Toowoomba News

• 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.

• Queensland multimillionaire joins 'air taxi' race ahead of 2032 Olympics

  Businessman John Wagner backs the use of flying taxis ahead of the 2032 Olympics but there are still a few hurdles for the technology to overcome.

• A 2,300km road trip in an electric car with a three-year-old — this is how Wei Liew survived it

  When Wei Liew was unable to charge his electric vehicle in the remote outback, the next 100 kilometres were touch-and-go. Here, he and other EV road-trippers share their experiences.  

• 'Grave fears' held for Toowoomba man missing since walk near home 18 days ago

  The family of 61-year-old Dale Cook say they are "devastated" by his disappearance, as police on foot with dogs resume their search of dense bushland nearby.

• Skydiver with more than 600 jumps dies after landing accident in south-west Queensland

  Authorities are investigating the death of a 25-year-old experienced skydiver at Tarawera, near Goondiwindi, after his landing went wrong.

• 'No reprieve in sight' to unseasonably hot weather after new winter records

  It may be the last week of winter but temperatures are rising across Australia — and in several places, winter heat records have already been broken. 

• Broken leg and all, wagon riders re-create history on Queensland's famed Cobb & Co trail

  Nothing was going to stop Col Anderson from realising a long-time dream of taking part in this weekend's centennial re-enactment of the final Cobb & Co mail run — not even the leg she busted on a training run. 

• Cheap rent and HECS debts wiped out: The incentives that are bringing teachers to rural schools

  A teachers' union wants these incentives expanded to help deal with crippling teacher shortages in regional schools.

• Queensland mother found to have deliberately killed her four children in highway crash

  Charmaine McLeod and her two daughters, Aaleyn, 6, and Matilda, 5, and her two sons Wyatt, 4, and Zaidok, 2, died in a highway collision near Kingaroy on May 27, 2019.  

• Police union boss named as Queensland cross-border commissioner

  Queensland's southern border residents hope law and order will be a priority of the state's new cross-border commissioner, Ian Leavers.

• Forget muster dogs, meet the wannabe muster cat Smitten

  Seventeen-year-old Smitten is trying to earn her keep as a muster cat on her Western Downs cattle property, and isn't afraid of the 500kg cows she kicks up dust with.

• Ekka's Singles Mingles inspire Shannon and Murray to feel the tingles

  It was an improbable series of coincidences that led Scenic Rim dairy farmer Shannon Wyatt and Brisbane tradie Murray Holcombe to fall in love, and one of those was a regular Ekka show event attended by 250 love seekers.

• Man charged after allegedly using stolen IDs to take blame for more than $140,000 in speeding fines

  Queensland Police allege they've uncovered a scheme where unsuspecting victims of identity theft were used to take the blame for hundreds of speeding offences. 

• 'Disrespectful and insulting' act of vandalism against hundreds of graves shocks Toowoomba

  A night-time attack on up to 300 graves at Drayton Cemetery in Toowoomba has left the community struggling to understand the senseless nature of it. Three teenagers are being dealt with under the Youth Justice Act.

• Shooting of police officer Brett Forte by Ricky Maddison during pursuit in 2017

  Queensland police release the video of the pursuit of Ricky Maddison and the shooting of Senior Constable Brett Forte on May 29, 2017.

• Six paramedics thought they were going to a car crash. Instead, they were met with gunfire

  Six first responders to the fatal 2017 shooting of police officer Brett Forte have been commended for their bravery on that fateful day.

• The last coach

  Coach 112 made the last run for the Cobb & Co transport company on August 14, 1924 between Surat and Yuleba in Queensland. Janelle Insley from the Queensland Museum shares her personal connection to the coach. 

• Bees suffering a 'significant reduction' in pollination ability due to air pollution, study finds

  Data on 40 different insect species across 19 countries points towards pollinators and beneficial predator species experiencing an almost 40 per cent drop in productivity.

• Toddler was destined to die in 'death sentence of a house', court hears

  Lawyers have made their closing submissions after a 12-day long trial into the alleged murder of Chinchilla toddler Kaydence Mills.

• Aussie farmers hoping to make millions as European nations relax cannabis laws

  Laws around cannabis use are changing in countries like France and Germany, and Australian farmers are hoping to capitalise.