Follow our live coverage here.
Follow our live coverage here.
No sooner did your blogger hit “publish” on that last post than an alert from the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development dropped into our inbox.
The department is sounding a warning over the bull shark we mentioned that has been pinged 41 times over the past few days at Blackwall Reach.
Because it’s a tagged shark, the department knows a thing or two about its history. It was tagged and released on December 12 last year at Minim Cove on the Swan River, and the department tells us it’s about 2.9 metres long.
“It is possible that the frequency and duration of the recent reported tagged shark detections may increase the likelihood of encountering a shark in this area,” the department’s alert read.
The department warns people should take extra caution in the waters near Blackwall Reach, adhere to beach closures, and check for shark activity on the SharkSmart website.
Anyone who sees a shark is urged to report the sighting to Water Police on 9442 8600.
“Bull sharks” and “Blackwall Reach” in the same sentence might ring a bell.
Cameron Wrathall was swimming in the popular river spot in January 2021 when he was attacked by a bull shark, suffering a broken hip and nerve damage in the ordeal.
Wrathall’s life was saved when nearby kayakers and his friend Richard O’Brien came to his aid, using a makeshift tourniquet to stem the bleeding.
The Bicton father was the first person to be bitten by a shark in the Swan River in more than 50 years, and now shares his story as a public speaker.
He told 7News in 2021 that he momentarily died in the ambulance on his way to the hospital.
He also said he used to swim in the ocean near Cottesloe, but, ironically, switched to swimming in the river in a bid to avoid sharks.
The City of Fremantle has reopened the Sandtrax surf spot near Port Beach after a swimmer was bitten by a suspected 1.5-metre tiger shark about 2.30pm on Wednesday afternoon.
The shark circled the man as he was hauled from the water and into a boat after being bitten on the foot about 40 metres from shore.
Authorities swiftly closed the popular spot, before reopening it again this morning at 7am.
Boat skipper Elliot Kane told 9News Perth the man seemed “startled” by the incident.
A Department of Primary Regional Industries and Regional Development spokesperson said the shark bumped the man several times before biting him.
The man’s injuries did not appear serious, and it is understood he sought help at a doctor’s surgery later that day.
However, river swimmers beware: according to the SharkSmart monitoring website, a tagged bull shark has been detected 41 times at Blackwall Reach between Tuesday and today.
Meanwhile, three suspected tiger sharks each about a metre long were reported by a member of the public near Blackwall Reach. The report came in Thursday morning, but the sharks were spotted Wednesday afternoon.
Almost one in five breakfast radio listeners in Perth are tuned into Nova 93.7’s Nathan, Nat and Shaun show, according to the first radio ratings survey of the year.
The trio’s breakfast show easily triumphed in their timeslot with a 19.8 per cent share of the market, up 3.6 percentage points on the previous survey. The next-highest ranked breakfast show was 96FM, which held a 12.6 per cent share, up 1.5 percentage points.
And the Nova brekky team did it with a man down, too. Nathan Morris has been away from the microphone for much of the start of the year, returning to the airwaves about a week ago.
Meanwhile, veteran Perth journalist Gary Adshead’s move to the ABC’s drive show has seen the public broadcaster’s audience share creep up slightly to 4.8 per cent in that timeslot from 4 per cent in last year’s final survey.
Elsewhere on the AM airwaves, 6PR – Adshead’s old haunt, which is owned by Nine, also the owner of this masthead – posted a 1.1 percentage point drop overall to command a 7.5 per cent audience share.
The station’s breakfast show posted the sharpest drop, falling 3.5 percentage points to a 9.3 per cent audience share, while the mornings timeslot fell by 0.6 percentage points and drive by 0.8 percentage points.
And are “the youth” turning off podcasts and Twitch streams and firing up the old wireless again?
Maybe it’s a little premature to make such a bold declaration, but the national youth broadcaster Triple J saw a rise in audience share across the board, particularly on the weekends, where it saw a 2.1 percentage point jump to command 7.3 per cent of the audience.
A 41-year-old man has been hospitalised after being stabbed at Midland Gate Shopping Centre on Wednesday night.
Police were called to the scene at 8.05pm on reports of a serious assault in the shopping centre’s car park.
A WA Police spokeswoman said officers found the man with a “significant laceration” to his left arm.
He was rushed by ambulance to Royal Perth Hospital, where he remains in a stable condition.
Police are still investigating the incident and have called on anyone with CCTV or dashcam footage from the area between 7.30pm and 8.30pm on Wednesday to contact Crime Stoppers.
Police have released CCTV footage as they hunt the driver of a silver SUV which mounted a kerb and drove along a footpath in Greenwood, narrowly missing a pedestrian.
The incident on Blackall Drive at 9.45am on Saturday, March 22, was captured on a home security camera, which showed the SUV crashing through green waste stacked on the side of the road before swerving to avoid a tree and careening across another house’s front lawn.
It’s at that point a pedestrian has to leap out of the way of the speeding car as it hurtles across the footpath and skids back onto the road before swerving straight into the right lane and taking off out of view of the CCTV.
A WA Police spokeswoman said the investigation remained ongoing and urged anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000, or make a report online.
Here’s what’s making news elsewhere this morning.
The heatwave keeps on rolling. There’s some relief coming towards the end of the weekend. Until then, a top of 38 degrees today.
Good morning readers, and welcome to our live news blog for Thursday, March 27.
It’s a busy start to the news day, beginning with Jesinta Burton’s investigation into the paper trail behind mining billionaire Chris Ellison’s helicopter commutes to Mineral Resources’ Osborne Park offices.
The year-long chain of correspondence has laid bare how Ellison was able to fly without formal approval amid questions from residents, politicians and government agencies.
You can read the full investigation here.
Meanwhile, state political reporter Hamish Hastie has two exclusive stories: the first revealing two environmental groups are at the centre of the latest delay in Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek assessment of Woodside’s bid to extend the life of its North West Shelf.
The second reveals WA’s Department of Justice is planning to spend $120,000 on a piece of art in the new Banksia Hill crisis centre – a move described by a high-profile youth justice advocate as “silly”.
Meanwhile, a Perth artist is shocked her public work which once stood in the city’s premier nightlife district has been stored in the open in a North Coogee industrial lot.
And a Perth photographer is turning the focus on the city’s notorious sprawl, documenting barren streets, mass-produced houses, and endless roads on the outer fringes of our ever-spreading city.
So, plenty to read about this morning. And while that might sate your news appetite, there’s still lunch to consider.
Worry not, Max Veenhuyzen has you covered with his list of seven secret Perth sandwiches worth seeking out.
Thanks for joining us today, stay tuned as we bring you more news you need to know.