The hunt for the missing Belgian backpacker, who disappeared after a night out on May 31, is formally referred to the NSW coroner in a move that ends the official police search.

The tourist mecca's potholes are legendary, and locals are taking matters into their own hands as the mayor laments that the town's affluent profile means little to its financially-struggling council.

Rappville residents share stories of survival after a bushfire swept through their small community in northern NSW, with one 82-year-old pensioner hiding in his shed in a bid to escape the inferno.

Toowoomba Regional Council's motto is "Rich traditions, bold ambitions" — and it has boldly created a new tradition in choosing its deputy mayor.

The Vietnam vet, master of ceremonies at Currumbin's Elephant Rock dawn service for 25 years, says this year's Anzac Day cancellations prove we sometimes don't know what we've got till it's gone.

The lead-up to Anzac Day is usually a busy time for florists and volunteers, but this year is very different.

Unemployment in one Queensland region soars to more than double the state figure as an expert warns it's the 'calm before the storm'.

The shire's mayor says with more than 500,000 people from the Gold Coast having their beaches closed and all descending on the Tweed, it is a "pretty frightening prospect for our community".

A veteran discovers 72 unmarked war graves at a cemetery west of Brisbane, working tirelessly to identify the lost servicemen who died in a mental asylum with most having no next of kin, to get plaques placed on their final resting place.

A pod of humpback dolphins in the Fitzroy River in central Queensland are using rare and risky behaviour to catch their prey.

On the Queensland–Northern Territory border, the Urandangi pub is one of the very few in the country that is a hive of activity during coronavirus shutdowns.

A hospital chartered a plane to get Sam Voss, four, to Brisbane for treatment. But he needs the infusion fortnightly to keep his motor skills.

As beaches reopen on the Gold Coast, mayor Tom Tate has called on the Federal Government to allow the "gradual" return of the city's crippled hospitality industry.

After handfeeding cattle through the drought, a Queensland grazier finds his cattle shot with a crossbow in two separate incidents.

A controversial idea to build a bridge over Far North Queensland's Daintree River is back on the agenda, with the new Douglas Shire Mayor narrowly winning a vote on the issue.

When a former Australian solider saw a video of a colleague who'd lost three limbs in a landmine blast it sparked a new purpose in his life.

Just as Australia was about to confirm its first case of coronavirus in Australia in January, Sunshine Coast health figures were given a grim briefing.

Rajkumar Janagani stabbed his wife more than 20 times while she slept in their Brisbane home. She survived, but has suffered serious physical and emotional trauma.

The bashing was so violent, a nurse at the hospital couldn't do a blood test when the 79-year-old was first admitted because he'd "lost that much blood". His grandson was later convicted of assault.

A North West Queensland mine has spent $45,000 on a COVID-19 testing machine for the community — despite the area having no cases of the coronavirus.

By the end of April there has normally been regular fire crew training, inductions, and planning, but social distancing has made that near-impossible.

This holiday hotspot has the potential of having zero active coronavirus cases by early May, but with fine weather and loosening restrictions the situation could prove otherwise.

Annastacia Palaszczuk will use her handling of the coronavirus crisis as evidence she should be returned as Premier at the state election in six months. But it's likely this poll will be a referendum on the future, not a scorecard on the past.

A Queensland family has bought a large cattle station on the Northern Territory/Queensland border from a Chinese billionaire for $53 million.

For the second day in a row, Queensland records no new COVID-19 cases, keeping the state's total at 1,033 ahead of restrictions easing tomorrow.

Queensland's first digital driver's licences have been rolled out on the Fraser Coast and developers and cyber experts agree, the technology gives users more protection against identity theft.

Nicholas John Crilley is sentenced to life in prison for what prosecutors said was the "sadistic" torture of a woman that left her with broken facial bones and burns to almost half her body.

While Australians debate privacy issues around the new COVIDSafe app, those in rural areas are being forced to go to great lengths just to activate the app before even being able to use it.

Suzanne Miller earnt a high wage but in a "gross abuse of high office" she also illegally spent a further $75,000 in taxpayer funds on personal purchases, a Brisbane court hears.

The only person to lose a home when bushfires swept through a Sunshine Coast beachside suburb last year is finally seeing it rebuilt.

Many restaurants and cafes are struggling to keep their businesses alive on takeaway only and the industry is lobbying the Queensland Government for further relaxing of social distancing restrictions to get people eating out again.

Police say they are concerned for the safety of a man who has gone missing in a well known crocodile habitat in Far North Queensland.

Falling temperatures on the Sunshine Coast may be leading to an increase in false fire alarms, experts say.

A 14-week coronavirus drug trial involving volunteer military personnel has resumed despite previous concerns from doctors and veterans about its ethics.

Health insurer apologises for failing to respond to a young man left fighting an aggressive leukaemia in Brisbane, who is unable to return to his home country of Colombia during the coronavirus pandemic.

It was once a holiday destination favoured by US presidents and Hollywood starlets, but Port Douglas in Far North Queensland has turned into a ghost town due to coronavirus travel restrictions.

First-time mayors and councillors who are the subject of minor misconduct complaints will get a three-month amnesty, Queensland's Office of the Independent Assessor says.

A central Queensland farmer's sunflower crop has become a social media sensation, with surprise crowds of thousands flocking to his property to admire the bright fields.

It's an open-and-shut case of home invasion as a wildlife carer captures Novak the beak-and-enter artist refusing to accept the "no entry" rule.

Authorities say a "perfect storm" has caused a disturbing rise in domestic violence cases, as the parents of murdered woman Hannah Clarke ask Queenslanders to support a vigil to remember victims.

Service upgrades rolling out this week aim to plug a hole in Telstra's network for regional, remote, and rural customers who do not receive emergency service alerts.

The 80-year-old from Beaudesert broke her hip and was unable to move for more than four days.

Rowing machines and online coaching are keeping these teenage rowers motivated amid the coronavirus shutdown, and their coaches say many are even achieving personal best times.

A professional beekeeper appeals for public help to find thieves who stole beehives from Toolara State Forest, north-east of Gympie.

Mother's Milk Bank is hoping four mothers in every 100 can donate breast milk to help build a reserve for emergency events like fire, drought, floods, and now a global pandemic.

Chick Corea, Stanley Clarke, Jean Luc Ponty, Lennie White and Aussie Frank Gambale