Good morning. Here are your headlines from around regional Australia and beyond. Scroll down and refresh for weather, road reports and more
► BUNBURY: Emergency crews responded to a light plane crash near Bunbury on Monday.
Police report the pilot was the only occupant of the aircraft which crash landed in bushland near Bunbury airport about 12.20pm. Read more.
► COLLIE: A 21-year-old man from Collie has narrowly avoided an immediate term of imprisonment after he pleaded guilty to repeatedly having sex with his 14-year-old girlfriend.
The man, who cannot be named in order to protect his victim, faced Bunbury District Court on Monday and admitted three counts of sexually penetrating a child over 13 and under 16 years of age. Read more.
► MANDURAH: Some of Mandurah’s drivers didn’t have the luck of the Irish on their side on St Patrick’s night, after police pulled over 12 drivers over the limit. Read more.
► NANNUP: A cheese made from sheep milk created history in the WA dairy industry last month.
Farmhouse Gold, a boutique, matured, firm variety hand made by Cambray Cheese on a farm surrounded by forest 12 kilometres north of Nannup, won Grand Champion Dairy Product at the 2017 Dairy Industry Australia Association (DIAA) WA annual product awards. Read more.
► DWELLINGUP: Every Saturday at 3am when everybody is still asleep, Hotham Valley Railway operators start their working routine in the heart of Dwellingup.
From cleaning the picturesque carriages, to oiling the steam engines and heating up the locomotives, the operators work tirelessly to get the railway line ready for the first steam train trip at 10.30am. Read more.
State of the Nation
Need a national news snapshot first thing - well, we have you covered.
► WAGGA: Baby Koby Wiles might have won his fight for life, but his mother Rosie Pollard remains furious at his misdiagnosis and is gunning for a Wagga doctor’s suspension. Read more
►BENDIGO: Some people would not be caught dead in a graveyard on their wedding day. But it's a choice couples will be able to make once renovations to a 140-year-old chapel inside Bendigo cemetery are finished. Read more
► NEWCASTLE: Friends of missing University of Newcastle student Mohsin Awan say they still hold out hope their friend is found alive and well. The 23-year-old Pakistani national was washed out to sea by large surf at Nobbys Beach on Sunday night. Read more
► REDLANDS: Family members of Michael Eather, who disappeared while whitewater rafting in Guatemala, have visited the area where the electrician was last seen. Read more
► KING VALLEY: The NBN was supposed to be the 21st century technology set to change accessibility to the internet, but North East residents and businesses have been left with disappointment. Read more
►LAVINGTON: A girl, 12, was left with a broken collarbone after being struck by a car while with her father and sister. Read more
► KATHERINE: Sexual assaults in Katherine have risen by a third in the past year. Read more
► BALLARAT: A Burrumbeet grandfather has questioned the ethics of duck hunting season, particularly in a popular family camping area where ducks are a key aesthetic feature. Read more
National news
►A number of Regional Express Saab 340 planes have been grounded following a freak incident last week. An investigation is underway after the a propeller sheared off a plane, carrying 16 passengers and three crew mid-flight on Friday. Read more
►A push to weaken Australia's race hate laws has ignited tensions inside the government despite the changes having little chance of passing Parliament. Read more
►The troubled Australian Bureau of Statistics is to axe another 80 to 100 of its public servants, staff were told on Monday. Read more
►The brother of slain standover figure Wally Ahmad has been arrested as he stepped off a flight from the Middle East in relation to one of Sydney's unsolved gangland killings. Read more
National weather radar
What’s coming your way ...
International news
►LONDON: Britain has set its date with destiny confirming its two years of negotiations to exit the European Union will begin from next Wednesday 29 March. Read more
►BALI: Byron Bay woman Sara Connor has decided not to appeal the four-year sentence handed down to her by a court in Bali over death of police officer Wayan Sudarsa. Read more
►BEIJING: Pressure on China's leaders to cut pollution from coal is likely to intensify - potentially hurting Australia's exports - with new research showing Beijing's air quality will get worse with climate change. Read more
On This Day
1685: The great German composer and organist, Johann Sebastian Bach, is born.
1895: South Australia's Suffrage Act is proclaimed after being passed by Queen Victoria.
1947: Two men die in the first documented case of death by Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.
1980: The USA announces its intention to boycott the Moscow Olympics due to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.
2233: Captain James T Kirk of the Starship Enterprise will be born.
The faces of Australia: The Evans brothers
HAPPY DAYS: She Will Reign part-owners John Robertson and Matt and Nick Evans at the Australia Hotel on Sunday. Picture: Simone De Peak
Cessnock brothers Nick and Matt Evans like to think their late father, Mark, "pulled a few strings for us" when they bought a five per cent share with mate John Robertson in She Will Reign.
That $2500 stake in the $20,000 filly gave them a piece of Golden Slipper glory on Saturday at Rosehill and a share of the horse’s $2,555,150 in prizemoney.
