SOUTH WEST LOCAL NEWS- WEDNESDAY MAY 13TH-2026

This morning on South West Local News

An arrest warrant for a carjacker who held a machete to the throat of an elderly driver. 

The Federal Budget was released, with local MPs left reeling due to a lack of support for our region. 

A young Pilot attempting a world record stops over in Warrnambool.

And in Sport, Penny Smith achieves a world record with a perfect result.

Transcript

SPEAKER_05 0:00

This morning on Southwest Local News. An arrest warrant for a carjacker who held a machete to the throat of an elderly drop. The federal budget was released with local MPs left reeling due to a lack of support for our region. A young pilot attempting a world record stops over in Warnerball. Penny Smith achieved a world record with a perfect result.

SPEAKER_00 0:29

Live from Silverball Studios in Warnerball. This is Southwest Local News with Liam Fitzgerald.

SPEAKER_05 0:36

Good morning and welcome to Southwest Local News. The 19-year-old offender charged with attempting to steal a car while holding its owner at knife point has skipped court, prompting a warrant for their arrest. Nate Morris Cowan was scheduled to appear in the Warnable County Court yesterday for a plea hearing. It comes after Morris Cowan pleaded guilty to attempted aggravated carjacking in May last year after approaching a 71-year-old male with a machete in a Dennington shopping centre. If anyone has seen Morris Cowan, they are urged to contact Warnerball Police or Crime Stoppers. Dan believes that the billions of dollars allocated to help that particular project could have gone a long way into helping fund urgent road repairs across the state and of course in Wannin. Aside from the lack of funding for roads, the decision to drop crucial funding to repairing black spots in rural areas is also a slap in the face to regional Australians.

SPEAKER_03 2:07

And all those new taxes are based on a prime ministerial lie, sadly. When it comes to young people, what's happening in the housing front is just remarkable because the budget papers show there's going to be less houses built as a result of these new taxes. And not only that, once again, the government has overshot their migration targets, this time by 90,000, to take it to over 2 million that have been brought in. And the question still remains and remains even more so, the pertinent question is where are all these people going to live and how are young people going to be able to get into a home?

SPEAKER_05 2:54

An 18-year-old pilot attempting to break a Guinness World Record touchdown in Warnerville last night as part of her 15,000 kilometre journey to circumnavigate the country. Rose Donald is now inside her final legs of the journey as she attempts to become the youngest female pilot to achieve the feat. She does she departed Warnerville en route to Hobart before heading back north to Malacuta and finishing at Essenden. Rose has raised more than$70,000 for little wings as part of the journey, which supports sick children to get transport to hospitals. By the end of the trip, Rose will have enough hours to finish her commercial pilot's licence, and she says it's always been a dream to attempt the record since the age of 14.

SPEAKER_08 3:33

It was um it was lovely coming down a bit coastal, so I went coastal um from Parafield pretty much, uh, departed to substation, then I tracked along a few salt lakes, which was great to see. Um and yeah, I got to see some of the water coming in from the west just then, so that was lovely. I left on the 6th of April from Essendon, um, and since then I've been all the way up the east coast to Horn Island across to Darwin, um down the WA coast. Most recently I've been in Adelaide, flew into Parafield, and um now I'm finally back in Victoria, but I won't be staying long. I'm off to Tassie tomorrow. Oh absolutely, yeah. Um Tassie's the last stretch. I'll be into Hobart, back up to Malacuda to return somebody's backpack that I took on day one. So yeah, very grateful for um her stuff, and um then I'll be back into Essendon shortly after that. I think I made the solo decision to um try planning it about this time last year. So I had the idea like sort of in the back of my mind since I was about 14. Um when I first started my flight training, me and my dad had heard on the radio that there was another boy circumnavigating the country at 17, and we were thinking, oh hey, like maybe in a few years that's something I could do. I've really just been doing it on the weekends, like in and around my schoolwork. Um so I've always allocated Friday nights for my flight planning and everything when I started my navs. Um, and sat and generally Saturday mornings I'd be off flying or doing um finishing off the flight plan in the car, stuff like that. It's been a long time like in the making. Um, but eventually after a while everything came together, so that was absolutely incredible.

SPEAKER_05 5:13

An amazing effort and in a trusty 172 as well. Well, couldn't nothing could go wrong. Police are asking Southwest motorists to adjust the unique conditions brought by late autumn. Key challenges of the roads this time of year include increasingly wet surfaces and fallen trees from strong winds. These winds can be particularly challenging for those driving with a caravan attached. It's not just the road. Police are urging caution to those looking to get some last-minute camping in before winter, encouraged to be aware of their surroundings and away from large trees. Well, trains have resumed on the Warnable Line today following the completion of a new stabling yard, track upgrades and maintenance works along the Melbourne to Warnable Line. The stabling yard at Warnable Station allows V-Line to house trains overnight and ensure the Warner Line continues to provide a reliable service for passengers. V-Line is running more services than ever before on the Warnable Line, with passengers now having access to five daily return services seven days a week, providing more travel options at different times of the day. Safety and reliability have also been improved on the line through upgrades to more than 60 level crossings and the introduction of modern velocity trains.

