Featured
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From Paris to Pastoria
Angela Crawford The rolling countryside of Pastoria East may seem an unlikely place to find a French horologist, yet that is where Bruno Bell calls home. The clockmaker and object restorer and his Australian wife – senior curator for the National Gallery of Victoria, Amanda Dunsmore – moved to their 160-acre property north-east of Kyneton…
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Legalised ‘rally driving’
Angela Crawford A Cherokee resident is calling for a speed limit reduction on roads through vulnerable wildlife hotspots in the Macedon Ranges. John Power said several roads with 100km/h default speed limits could be found at Cherokee, Riddells Creek and other locations east of Mount Macedon. “There are no signed speed limits throughout extensive networks…
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Ranges ready for refugees
Kyneton is at the forefront of places in the Macedon Ranges likely to soon become home to a family of refugees currently living in a camp overseas. Two local groups in the area – the Ranges Resettlement Group and KBC-Connect – under the guidance of Community Refugee Sponsorship Australia, will be supporting the family and…
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Arrests over stolen firearms
Two men from Riddells Creek and two from Bullengarook were among eight people arrested after detectives uncovered a cache of stolen firearms and a treasure trove of stolen goods last Thursday. Following a three-month investigation, detectives from the Western Region Crime Squad and officers from the K9 Unit executed a series of search warrants and…
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Rubbish mars the marshland
Angela Crawford A New Gisborne resident has raised the alarm over a large amount of debris and rubbish polluting the Gisborne Marshlands. The resident said he suspected the debris had been blown into the marshlands from a nearby housing construction site during recent strong winds. “The last big wind saw large amounts of broken polystyrene…
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Hospital power down
Castlemaine Hospital was hit by a power outage last Wednesday after which the facility’s backup generators failed. The incident resulted in a blackout of about an hour, with some patients turned away at the door and some staff sent home. Dhelkaya Health CEO Sue Race said a component fault occurred during a scheduled generator test…
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More cameras roll out in trial
More point-to-point road safety cameras have been installed on the Calder Freeway since the test program began early last year. Additional solo cameras have also been installed as part of a multi-year trial of new road safety camera technology. A spokesperson from the Department of Justice and Community Safety said the cameras would be operational…
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Fire at Kyneton meatworks
Firefighters were called to the scene of factory fire at Hardwicks Meatworks in Kyneton last Friday afternoon. Incident controller Tristian Smith said the alarm was raised about 3pm after air conditioning units in the roof of a cool store area caught fire. “CFA worked alongside Hardwicks management to return the facility to operation. A section…
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BlazeAid on the job
Bill West At the weekend, BlazeAid volunteer teams began the massive task of replacing/clearing up fencing damaged by severe flooding on properties along the Deep Creek, from Lancefield to Darraweit Guim. Precisely how long the work will take is unpredictable at this stage, and there is a need for more volunteers to join the BlazeAid…
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Kids rescued from drain
Two kid goats have been rescued from a disused Melbourne Water sewerage drain at Hoppers Crossing to find a home at Edgar’s Mission Farm Sanctuary in Lancefield. The kids were stuck at the bottom of the six-metre drain leaving rescue crews wondering how they got into their predicament and how they would help them out.…
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New recruits join ranks
The Country Fire Authority recently added another happy group of volunteer firefighters to its local ranks. Last month, 16 new recruit members came together from Castlemaine, Newstead, Maldon, Fryerstown, Huntly, Talbot, Guildford, Bullengarook and Wareek Bung Bong brigades to finally complete their practical general firefighter assessments at the Castlemaine Fire Station. For some it was…
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Regenerator program to assist new farmers
Small farmers new to the region, or those just starting out farming, will now have access to a supportive year-long program designed to help them get the best results from their land. AgriFutures Victorian 2018 Rural Woman of the Year, Melissa Joy (formerly Melissa Connors), has teamed up with Cultivate Farms to design a program…