SOUTH WEST LOCAL NEWS- FRIDAY JUNE 19TH-2026

This morning on South West Local News 

charges laid against warrnambool man after multiple alleged sexual offences

Warrnambool City Council pleased with the release of its next budget.

Lake Pertobe to become a winter wonderland as the Solstice Search party returns for 2026.

And in Sport, a North Warrnambool Eagle notches up a record-breaking milestone in the Hampden League.

Transcript

SPEAKER_04 0:00

This morning on Southwest Local News. Charges laid after multiple alleged sexual offences. Warnerville City Council, pleased with the release of its next budget. Lake Vatobe to become a winter wonderland as the Solstice Search Party returns in 2026. And in support, a North Warnerville Eagle dodges up a record-breaking milestone in the handling.

SPEAKER_00 0:29

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

SPEAKER_04 0:36

Good morning and welcome to Southwest Local News. The Warner Sexual Offences and Child Abuse Investigation Team has charged a man following three incidents in the Warnable area. Police were alleged the man performed lewd acts on the Warnerville foreshore on November 12th, November 21st, 2025, and again on May 15th this year. On June 15, a 21-year-old Warnable man was arrested and charged with four times sexual activity directed at a person. He was bailed to appear before the Warnerville Magistrates Court on September 14th. Data for the year ending March 2026 shows a decrease in crime in Victoria, but police are holding off on the celebrations. The crime rate decreased by 1.9%, which equates to 8,690.8 offences per 100,000 people. Criminal offences were also down with 625,426 recorded, a decrease of 1,524. But despite the slight drop overall, crime has increased by 26% over the past three years. Car thefts remain a concern rising by 1% to 31,851, the most in a quarter of a century. Child offending remains high despite a 6% drop. This includes the investment in key assets such as the Archie Graham Centre and Flagstaff Hill. According to Mayor Ben Blaine, the council has achieved this despite pressure from the state government.

SPEAKER_01 2:18

There's going to be work that's continued to be done on a lot of items in the budget. So we went out for consultation. We received two received two submissions back on the budget. I'll come back to them a little bit later. But the budget last night, it really is focused on asset renewal. There's $13.5 million going into looking after our assets that we already have. We're maintaining services. We're working in the 2.75% rate cap that is set by the state government. But what we're really coming at last night from the meeting was a lot of councils were talking about cost shifting from the state government, pushing things onto local government for services that we provide, especially in a rural and regional sense, where when it comes to these budgets and these services, you know, around some of the childcare, the aged care things that we do. We're a provider of last resort. We don't have the private market here, and we're actually providing the services. There are some really exciting capital projects going on as well. So we've got the key worker accommodation is going ahead, we've got some new picnic tables going in, and we've got 600,000 going into some of our great facilities, you know, Archie Graham, Flagstarfield, and making sure that those facilities are fit for purpose and being well looked after.

SPEAKER_04 3:24

The Southwest has now answered an El Nino weather pattern. This information has come from the Bureau of Meteorology and is expected to produce drier and warm weather during winter and spring. And in a warning to farmers, the clearer skies of El Nino come with an increased risk of frost. El Nino events are part of a natural cycle in the Pacific Ocean that can affect global weather. During the last El Nino period in Australia, back in 2023, August to October was the driest three-month period on record. Lake Mitobe is usually the summer heartbeat of Warnable, but on the weekend it will be all about winter. Warnable City Council will be staging its annual Warnable Solstice Search Party. It's a free event and will run from 3 pm till 8.30 pm on Saturday night. Professional fire dancer Fire Lily will make her solstice search party debut, as will Tyson Savannah as The Lanternist. One Day Studios will return with stunning light projections. Nurture in Nature will run craft activities for kids, and neon sculptures will be displayed across the precinct. A silent disco and live music will also be on the program, as will food bands. It's always a great event. Make sure you get down there and be part of it. A major news study has found young people who spend more than two hours a day on social media are more likely to struggle with their mental health. The research published this week tracked more than a thousand students and found 12 and 13-year-olds were most at risk of depression. It comes six months after Australia banned under 16s from social media. Southwest Local News spoke with local youth mental health worker Gabby Marnie about what she's seeing on the ground.

