Friday, August 2
Drone surveys were due to begin around McCallum Street and the Swan Hill bridge as part of the bridge replacement project.
The announcement came in a community-wide communication from Transport for NSW in collaboration with the Australian, NSW and Victorian governments – the first since 2021.
The pamphlet showed that the aerial surveys would take place between McCallum Street in Swan Hill and Swan Hill Road in Murray Downs, and 150 metres either side of the bridge.
Mallee Machinery Field Days took an innovative change of direction, turning its traditional guest speaker role into an opportunity to stage a massive fundraiser on behalf of the FightMND Foundation.
MMFD president Chris Monaghan and the Speed Lions Club took 2024 guest speaker Terry Daniher to Nandaly Hotel on Wednesday night, where a small but enthusiastic crowd of supporters dug deep and splashed out $13,000 on the celebrity auction.
A Swan Hill man died after being put in a restraint position after a fight outside a Swan Hill nightclub five years ago, a Victorian coroner found.
The 20-year-old man, who The Guardian chose not to name due to cultural sensitivity, died on the footpath near Barrells Nightclub on Campbell Street on January 19, 2019.
During the altercation, the man was restrained by a security officer and owner of the venue for “upwards of four minutes”.
In a Coroners Court of Victoria finding into the death without inquest, Coroner Leveasque Peterson determined the man died from prone-restraint asphyxia in the setting of alcohol intoxication and centripetal obesity
Tuesday, August 6
A public disabled toilet was set ablaze at Riverside Park in a weekend incident described as “beyond comprehension”.
Swan Hill CFA were called to Monash Drive about 8.30pm on Saturday night and extinguished the fire, which was believed to have been started in the toilet’s bin.
Swan Hill police Senior Sergeant Deb Palmer said police believed the fire was deliberately lit.
Both the proponents and opponents of the proposed Goschen rare earths and mineral sands project set up stalls at Mallee Machinery Field Days in Speed.
Mine Free Mallee Farms were at the event building awareness of the impact it says VHM’s proposed mineral sands mining would have on farmland and surrounding communities.
MFMF spokesperson Craige Kennedy said the group received positive feedback from the farming community for being able to answer questions.
Masterchef semi-finalist Tim Bone was on hand to give advice to students at the Murray Mallee Local Learning and Employment Network Trades Expo.
The expo at the The Grain Shed Church of Christ in Swan Hill allowed primary and secondary students across the Mallee to explore careers in the trades sector, including cooking and hospitality.
Friday, August 9
A man faced Swan Hill Magistrates’ Court after an alleged crime spree across north-west Victoria that began in Swan Hill.
The 21-year-old Swan Hill man was arrested late that Monday night in Hopetoun after allegedly carrying out a spate of carjackings while wielding a machete.
Paramedics in the Swan Hill municipality were responding to critically sick patients almost within the target timeframe.
In the three months to June, ambulances arrived to Code 1 patients 64.9 per cent of the time within the target of 15 minutes. The average response time was 15 minutes, 44 seconds, with 350 first responses recorded.
The previous quarter the average response time blew out to 16 minutes, 36 seconds.
A group of Swan Hill’s hard-working Country Fire Authority volunteers were recognised at Swan Hill’s annual brigade dinner and award presentation night.
While the event briefly paused when members responded to a fire at Riverside Park, the interruption couldn’t extinguish the night of celebration.
Tuesday, August 13
Babies from local Indigenous communities were celebrated in a ceremony on the banks of the Murray River to start their lifelong connection to Country.
After a smoking ceremony and dances, Wamba Wamba and Mutthi Mutthi woman Vicki Clark anointed each of the 20 babies with oil gifted from Aboriginal people in South Australia and ochre gifted from the local people, mixed in a coolamon.
The oil is meant for healing, and endows the babies with strength in heart, mind, spirit and connection to Country.
After months of speculation, Swan Hill District Health learned it would not be forced to amalgamate with other public hospital services across Victoria.
The Victorian Government received the final report on the state’s health services plan from an expert advisory committee, recommending the amalgamation of 76 public hospital services to 11.
The report suggested amalgamations would allow effective use of hospital resources, attract more workers and reduce costs, decreasing fragmentation across the state’s public health system.