SPEAKER_04 6:26

Hi, I'm Julian. I'm the internal project delivery director. The Warnable Stabling Project has delivered two stabling roads here at Warner, which allows us to bring trains in and keep them here overnight to run the first services in the morning. Benefits for passengers are that we have a more reliable service. It helps support us doing the five services a day that we currently run, seven days a week, and the trains can be cleaned, fresh, and ready to go first thing in the morning. Well, one of the big benefits is the active crossing that we've got now got at Gilly Street, allowing people to get across the railway line safely into the lake area.

SPEAKER_02 6:57

What other improvements have been made to the Warnable Line recently?

SPEAKER_04 7:01

So in 2024 we finished 60-level crossing upgrades on the Warnable Line, which allowed us to run the velocities into Warner for the first time last year. Well, the Gilly Street crossing is now being fully activated, making it safer for everybody to access the lake. The benefits for passengers, reliable services five times a day into the city from Warnable.

SPEAKER_05 7:22

Local police are concerned about a new way local offenders are attempting to break into locked cars. It follows a recent spike in car thefts in the Western Victorian policing region, with investigators identifying that key cloning technology is causing significant concerns for police. It's prompted calls for locals to install additional anti-theft measures as the devices are providing opportunistic thieves with a way to override car security systems without keys. Police allege they used key mimicking devices to steal up to 21 cars between January and March this year. According to Detective Acting Inspector Chris Asenjo, up to 30% of cars stolen in Warner in 2026 may have been taken by thieves using the devices.

SPEAKER_01 8:03

The uh investigations that we undertook um identified a number of offenders that were from uh Warnable, Hamilton, Ballarat, and even as far as South Australia. Um technology is a great thing and it helps us in air every day, but what we're finding is that offenders are becoming more attuned to how they can use technology to help commit their offending. It's a little bit like Back to the Future. We would encourage um car owners to firstly park their car in a garage, um, hide their keys away from view and if need be uh go back to uh the traditional locks, the steering locks. You can now buy locks that uh connect to a pedal onto the handbrake. Uh these things are very difficult to uh to break and to to manipulate. Um also an after-market security system that isn't connected to an onboard diagnostic tool. Uh-huh. And you can actually buy uh lockable onboard diagnostic tools covers that cover the onboard uh plug uh that prevent these offenders from um getting into your car and using these tools to uh to steal it. You're exactly right. What we're finding in in the online space, uh in the car space, anything that seems to be uh developing the technology, offenders are finding a way to get around that, to get through it, to get over it, to get under it. And in this case, it might be uh as simple as putting a steering lock or putting something a little bit more rudimentary and less techie in your car. Um certainly that provides a visual cue, so an offender might be uh more likely to overlook your car if it's got some um uh if it's got devices that are clearly in view that might give your car a miss and go to someone else's car. We don't want that to happen, so that's why we're out here today letting people know uh this uh this offending is uh on the increase, and while technology is meant to help us, it also does create a number of issues for the community and for police as well.

SPEAKER_05 9:36

The Haywood SES unit is on the hunt for some members with a special skill. The unit is calling out for chainsaw operators. At the moment, the unit had only has two on its books, placing a big load on these members. Given Haywood's forested location, many SES jobs involve fallen trees. The unit is keen to hear from new members and will also be ramping up chainsaw training for existing members. Well, Road Trauma Awareness Month has kicked off, and road trauma support group Amber Community are coming to Warnable to raise awareness. The Shine a Light on Road Safety event will be held on Sunday, May 17th, with the aim of bringing together families, individuals, and workplaces to honour lives lost and support those affected by road trauma. Funds raised through the campaign allow the Amber community to deliver free counselling, peer support, and evidence-based education programmes for people affected by road trauma. The TAC reports that 94 lives have been lost on Victorian roads within the last 12 months.

SPEAKER_02 10:38

Regional Victoria is overrepresented with road trauma statistics. So what that means is we're losing more people on our roads in regional Victoria than what we actually are in metropolitan Victoria. We would like to bring everyone together and just form a unity, form a group of people remembering other people impacted by road trauma, which doesn't happen in regional areas. There's very little support in regional areas, and there's so much road trauma here too. Most of our road trauma does come from our choices. So we need to empower ourselves to make the right choices, and that's around drink, alcohol, speed, fatigue and distractions, which is primarily what takes our people on the road. So there is talk of road safety. We will talk about road safety, but we'll also light candles to remember people lost by road trauma.

SPEAKER_05 11:26

The Warney Bald Festival of Arts is back on again with even more events and a Jonathan Brown portrait open to auction. The Warning Bald runs from the 15th to the 20th of May, with the event opening on Friday the 15th, and a showcase of all the artworks and the announcement of the winners. The festival continues with a sip and paint class on the 17th, and primary and secondary art classes on the 16th and 19th. Entry is free, but donations supporting Warnabla and District hospice are welcomed.

SPEAKER_09 11:58

To make the best of the last uh days of their life or the last weeks or years, um, our hospice volunteers are a beautiful group of people, um, and uh these functions help support the running of hospice. There's so much to look forward to this year. Last year it was uh all new to us. This year we feel like we've um we've fine-tuned the event, and there's really so many things for the local community.

