TRANSCRIPT:
- Three people in hospital after a helicopter crash on the coast of Victoria;
- A man sentenced for the killing of his former partner in New South Wales;
- Coco Gauff makes her first final in the Madrid Open.
A helicopter has crashed into the ocean near a popular beachside tourist town in Victoria.
Three people on board have managed to swim to shore at Point Lonsdale on the state's Bellarine Peninsula, which is almost 30 kilometres from the regional city of Geelong.
A man and woman have been airlifted to hospital with serious injuries.
A second man has been taken to hospital via road ambulance where he's understood to also be in a serious condition.
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The Prime Minister’s appearance in Devonport has been gate crashed by liberal volunteers.
Most of the group of around 40 campaigners were silent and respectful, holding placards trumpeting the liberal’s key pledge of a temporary cut to the fuel excise.
But a few hecklers have called out the PM over the spending on the voice referendum.
Mr Albanese has carried on to take selfies with Labor faithful and locals, but quickly walked out as the scene threatened to become more chaotic.
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Greens leader Adam Bandt has also hit the hustings on the final day of campaigning in the federal election, wielding a giant toothbrush to push the party's policy on dental care.
He says Australia has enough resources to provide more support - which for the party means seeing dental being included in Medicare.
"Last time there was a minority Parliament, the Greens got dental into Medicare for kids. This time we want to get it in for everyone. We're in a wealthy country, but people are skipping going to the dentist and the doctor because they can't afford it. People are skipping meals to pay the rents, and it shouldn't be that way."
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A WARNING THAT THIS STORY MAY BE DISTRESSING FOR SOME LISTENERS:
A man has been sentenced to 22 years and six months in jail for the murder of his ex partner.
Newcastle Supreme Court Justice Richard Weinstein has described Tyrone Thompson's murder of 21 year old Mackenzie Anderson as "brutal". Weinstein says the Crown submitted the seriousness of the crime was aggravated by previous domestic violence in the relationship, Ms Anderson's fear of Thompson and her attempts to end the relationship.
But he has ruled that Thompson's significant mental health issues, the domestic violence he suffered as a child at the hands of his violent father, his difficult schooling and exposure to drugs had diminished his moral culpability.
Ms Anderson's mother Tabitha Acret has said outside the court she is heartbroken over the loss of her child.
"Throughout this week my daughter was often referred to as the deceased, a term that strips her of her identity, of personhood. I want people to remember that she was not just a statistic, her name was Mackenzie. She was a mother, a sister, a daughter, and a friend. And most of her all she was a human being and her life mattered."
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Authorities say it could take the entire day to clear debris from Sydney's M1 motorway after a truck spilled metal shards over a long stretch of road early this morning.
Roads Minister Jenny Aitchison has called it an unprecdented situation, saying it's proving a difficult task to comb through small pieces of metal that could easily be lodged in crevices and tyre treads.
New South Wales Transport Management Centre coordinator Howard Collins says over 700 kilograms of metal shards have impacted more than 300 vehicles, causing tyre damage to some cars.
The manager of the trucking company responsible, Daniel Falconer, has apologised for the incident in an interview on 2-G-B Radio.
"I say, we've been doing this for about three or four years, and we've never had a problem with it. The pins on the back of the trucks were locked with it's just a mechanical error of some sort. We don't know exactly how it's come out the back of the truck. It's just been seeping out, by the looks of it, over a couple of K's [[Kilometres]], he travelled 30 K's before he even got to the stage where it started coming out seems to be just an accident. We are very sorry for all the concern, all that we're just thank God that no, no one's had a major accident or anything."
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An exhibit featuring the world famous Terracotta Warriors is being brought to Australia next month.
More than 225 Chinese artefacts - including the warriors - will be hosted in June at the WA Museum Boola Bardip.
The pieces are from the period in history when China was unified under Emperor Qin Shi Huang.
It's understood most of the objects have never been seen in Australia before, nearly half have never left China, and some of the more recently excavated pieces have never been on public display.
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To sport,
Iga Swiatek has experienced her worst loss in five years, going down to Coco Gauff 6-1 6-1 in the Madrid Open semi-finals.
Gauff will now face world number one Aryna Sabalenka for the WTA 1000 title in what will be her first Madrid Open final.
She has told the Tennis Channel she is confident of her chances in that match after accounting for Swiatek so thoroughly.
"Honestly, today I just felt good out there on the court. And the last few matches even though like my first round started off tough I think it made me match ready for today and you know maybe it wasn't her best tennis but I think for me, I'm really happy with how I serve today. And then off the ground, I felt like I don't know I just felt good out there."
