise has been kicked, punched and even bitten on the face while working as a nurse. Her experience is reflected in the Queensland Nurses and Midwives' Union's latest report into occupational violence in healthcare settings.

• Residents hope to raise $750,000 to fix small town's aged care problem

  Residents in Texas are kept awake at night wondering what will happen to them as they get older, but they are dreaming big.

• Billion-dollar industry 'watching, not panicking' over bird flu spread

  Queensland's poultry industry is on high alert after the state's first H5 bird flu detection, but consumers are being told there is no need to panic.

• Woman charged with animal cruelty as 119 animals allegedly found on property

  Police say they have charged a 48-year-old woman with serious animal cruelty after allegedly finding 119 animals on a property west of Brisbane. 

• Parts of Queensland drought declared for first time in two years

  Parts of southern Queensland have been drought-declared for the first time in two years, with farmers facing worsening conditions after at least 12 months of below-average rainfall. 

• Lack of child care creates skills shortages as bush mums leave work

  Looking at her young daughters, Emily McPhee hopes they will never have to choose between a career and raising a family in the bush.

• Cotton growers race to treat leaf disease after mysterious arrival

  No-one knows how ramularia leaf spot got to Australia, but growers in Queensland are desperate for a treatment as the fungal disease wreaks havoc on their crops. 

• More frost forecast for southern and central Qld as cold snap bites

  Parts of Queensland shiver through the coldest mornings of the season, with more on the way.

• Hundreds attend memorial for murdered mum Jana Armstrong

  Jana Armstrong has been remembered as a beloved sister, loving mother and valued member of the Toowoomba community following her death two weeks ago.

• Volunteers refuse to let cemetery vandals have final word

  Nearly two years after vandals struck, volunteers have restored more than 100 damaged headstones in a southern Queensland cemetery.

• Inquest hears from woman who took it into her 'own hands' to solve 1989 murder

  A long-running inquest into the death of Annette Mason in 1989 has heard from a woman who took it into her "own hands" to solve the 15-year-old's murder.

• Queensland mayors take disaster funding fight to Melbourne

  Mayors from parts of Queensland hit hard by floods and cyclones have protested in a Melbourne park against planned changes to federal disaster funding.

• Classic winter week ahead, dangerous surf to ease in south-east

  The Bureau of Meteorology says showers from the Wide Bay to the Gold Coast are possible today, with hazardous surf conditions forecast to weaken.  

• For some in Australia, hope is fading and anger is rising

  Sulaiman Zandinan says Australia is amazing. Wendy Newman says people in the bush are "not country bumpkins". The ABC is inviting you to have your say about the issues, challenges and opportunities that shape your life in 2026.

• The unanswered question in the rush for Queensland's hidden oil jackpot

  An expert is warning that the push to fast-track approvals for the proposed Taroom Trough lacks crucial detail.

• 'Very blustery' days ahead for parts of Queensland

  A combination of two strong weather systems will bring wind and rain to south-east Queensland, while residents further north could see the mercury dip to single digits.

• What we know about the alleged murder of Jana Armstrong

  The search for Toowoomba mother Jana Armstrong ended in tragedy. Here's what police say happened to the young mother.

• RACQ accuses some retailers of trying to bring back 'unfair' fuel cycle

  The RACQ says south-east Queensland motorists have been getting a fairer deal without a lengthy fuel price cycle, but there are signs of its return.

• Violence against women under national spotlight after four deaths in four days

  Experts are calling for more research and better funding for domestic violence prevention after four women and girls were killed in separate incidents last week.

• Jana Armstrong's former partner remanded in custody on murder charge

  Toowoomba man Dharminder Singh, 48, whose former partner, Jana Armstrong's body was discovered on the weekend, has appeared in a Darling Downs court charged with murder.