International

Chopper crashes into Australian hotel, pilot killed

Published

1 month ago

August 12, 2024

Chopper crashes into Australian hotel, pilot killed

A pilot has died after their helicopter crashed into the roof of a hotel in the northern Queensland city of Cairns.

The aircraft hit the DoubleTree by Hilton hotel at around 01:50am local time on Monday (16:50B Sunday), sparking a fire and forcing the evacuation of hundreds of guests.

Authorities say the only occupant of the helicopter died at the scene, and two hotel guests – a man in his 80s and a woman in her 70s – were taken to hospital in a stable condition.

Queensland Police and the aviation safety watchdog are investigating the circumstances of the crash, with the company who charters the helicopter saying it was on an “unauthorised” flight.

Amanda Kay, who was staying in the hotel on the main esplanade in Cairns, described seeing a helicopter flying “extra low”, without lights in rainy weather.

“[It] has turned round and hit the building,” she said, adding that the aircraft “blew up”.

Another bystander said she saw the helicopter fly past the hotel twice in the moments before the collision.

“Boy that was going fast, that helicopter. Unbelievable,” a woman said, in video showing the fiery aftermath of the crash.

“It was just going out of control, that thing was.”

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Two of the helicopter’s rotor blades came off on impact, landing on the esplanade and in the hotel pool, according to Queensland Ambulance Service (QAS).

“There’s been reports it sounded like a bomb, and [that after] seeing smoke and fire from that, a lot of the occupants of the hotel were very unsure about the situation,” spokeswoman Caitlin Dennings told media.

Another tourist staying at the hotel, Alastair Salmon, described it to the ABC as “a colossal ear-deafening bang”.

Mr Salmon, from London, was among about 400 people who were evacuated from the hotel.

He described seeing the helicopter’s rotor blade on the ground nearby, and mistaking it for a lamppost.

“Then we looked up there and you could see this massive hole in the window of the building,” he told the ABC.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau said it is sending investigators to the scene.

In a statement, Nautilus Aviation said it would work closely with all authorities in Queensland as they examined the “unauthorised use of one of our helicopters in the early hours of this morning”.

Streets around the hotel have been cordoned off and an emergency situation was declared by police.

Located in northern Queensland, the city of Cairns is a popular tourist destination due to its proximity to the Great Barrier Reef.

Chopper crashes into Australian hotel, pilot killed

International

Ukraine bans Telegram for officials over security threats

Published

7 hours ago

September 20, 2024

Trends Admin

Ukraine bans Telegram for officials over security threats

Ukraine on Friday restricted the use of Telegram for its government, military and security officials, citing “threats” to national security on the app founded by Russian-born Pavel Durov.

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“The National Security and Defence Council decided to restrict the use of Telegram in government agencies, military formations and critical infrastructure facilities,” the council said in a statement on Facebook, saying it was a “matter of national security.”

Ukraine bans Telegram for officials over security threats

International

US officer arrested over killing of judge in court

Published

8 hours ago

September 20, 2024

Trends Admin

US officer arrested over killing of judge in court

A Kentucky sheriff has been arrested for fatally shooting a judge in his chambers, according to authorities.

District Judge Kevin Mullins was shot multiple times in the Letcher County Courthouse and died at the scene, according to Kentucky State Police.

Letcher County Sheriff Shawn Stines, 43, has been charged with one count of first-degree murder.

Police said the shooting occurred on Thursday following an argument inside the court, but they have yet to identify the motivation.

Mullins, 54, was shot numerous times on Thursday at 14:00 local time at the court in Whitesburg, Kentucky, a small rural community about 150 miles (240 kilometres) southeast of Lexington.

Kentucky State Police said that Sheriff Stines was arrested at the site without incident.

They did not reveal the nature of the debate prior to the shooting.

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According to the Mountain Eagle, Sheriff Stines entered the judge’s outer office and informed court officials that he needed to meet with Mullins alone.

The two went into the judge’s chambers, closing the door behind them.

The publication said that those outside heard gunshots. Sheriff Stines apparently went out with his hands raised and surrendered to police. He was handcuffed in the courthouse’s lobby.

Russell Coleman, the state attorney general, stated in a post on X, formerly Twitter, that his office “will fully investigate and pursue justice.”

Kentucky State Police spokesperson Matt Gayheart said at a news conference that the town was startled by the incident.

“This community is small in nature, and we’re all shook,” he told me.

Mr. Gayheart stated that 50 personnel were inside the courthouse when the shooting occurred. Nobody else was wounded.

A school in the region was momentarily put under lockdown. Kentucky Supreme Court Chief Justice Laurance B. VanMeter was “shocked by this act of violence.”

Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear announced Judge Mullins’ death on social media, writing, “There is far too much violence in this world, and I pray there is a path to a better tomorrow.”

US officer arrested over killing of judge in court

International

Trans woman killed in Georgia day after anti-LGBT law passed

Published

15 hours ago

September 20, 2024

Trends Admin

Model and influencer Kesaria Abramidze had been seen as a trans leader in the Georgian community

Trans woman killed in Georgia day after anti-LGBT law passed

One of Georgia’s most well-known transgender women has been killed in her home, a day after the country’s parliament passed a major anti-LGBT bill.

Local officials say Kesaria Abramidze, 37, was stabbed to death in her flat in the capital Tbilisi on Wednesday.

A 26-year-old man has been arrested in the case that has shocked the small South Caucasian nation. Georgian media reported he was known to the victim.

Rights groups have linked the killing to the new anti-LGBT law, arguing the government’s promotion of it had fuelled transphobic hate crime.

Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili, who opposed the new law, said the “horrendous murder” raised urgent questions about hate crimes and discrimination.

The legislation from Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze’s government severely restricts rights for LGBT people.

It introduces a ban on same-sex marriage, gender-affirming surgeries, child adoption by non-heterosexuals and the promotion of same-sex relationships in schools.

The bill sailed through parliament on Tuesday in an 84-0 vote, despite criticism from rights groups.

The ruling party said the “Protection of Family Values and Minors” bill was designed to protect a majority of Georgians seeking protection from “LGBT propaganda”.

But local LGBT rights campaigners said the government had used homophobic and transphobic language and ideas in promoting the bill.

Several activists directly linked what they said was the government’s harmful rhetoric to the killing of Ms Abramidze.

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One of the first openly trans public figures in the country, she had represented Georgia in international trans pageants and had more than 500,000 followers on social media.

“Political homophobia, biphobia, and transphobia have become central to the government’s official discourse and ideology,” said local human rights group the Social Justice Center.

“Kesaria Abramidze’s killing cannot be viewed separately from this overall grave context,” it added.

Progressive politicians outside the country have also linked the killing to the government’s legislative agenda.

“Those who sow hatred will reap violence. Kesaria Abramidze was killed just one day after the Georgian parliament passed the anti-LGBTI law,” wrote German lawmaker Michael Roth, the social democratic chair of the country’s foreign affairs committee.

European Union figures had already condemned the legislation when it passed earlier this week, saying it further jeopardised the country’s stated aim of joining the EU.

Josep Borrell, the EU’s foreign policy chief, said the law was “further derailing the country from its EU path”. He called on the Georgian government to withdraw the law.

The legislation undermines the “fundamental rights of the people” and increases discrimination and stigmatisation, he added.

The British embassy has also expressed “serious concerns”.

Rights groups have characterised the Georgian legislation as being similar to Russian laws which severely restrict LGBT rights.

The Washington-based think tank Freedom House said the bill was “pulled directly from the Kremlin’s authoritarian playbook”.