SPEAKER_05 12:27

Local pickworong and coreong artist Bailey Miffsford, known by her artistic name Mirinda Gunya, has completed a mural at Marvel Stadium that will be on display for the next two years. Located near Gate 9, the mural features her iconic pastel colour palette. It was commissioned as part of the AFL Sir Doug Nichols Round, which also includes a Sharon football. This follows fellow local artist Cherie John Stone's affiliation with the Geelong Cats last year, having designed the club's 2025 Sir Doug Nickel Round jerseys. Finally, M Power is hosting a photography competition, the spirited, wise, and wonderful, with the aim of celebrating and showcasing the elderly people living in our community. Categories include junior and adult entries with up to$100 in prize money. Entries close on the 17th of May with judging and exhibition to follow in Warnerville, Hamilton and Portland. Speaking to Southwest Local News, Joe explains the aim is to challenge stereotypes and is linked to World Elder Abuse Day.

SPEAKER_10 13:29

The thing is we we don't look forward to it. There's often negative stereotypes in the community about getting older, and that's reinforced by people saying, you know, that older people are forgetful, frail, their burdensome on our community. Whereas we want to showcase that older people have got a lot to offer our community. We want to capture them doing what they love doing best. We want to capture them doing something ordinary that really for everyone else is extraordinary. So that's the whole reason why we we're running the Spirit and Wise and Wonderful Photo Exhibition.

SPEAKER_05 14:04

It's time to look at some sports news now. Bukar's Penny Smith has come away from the 2026 IWSF World Cup with a world record, complemented by a gold medal at this year's event in Almaty in Kazakhstan. The local Olympian shot a perfect 30 out of 30 score to claim the honour as part of an eight-member Australian team at the weekend. Competing in the newly introduced final format, Smith said the experience of adapting to the faster, high-pressure sprint style of shooting added an extra layer of challenge to her victory. Speaking to South West Local News today, Penny says it was an amazing weekend of competition and a great achievement.

SPEAKER_06 14:50

And a lot of finals throughout the Olympic Games are eight-person finals. So everything in swimming is eight, everything in athletics is eight. So going to an eight-person final is totally different to what we're ever used to. And this is where they've sort of landed at the moment. Um I'm not 100% sure whether it's going to stay this way or they're going to tweak it a little bit going forward, but at the end of the day, that's what they want to do, and they want to make it an eight-person final. And our last final that we had that we shot at the Olympic Games was quite long. Um it took an hour to shoot, and they want to keep it short for broadcasting back to like a 30-minute segment. So this allows them to be short and sharp and within that time frame. So yeah, I mean we're gonna have to shoot it a few more times to sort of really get a feel about it and see how it plays out. But yeah, certainly started off the new finals format really good, in my my opinion.

SPEAKER_05 15:52

Certainly a great result and an even better achievement. And that full interview is available to watch on our website. In Motorsport, Premier Speedway has announced its calendar for the 2026-27 racing season. This season officially kicks off on October 31st with the launch of the SRA season, with the 2027 Grand Annual Spring Car Classic scheduled to be held between January 22nd and 24th. Other highlights to the season include the official start to the month of money with Max's race on December 12th and the International Sprint Car Cup on January 17th. The season will conclude on the Easter long weekend with the grand final of the Easter Sprint Car Trail. The region is enjoying Indian summer like conditions at the moment, and with the full details, it's over to Reese Jansen, who was down at Stingray Bay today.

SPEAKER_07 16:38

My name is Reese Jansen, and this is your weather report for the southwest. Around the coast, it will be partly cloudy for the next three days and light winds. Now further into the forecast. First up in Port Ferry. Tomorrow a top of 21 degrees with a partly cloudy day, topping at 22 on Friday with light winds, and Saturday there are showers with 15 mil expected to fall. Over in Mortlake, tomorrow a partly cloudy day with a top of 21 degrees, 22 on Friday with a slight chance of shower in the southwest. Saturday, there are showers and a top of 21 with 9 mils to fall. In Kolak and Camperdown region, a top of 21 degrees tomorrow with a chance of morning fog and light winds. On Friday, mostly sunny, and Saturday's conditions are due to chance with a top of 21 degrees. Along the coast, tomorrow, a top of 19 degrees with a partly cloudy day and a chance of fog in the morning. On Friday, a top of 20, mostly sunny day and a light southerly westerly wind. Overnight temperatures will be falling to 9. Saturday, north-easterly winds picking up to 30 kilometres an hour and a top of 20. Partly cloudy and mournable tomorrow with the northeasterly winds. On Friday, a top of 22 and northeasterly winds. Saturday, a top of 21, a cloudy day with northeasterly winds. That's your weather forecast for the next three days.

SPEAKER_05 18:04

Thanks very much, Reese. Reese is joining us from Brower College this week on work experiences and has been doing some fantastic work. That's it from your Southwest Local News team this morning. Thanks for tuning in. Remember, you can also watch this bulletin online at southwestlocalnews.com.au. Until Saturday morning, have a great day.