SPEAKER_07 5:18

It probably does change young person to young person depending on what they're using social media for, how often they're on it, and what kind of content they're engaging in as well. For some people, they're just using it to talk to their friends, and that's a really healthy way to connect with people. Other people, they are kind of disengaging from those in real life connections that they may have, and that's where we start to see that really big impact. It is something that does come up, even just in conversations, young people, if we're not specifically asking about social media usage or screen time, they will say, like, oh yeah, I spend time on my phone or I'm gaming, watching YouTube, that sort of stuff. Some of that, like in moderation, can be really healthy. That's a good outlet for a lot of different things, but there is like then a level that it becomes concerning.

SPEAKER_08 5:58

I always think about finding lots of different things in the morning that are exciting. It's not just jumping on your phone straight away. So whether that is like getting up and talking with family, or um, I always think having an exciting breakfast or get excited about that cup of coffee type thing. But you know, we're going to have our phone with us probably for most of the day. So thinking about those other things that we could do first thing in the morning, um, just to really give us a nice refresh at the start to the day. Yeah, it's about you wanting to stay engaged and find that next kind of win in terms of that good video or super exciting content. But thinking about or even trying to find different things that exist outside of your phone or thinking about, I like to use kind of that content as a bit of an example of like if I'm really excited about, you know, home decor videos or if they are videos around different kinds of content, well, can I actually start putting some of those things into my own life? Using that thing that you're already interested in that you're finding through social media and building that in a way that you're actually interested in and kind of without using your phone and creating that content yourself, create that content in the way that you live. Um, trying to find ways to engage with your friends, engage with your family, find different interests and trying new things that often don't involve us using our phone, but that social media can be that springboard for finding those ideas.

SPEAKER_04 7:16

The Keringgamite Business Awards were held at the Theatre Royal in Camperdown on Wednesday evening. All businesses across the Shire were invited to attend with winners named in five categories. Schultz Organic Dairy was the growers, producers, and agribusiness winner. Camperdown Vet Centre won the outstanding customer service, and the Circular Solutions Award went to Cobden UC Opshop. The trade business of the year was Murfit and Whiting Electrical, while the Tourism Excellence went to Ride with Us. Congratulations to all winners. Two green spaces in Karroit will get a revamp thanks to funding through the Tiny Towns program. The state government has allocated $250,000 to the Moyne Shire from the program with beautification projects in the Karroit, Channing Drive, and High Street on the list. Cudgee, Yam, Bach, and Frandlingham will also benefit from the allocation. In Port Ferry, upgrades to the community service centre will see the development of a new place space for a new childcare room. Unwanted baby items sitting in cupboards could be worth their waiting gold to some young Southwest families. Loved and shared charity organisation in Warnable is keen to help but needs more donations. Supply lines on bassinets, reclining prams, jackets and jumpers, shows and clothes for boys and girls from sizes four and up are short. All donated items must have safety straps and components in place and working, and prams must be no older than 10 years. The EPA has issued a warning on the use of wood fires in built-up areas. They are asking people with wood heaters to consider the health of neighbours given smoke can drift into the street, neighbours' windows, and air people breathe on their morning walk. EPA tips for a hotter fire and less smoke include keeping your heater clean, using dry, seasoned and untreated hardwood, and not letting the fire smoulder overnight. The EPA advises against burning unless you have to. Life Theatre will be back in Campano next month with a popular Australian stage show, The Feature. The Theatre Royal will host a performance of Deplorables on August 16th. The play set around a women's cricket team ahead of its time. The team played in Bendigo in 1874 with the play Bringing This Story to Life through music and comedy. Bookings are available online at Human Ticks. North Farnable Eagles star Matty Wines will break the Hamden League game's record on Saturday. Wines will play his 361st game when he lines up at Bushfield against the Blues. He will be joined on the field by his brothers Luke and Adam. The three shared in the Eagles' first senior flag last season. Wines has made his name as a prolific onballer, but this year settled into a role in the dangerous as a dangerous half-forward. The Eagles are on top of the ladder and unbeaten after nine rounds. A fantastic milestone. Well done, Snooze. Southwest Victorian Soccer will be embracing the LGBTQIA community in an inaugural Pride Cup round. Held at Southcombe Park in Port Ferry, the Pride Round will include two senior fixtures between Port Ferry Soccer Club and the Warnerville Rangers for both men and women. The Pride Round is an initiative of Pride Cup founded by Jason Ball. The driving force behind the AFL's first ever Pride game in 2016 between St Kilda and Sydney. Southwest Local News caught up with some of the players who explained that this is well overdue.

