First locals return to Wye River as pub reopens
Anna Whitelaw While Wye River residents wait anxiously to return to their bushfire-ravaged homes, the family who owned the pub returned to a ghost town to reopen the pub to emergency workers.
Latest Victoria news
Girl, 7, recalls her fear as the Wye River fire roared in
Angus Livingston 12:18 AM Fire ringed Wye River's hills and tore through its homes in smoky darkness on Christmas Day and seven-year-old Pema was scared.
A third of gift cards go unused
Kirsti Weisz 10:29 PM A third of gift cards are going unused across Victoria as people flood to return or exchange unwanted Christmas presents.
"Bae", "Fleek" and the buzzwords of 2015
Kirsti Weisz 9:51 PM Here they are, the new (and not-so-new) words that worked their way into the public consciousness over the last year.
Firefighters lose houses while battling Wye River blaze
Alana Schetzer 9:51 PM Since Eliot Walton arrived at Wye River on Boxing Day, he has donned his CFA uniform and helped control the blaze that continues to threaten the township he loves.
A state of anxiety as Victoria fears a black January
Darren Gray 9:01 PM Victoria's grasslands are up to six weeks ahead of the usual drying pattern, suggesting the fire season will be long and threatening.
Police raid comes up trumps with footy card find
Craig Butt 8:34 PM Police executing a raid in Melbourne's west today have stumbled across some rare football memorabilia.
Family searches for missing father, grieves mother's death
Rania Spooner 7:22 PM Grieving siblings whose mother died of a stroke on Tuesday morning are appealing for help to find their missing elderly father who suffers from severe dementia.
Kennett renews calls for safe drug-injecting room: 'Every human being is entitled to life'
Aisha Dow 6:16 PM Former Victorian Premier Jeff Kennett has renewed calls for a safe-injecting room in Victoria, saying homeless drug users should not be left to die.
The battle for Kennett River
Darren Gray 5:43 PM A massive effort is under way at Kennett River on the Great Ocean Road, as fire crews build a bare earth control line to protect the community and other nearby settlements ahead of hot and windy weather late this week.
New Year's Eve: Pain lingers for teenager burnt by illegal fireworks
Rebecca Rubenstein 5:34 PM Life has never been the same for 16-year-old Natalie after being seriously injured by illegal fireworks in Lorne last New Year's Eve.
Rape accused told police laws were unfair, court hears
Adam Cooper 5:27 PM The man is accused of raping his ex-partner in her home and of assaulting her on Christmas Eve.
Wye River lifesavers, businesses suffer economic blow
Goya Dmytryshchak and Darren Gray 5:18 PM Wye River Surf Life Saving Club is set to lose about $50,000 with the bushfires causing it to cancel its major fundraising events and cancel this year's Nippers program for about 150 children.
Bracks says it was 'luck of the gods' his Wye River house wasn't lost
Goya Dmytryshchak 5:04 PM Former Victorian premier Steve Bracks said it was the luck of the gods that 50 more houses, including his holiday home for the past 30 years, weren't lost in the Wye River bushfires on Christmas Day.
Footscray explosion: One dead, one injured after truck collides with cars and explodes
Anna Whitelaw, Cameron Houston, Goya Dmytryshchak 4:30 PM One man is dead and a pedestrian has been injured after a truck collided with five cars and exploded in Footscray.
A hot time in the old town for celebrations
Rebecca Rubenstein 4:02 PM It will be a hot and windy night, the kind of weather that makes emergency services nervous – especially when controlling a crowd estimated to be 500,000 strong coming into the city for New Year's Eve.
New Year's Eve fireworks may be cancelled due to fire threat
Anna Whitelaw 3:44 PM Authorities brace for hot and windy weather on New Year's Eve.
Ready, aim, fireworks - despite dire weather warnings
Rania Spooner and Rebecca Rubenstein 3:44 PM Firefighting authorities have flagged the possibility of a total fire ban for New Years Eve but planned fireworks displays are still expected to go ahead despite a severe fire rating in the South West.
Homeless man stabbed in Ascot Vale
Craig Butt 3:26 PM A homeless man is in a serious condition after being stabbed in Ascot Vale on Tuesday morning.
