Northern Rivers News

A motorcyclist is lucky to be alive after colliding with a car on the Pacific Highway near Tweed Heads. Shortly before 5 o’clock yesterday a Ford Festiva and Ducati motorcycle were involved in a crash near Clothiers Creek Road. The 56-year-old rider was flown to Gold Coast Hospital in a serious condition, suffering suspected spinal injuries A 34-year-old woman, who was behind the wheel of the Ford was treated for minor injuries. It was the second crash in the area in just over an hour, after a truck crossed onto the wrong side of the road, coming to rest in a cane field. The truck driver was taken to Tweed Heads Hospital with non life-threatening injuries.

A body, believed to be that of missing man Damien Roadley, has been discovered in bushland in the state’s north. Mr Roadley was reported missing on August 2nd after failing to return from an overnight camping trip. His disappearance triggered a large scale search involving multiple agencies including local police, SES, and the Westpac Rescue Helicopter. Emergency services discovered a body at the south-west point of Blue Knob Mountain this morning. The body is yet to be formally identified, but police believe it’s that of Mr Roadley.

The pressure is on retailers to increase the price of milk as diary farmers struggle to feed their stock. One North Coast farmer says he’s now operating at a loss and fears the industry may not remain viable.

Emergency services are continuing to search for a man missing in bushland near Nimbin in the state’s north. Damien Roadley was last heard from on Wednesday, with the dog squad, SES and VRA among those involved in the search at Blue Knob. Specialist crews have today been winched into a number of remote locations to check the bottom of gullies and ravines.

Every year, millions of tourists flock to Byron Bay, many of them head offshore to watch the annual whale migration. It’s big business and with whale populations growing every year, it’s only set to get bigger.

A desperate search is underway for missing man Damien Roadley. Police and volunteers have spent the day scaling the cliffs of Blue Knob Mountain… in the hope they would find some clues as to what happened to the father of three.  

The North Coast floodplains have proven an absolute goldmine for the state’s macadamia producers. The region’s industry has raked in almost $100 million in the last year alone.

Sugar cane tops are usually burnt during the harvest, but one farmer in the Northern Rivers is saving this precious commodity. Dean Murphy has been busy baling feed from his sugar cane, hoping to sweeten the lives of drought-affected farmers.

Lismore will soon be home to the largest clinical trail for herbal medicine in the country. The study will look at the effectiveness of a Chinese herbal extract on patients diagnosed with vascular dementia.  

Police have released the image of a man wanted in relation to an approach on a 12-year-old boy near Grafton. It’s understood the boy was outside a home on Parker Road at Lanitza at around 6 o’clock on Tuesday evening, when he was approached by a man. The man spoke with the young boy, before grabbing him on the arm. He was able to get away and tell his parents of the incident. Officers are now hoping to speak with a man aged in his mid to late 30s, with brown hair and a beard.