Friday, August 16
Residents across Australia prepared to come together to give thanks to the almost 60,000 Australians who served in the Vietnam War and remember those who sacrificed their lives.
August 18 is Vietnam Veterans’ Day, which commemorates the anniversary of the Battle of Long Tan in which 18 Australians were killed and 25 wounded.
2024 marked the 58th anniversary of the Battle of Long Tan, and the 51st anniversary of the withdrawal of Australian units from the conflict in Vietnam.
Wamba Wemba Aboriginal Corporation was appointed as a cultural heritage management body by the Victorian regulatory authority.
“The WWAC board of directors would like to take this opportunity to thank all of our members for your support, because without you we wouldn’t have been able to achieve this important milestone,” said WWAC chairperson Lowana Moore.
“We would like to thank our Gnerrick Gnerricks for decades of advocating for recognition as the Traditional Owners of our lands and waters. Let’s enjoy the win that belongs to us all!”
A parcel of land was chosen as the site of Sunraysia’s “game changer” drug and alcohol rehabilitation facility.
Minister for Mental Health Ingrid Stitt announced the $36 million, 30-bed facility would be built on the former Merbein Primary School site.
Tuesday, August 20
Hundreds of colourfully dressed Variety Victoria Bash participants set off from Swan Hill’s Riverside Park as they kicked off their 12-day journey for a good cause.
2024 was the first time the Victorian Bash had set off from Swan Hill, bringing close to 80 fully decorated vehicles to town before they started their trip to Queensland’s Airlie Beach.
Participants went all out with their costumes and cars, themes ranging from royalty and highway patrol officers, to The Simpsons and Sesame Street characters.
Agriculture Victoria staff announced the European honeybee parasite known as varroa mite was detected for the first time in Victoria at a hive at Nangiloc.
The parasite was found during routine checking of beehives used as part of almond pollination season.
“This early detection of varroa mite enables Victorian beekeepers to prepare and manage their hives effectively,” said Agriculture Victoria’s acting chief plant health officer Dr Stephen Dibley.
Friday, August 23
Schools around the region celebrated Book Week, with students and teachers alike dressing as their favourite fictional characters.
The theme was ‘reading is magic’, speaking to the importance of literacy for children.
Victorian TAFE teachers went on a 24-hour strike for the first time since 2012, with more promised if two years of pay negotiations continue without resolution.
As the Australian Education Union marched on Victoria’s Parliament House on Wednesday, members of the Sunraysia TAFE sub-branch picketed Swan Hill Town Hall.
Swan Hill was on track to record its warmest August on record.
The average maximum temperature so far was 18.9 degrees, well above the long-term average 16.7 degrees.
The warmest August average on record was 18.4 degrees in 2007.
The warmest daytime temperature at the time of reporting was 24.7 degrees on August 15, while the highest August maximum on record was 27.8 degrees on August 30, 2007.
Tuesday, August 27
Dozens of Swan Hill residents had their power restored Monday after Sunday’s strong winds and thunderstorm activity.
Uprooted trees and fallen branches brought down powerlines and plunged homes into darkness for hours until energy crews could arrive on scene to assess the impact.
Powercor crews worked Monday to restore power to 680 customers across central, north and western Victoria.
Police across the Gannawarra and Swan Hill regions cracked down on the theft of firewood from local forests as part of Taskforce Ironbark.
Victoria Police, Parks Victoria and Conservation Regulator Victoria aimed to stop the illegal commercial removal from public land, as part of a joint statewide operation.
Friday, August 30
Twelve Balranald community groups were awarded grants from Sunraysia Solar Farm to support their initiatives.
John Laing managing director Duncan Jewell said Sunraysia Solar Farm had been sponsoring grassroots groups and projects since the farm’s construction in order to give back to the community.
“With large projects like this solar farm, to some extent it is disruptive to the community, certainly during the construction period,” he said.
“That’s why I think it’s important that we not just take but also give back as much as possible.”
Swan Hill District Health is assured staff and patients their safety remains the hospital’s top priority after an increasing incidence of violent and aggressive behaviour.
The hospital took urgent action to address the rise by increasing the security presence at the hospital’s emergency department and other measures.