Turnbull schools plan 'sneaky, mean, tricky': Andrews government
Clay Lucas and Matthew Knott 2:39 PM A plan by the Turnbull government to not provide the final two years of the Gonski school funding deal has drawn a furious reaction from the Victorian government, with the acting education minister branding it "sneaky and mean and tricky".
Victoria bushfires: "proud" Prime Minister personally thanks Wye River firefighters
Alana Schetzer, AAP 1:13 PM Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has praised the tenacity of residents and firefighters in the townships of Wye River and Separation Creek, where 116 homes were destroyed by the 2300-hectare blaze on Christmas Day.
15 of the best things that happened in 2015
Kirsti Weisz 12:53 PM 1. The United States Supreme Court affirms same-sex marriage
Blind passion amid biffo, underarm bowling at a different kind of cricket
Carolyn Webb 12:51 PM While Australia played West Indies at the MCG, the national blind cricket championships at Princes Park boasted under-arm bowling, sledging and a bit of biffo between guide dogs in the crowd.
How Falls Festival was saved
Anna Whitelaw 7:34 AM Hours before 16,500 festival goers were due to start arriving at the annual Falls Festival, event organiser Jessica Ducrou is marvelling at the way the festival has been saved at the 11th hour.
'Unsophisticated' Flemington plan has serious issues: state architect
Clay Lucas 6:35 AM Plans for a sprawling high-rise apartment development on land at Flemington Racecourse – put forward by the Victoria Racing Club and a Chinese developer – have serious flaws, the state architect has told the Andrews government.
The 'dirty' and hard work being done to combat the Otways bushfire
Darren Gray Fire crews have a vast amount of work to do to control the Otways fire, much of it hard manual labour building a control line and blacking out burnt areas with hand tools and water.
Scenes from a town rescue mission at Camp Wye River
Alana Schetzer It is the peak of summer but there is no one at the beach.
Wye River residents stand strong like warriors
Goya Dmytryshchak Faced with dealing with the aftermath of losing her Wye River home, Sherryl Smith has criticised the lack of overall co-ordination and responsibility for helping victims.
Premier promises help for bushfire victims
Alana Schetzer Holiday-home owners whose properties were destroyed in the Wye River bushfire might receive financial compensation from the state government.
Prospect of Sir Lynton, lord of spin, triggers debate in UK
Nick Miller The impending knighthood of Australian political strategist Lynton Crosby in the UK New Year honours list has met a mixed reaction, mostly on predictable party lines.
Opinion
Andrews' port plan is a fraud on the west
Victoria is facing an infrastructure fiasco rivalling the desalination plant.
Indifference threatens a jewel in Victoria's heritage
In a crook of a hill outside Melbourne, a rare example of Victoria's heritage is crumbling.
A perfect storm led to hospital baby deaths
We must demand transparency and a change in attitude at Bacchus Marsh Hospital.
Hunt’s Melbourne 2200: on a road to nowhere
Environment Minister is still playing Abbott-style politics and his proposals ignore fiscal realities.
The urban myth we just can't shake off
We have the world's most urban culture but we see ourselves as red-dirters, outbackers, bushies.
Hail the fight for workplace safety
The decline in workplace deaths would have been unachievable without the vigilance of unions.
Fighting fire with fire: sometimes it goes wrong
The recent Lancefield bushfires highlight the need to have a plan and then use it.
A premier who keeps his promises? Really?
Premier Daniel Andrews has stuck to his guns, and his commitments.
Flash heatwave forebodes dangerous summer
In less than a week, the bushfire season has descended upon us.
Open letter to Gillon McLachlan
Victim of Brownless' "strippers" comment says the AFL chief should use his power to change the culture of The Footy Show.
Don't be fooled by Andrews' port trickery
Privatising the port to pay for level-crossing removals is a modern version of the pea and thimble trick.
Video
V/Line conductor filmed punching man
Passenger films a V/Line employee as he repeatedly kicks and punches a 46-year-old man at Broadford station.
Andrews wants Melbourne Metro cash from Turnbull
Daniel Andrews wants the allocated $3 billion for East West link to fund the Melbourne Metro.
Inside Australia's goat farming industry
We export the largest quantity of this meat in the world, but most Australians know little about goat farming.