SPEAKER_05 11:09

So we've been able to really craft a culture of inclusiveness and acceptance of everything from the beginning. So this is an excellent logical stepping stone in the areas we want to progress, and yeah, we're thrilled to be a part of it.

SPEAKER_03 11:21

Like I think uh a bit overdue. So it's it's good. We had an education session last night, and I think it's just like just for visibility and giving people like a place to like have this discussion, I think is uh is excellent. So yeah, it's great. Particularly the men's space, there's very little representation, there's you know, very few people who are out like in the men's sport. So yeah, absolutely like you don't know what you don't see kind of thing, and if you're uh someone who's sort of uh not sure who you are or you think maybe you're gay or maybe you're you know queer, then like having having this and having kind of other people to look to and be like, no, this is a thing, like makes you feel less alone. So yeah, I think it's really good.

SPEAKER_05 12:03

Now we're we're up to seven teams, including our juniors. Um it's definitely been embraced by the town and accepted as as an alternative to footy basketball and cricket, which is which is lovely. And um yeah, we just want to be we just want to be a welcoming club that is open for everyone, every you know, no matter your skill set or your or your diversity or your challenges, you you know, we want to be the club that is happy to have everyone around.

SPEAKER_02 12:26

Soccer is one of those sports where at the elite level there is representation in that community. Um but as you go down towards more community level, it may not be as a present. And we're just looking to, you know, those who want to come along and be involved, they don't need to have to be openly identifying as, but just be uh comfortable they can come into these spaces with people who are welcoming.

SPEAKER_06 12:45

We know that sport, particularly in Australia, is all about social connection, it's about community, it's about pitching in, supporting others, it's about managing your mental health, um gaining physical health, and about that societal connection piece. And so um, yeah, it's it's incredibly important. I think sport is integral to our identity as a country, um, and particularly in Victoria, we're the sports state. And so um, we want to make sure that all the sports that we know and love are spaces where everybody is free to come and participate or coach or volunteer or even just spectate really safely.

SPEAKER_04 13:16

A fantastic initiative. Kroyt will be out. Coach Sam Dobson for its game against the Hamilton Kangaroos tomorrow. Dobson missed last week's loss to Terrang with back injury and has been named as an emergency for the clash with the Kangaroos. The only other loss for Kroit this season was the other game Dobson missed against the North Warnable Eagles. Dobson's last game was round eight against Port Ferry, with the Seagulls within three points early in the last quarter. But Dobson stepped up, kicking the next four goals to lift his side to victory. And when the Saints played the Kangaroos in round one, a goal on the final siren from Dobson gave his team a three-point victory. Certainly a big loss. The return of Star forward Dylan Parrish has helped kickstart Naranda's 2026 season. Parrish kicked two goals in a best on grand performance in the Blues upset against Allensford on Saturday. The Blues face second place Russell's Creek this weekend and will again be looking at Parish to play a key role. Parish was a member of Naranda's premiership team last season, but missed the celebrations after breaking his leg early in the third quarter. His comeback trail has been a long journey, but he is back and making a difference with four games now behind him. Finally, while finals look out of reach despite eight games to go, Tim Boone Demons and Pam Newer will still have plenty to play for in A-grade Warnerbull and District Netball this weekend. Both teams have had a tough season sitting on two wins each, with only Dennington behind them on the ladder. When the teams met in round two, it was Pam Newer who won a thriller by four goals on its home court. The Demons will be hoping the home court factor is in their favour again. Partly cloudy conditions ahead for the region with cold starts and light showers. Let's take a look at the forecast. Tomorrow in Port Ferry, a high chance of showers with a top of 14. Sunday, 14 with southerly winds with cloudy conditions, and 14 again on Monday with a shower or two. In Lantern, 12 on Saturday with a chance of showers, 13 on Sunday with a partly cloudy day, as for Monday, 13 with temperatures dropping to as low as two. Over to the Colak and Camperdown, 12 tomorrow with southerly winds. Fog on Sunday with a max of 13, and Monday expecting a top of 12 with cloudy conditions. Down to the coast for Saturday at Port Campbell, a top of 14. Sunday showers becoming light, also expecting 14, and for Monday, 13 with partly cloudy conditions. Back west to Warnable, a chance of showers over the weekend with a top of 14 tomorrow. 13 on Sunday with light winds and 14 to kick off the week next week with northwesterly winds and showers easing. 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 Tuesday morning. Have a great weekend.