Ukrainian-born Iryna Dvoskina and husband Yuriy Vdovychenko are the coaching duo behind a handful of Australia's most incredible para-athletes.

Cassandra Smith* found herself in hospital and on an IV line directly to her heart when mould took hold of her body, seeping in after her Townsville home was inundated during major flooding, with an expert saying mould in the city is the most extreme she has ever seen.

A five-year-old boy has died in North Queensland after he was hit by a car overnight while riding his bicycle along the footpath with his father.

Witness AAC says five of her children with disability have had negative experiences with the education system, with problems ranging from verbal abuse to denial of access to bathroom facilities and other restrictive practices.

One of the world's most dangerous desert tracks claims a victim, with five-time champion Toby Price bowing out due to mechanical problems paving the way for a hometown hero to take the gold.

Prosecutor Stephen Robson says he does not accept the version of events given to police by Mr Deighton that he went to answer the door while changing baby Michael, returned to find him falling from the change table and then caught him.

The smoke has cleared and the post-cracker night clean-up is underway, but how much damage was done?

A fatal crash following a police pursuit near a community north-east of Alice Springs is being treated as a death in custody, with police declining to say what prompted them to chase the 42-year-old man.

The custody notification system, designed to help prevent Aboriginal deaths in custody, has been rolled out in the Northern Territory but there are concerns the people most at risk of harm have been excluded from its operation.

A young mother's fight for justice has finally resulted in a sentence, several years after the death of her baby boy when she was 16 years old.

An inquest into the deaths of Linden Kunoth and Jordan Allen, who died by suicide, finds that neither man should have been granted leave from the Alice Springs mental health ward.

An Aboriginal artist is commissioned to design a new sanctuary window for a Central Australian Catholic church in celebration of reconciliation.

The family of brutally murdered woman Karen Chetcuti, whose killer was a rapist on parole, is suing the Victorian Government for her wrongful death.

A hailstorm blankets Gippsland beaches in white as a cold front sweeps across Victoria, downing trees and causing flash flooding as it dumps 50 millimetres of rain west of Melbourne.

Helen Haines is set to make history by becoming the first independent to succeed another in Federal Parliament, replacing Cathy McGowan in the northern Victorian seat of Indi.

Relatives are mourning the death of a 23-year-old Melbourne woman who died on Saturday when a microlight flown by her uncle crashed into the waters of Lake Eildon in central Victoria.

Two teenagers accused of killing a man in north-east Victoria admit they "bashed" him because he offered to pay one of their girlfriends for sex, a court hears.

Albury supermarket owner Bob Mathews says the scheme has cost his business.

Emergency services are warning Victorians to brace for a cold snap and wind gusts of up to 130kph in parts of the south-east, while alpine areas may enjoy heavier snowfall.

Heavy snow, freezing temperatures and "treacherous driving conditions" close access to a popular snow resort as Victoria shivers through its third day of an extreme cold snap that's blanketing towns in snow.

Equestrian sports are set for a major safety overhaul following an inquest into the deaths of two teenagers who died while taking part in separate eventing competitions three years ago.

Two men have been ordered to stand trial over the murder of Wangaratta man Nathan Day, with a Victorian court hearing evidence from dozens of witnesses during a week-long committal hearing.

Victoria should brace itself for extreme weather over the next few days, with the bureau forecasting damaging winds, flooding rains and snow before conditions clear up for Melbourne Cup day.

The Northern Territorys first known contract killer may have accidentally died in his prison cell after using drugs, investigators believe.

In their ruling, the three Court of Appeals judges say a couple who were inside the home had not done anything to "revoke or negate" the implied right for police to walk up their footpath and approach the door.

A coronial inquest finds found the death of Daniel Bleaney, who died by suicide after absconding from Darwin psychiatric facility, was entirely preventable.

Despite two recent inquests into the failure to identify sepsis at Northern Territory hospitals, Joanne Craig was left to deteriorate without the antibiotics that could have saved her life.

Indigenous athlete Shericka Mahoney only received her running blade in June but has set records for long jump and the 100-metres at a national athletics event.

Yolngu people in north-east Arnhem Land consider white ochre sacred and source it to use in ceremonies and art works. A recent discovery beneath a community art centre has the Yirrkala community celebrating.

The life story of a former world champion bull rider resonates with participants of an Aboriginal-run initiative that is using rodeo to improve lives in the Kimberley.

It has been 31 years since Anne-Marie Culleton was raped and murdered while she slept in her Darwin home. Her sister Eileen is now urging South Australia's Parole Board to keep killer Jonathan Bakewell behind bars.

The Northern Territory's largest bus operator is facing a litany of charges over the death of a worker who died after falling into the path of her own tour bus.

Figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics show almost 78 per cent of Katherine residents are now either overweight or obese, the highest proportion in the country. But the town's Mayor is not quite convinced.

A man who raped and murdered a woman as she slept in her Darwin home will tomorrow be released from prison to live in Adelaide despite breaching his parole four times.

South Australia's Correctional Services Minister criticises prison officers for using a decoy in an attempt to shield a notorious murderer and rapist from media attention.

Online scammers operating through social media and at least one crowdfunding site trick friends of a pilot who died in a Darwin plane crash into donating money for his funeral.

This floodplain is a hotbed for ecology - but big floods may have drowned too many rats

Two men walked into a Canberra McDonald's restaurant and ordered a meal while still covered in the blood of a man they had just attacked, according to court documents.

The mother of murdered Canberra boy Bradyn Dillon recounts to the ACT Coroner the moment her son begged not to be sent back to the custody of the man who would eventually beat him to death.

A woman was allegedly raped so violently by a man she met in a shared laundry that she was lucky to survive, the ACT Supreme Court has heard. WARNING: This story contains graphic content.

Child killer Graham Dillon's deception of authorities is examined at an inquest into his nine-year-old son's death, with the case worker assigned to help the family saying he believed Dillon was a model client.

The child protection case officer responsible for murdered Canberra boy Bradyn Dillon is unable to say why she did not carry out more thorough checks on his abusive father when she was looking after the case in 2014.

Political pressure is mounting on the Member for Chisholm about her alleged links to the Chinese Government.

Can you use simple maths to figure out your best online dating profile match? Or choose the shortest line in the supermarket? According to mathematician Lily Serna, yes you can.