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Here's where we're at after a big week of rain and flooding

It's been a big week of wild weather across the region! Here's the latest:

Major flooding is continuing along the Wollombi Brook at Bulga in the Upper Hunter. The brook peaked at 6 metres on Tuesday and is now slowly falling. There's also moderate flooding at Singleton after the Hunter River peaked at 12 metres early Thursday morning, with low-lying areas under water.

The State Emergency Service reported on Wednesday that a helicopter was dropping off food and other emergency supplies to people cut off from flooding in the Upper Hunter around Putty.

Lake Macquarie Council says the region's flood damage is still being assessed. There were 600 calls for help in Lake Macquarie, including six flood rescues during the week. People and businesses in the local government area are eligible for disaster recovery assistance. Mayor Kay Fraser says that's good news, but other regions are far worse-off. 

Meanwhile, residents at Lambs Valley in Maitland have been making the best of a bad situation as flooding keeps them isolated after three days. Andy MacDougal, a member of the local RFS, says spirits are high. "Last night there was a whole bunch of people at the end of Lambs Valley Road setting up their tables and having a few refreshments, looking at the floodwaters," he says. (See pics and more details on our Facebook post). Minor flooding is occurring at Maitland, with the Belmore Bridge likely to peak near 7.3m on Friday afternoon.

Want more? The ABC's weather specialist Graham Creed explains what was behind the wild weather in this video. This story looks at why the flooding may not end the mouse plague impacting the state. And there's more local info in the 'What else made news this week?' section in this newsletter.

Upper Hunter MP accused of rape, resigns as parliamentary secretary

Upper Hunter MP Michael Johnsen has resigned from his role as a parliamentary secretary after being accused of sexually assaulting a female sex worker in the Blue Mountains last year. Mr Johnsen said he was "devastated by the allegations" and had voluntarily spoken with NSW Police.  

Kathleen Folbigg's appeal bid fails

Convicted baby-killer Kathleen Folbigg has lost her bid to overturn the findings of a judicial inquiry that reinforced her guilt over the deaths of her four young children. She was sentenced to at least 25 years jail in 2003 over the deaths of her children over a 10-year period in Newcastle. Her legal team has argued there was fresh evidence to suggest the babies may have died from natural genetic causes.

Jarryd Hayne found guilty of sexual assault

Former NRL player Jarryd Hayne has been found guilty of sexually assaulting a woman in Newcastle in 2018. It took the jury three days to find Hayne guilty in a retrial in the NSW District Court. Hayne says he will lodge an appeal. 

Siblings sail through Olympics training despite lockdown

It's been a looooong road to this year's Tokyo Olympics after the pandemic put the event on hold in 2020. Lake Macquarie-born sailors Jaime and Will Ryan have been adapting to a new normal ever since, including moving home to continue their training together.  

What is sea foam and is it safe to play in?

If you've been brave enough to venture out during the wild weather this week, you may have noticed all the sea foam on local beaches. But what is it made of? Breakfast's Dan and Jenny spoke to an expert in marine ecology to find out.

Eric the emu gets his feet wet, prompting outpouring of concern

And more on the wild weather: A wildlife rescue group was inundated with calls about a local emu spotted in floodwater this week. The emu, know to many locals as Eric, is often spotted out and about in the water when it rains.

Radio enthusiast picks up our frequency in ... Alaska

You know we're all about local at ABC Newcastle, but recently our broadcast was picked up in Alaska! Paul Walker Jr, a program director at a community radio station, explains how he came across our frequency.

What else made news this week?

Tyre issues: Local tyre repair shops are reporting a surge in business, with the wild weather and flooding opening up large potholes in roads across the region. George Nott, who owns a tyre shop in Raymond Terrace, says the number of customers with burst tyres has gone from one a week to around 10 a day. He says some people are also needing new wheels.

Vital security: The company building a lithium-ion battery plant at Tomago says its Australian-first cybersecurity system will be a vital part of the project. Energy Renaissance has co-funded a $1.4 million grant with the CSIRO and the Innovative Manufacturing CRC to create defence-grade protection for its battery system. It wants to keep work onshore as much as possible, as the construction of its $70 million plant gets underway next month.

Airport closed: Newcastle Airport closed on Sunday night as heavy rain hit the region, causing widespread flooding at the airport and Williamtown RAAF Base. Flights in and out of the airport were suspended for nearly three days. The closure caused significant disruption to passengers, and all flights were full on Wednesday afternoon as the airport re-opened. 

Rail impact: Limited haulage operations resumed on Wednesday for freight lines ferrying coal to the Port of Newcastle, after heavy rain suspended rail movements. The Australian Rail Track Corporation ceased operations on Friday throughout the Hunter Valley Network between Newcastle and Maitland. 

Flood damage: Cessnock Council says it will take years to repair the damage caused by widespread flooding in the area. Several bridges and roads are still underwater, with Wollombi the biggest concern as minor flooding continues. The council is eligible for Federal Government assistance to help with the clean-up. Director of works and infrastructure David Maloney says the cost will be substantial and above council's financial capacity.

Long wait: Maitland MP Jenny Aitchison says as the number of houses in the Gillieston Heights area continues to grow, the flooding problem isn't being addressed. The flood-prone road at Testers Hollow was closed again this week after heavy rain at the weekend. More than four years after the state and federal governments committed to upgrading the road, it's yet to be completed. Ms Aitchison says local farmers are telling her it doesn't take much rain these days for a major flood event to occur in the area.

Cattle numbers: The impact of flooding on livestock numbers in the Lower and Upper Hunter is starting to be seen at saleyards around the region. Monday's Maitland Cattle sale saw a slightly reduced penning, and Tuesday's sale in Scone saw 193 on offer, versus last week's already reduced penning of 420 cows. Tony Bowe from the Maitland Saleyards expects numbers of sale cattle on offer will be impacted for months to come.

Coal ash findings: A state inquiry into coal ash in power station waste dump sites in areas like the Hunter has recommended officials carry out immediate health testing of residents living near them. There have been repeated calls for the NSW Government to better regulate and monitor coal ash dams, on the back of claims by environmental groups that the dams are contaminating waterways with heavy metals. There are coal ash dams across the state, with several near coal-fired power stations in Lake Macquarie and the Upper Hunter.

Knights milestone: Five-eighth Kurt Mann is set to return for the Newcastle Knights this weekend after being sidelined with injury last round. Phoenix Crossland filled in against the Warriors, but is now sitting out a two-game suspension for a dangerous tackle. Otherwise, coach Adam O'Brien has stuck with his winning team from last week to take on the West Tigers on Sunday at home. The game will be halfback Mitchell Pearce's 300th game. Just 41 players have played that many games, and Pearce says it will be an honour to be added to the list.

Airport closure doesn't deter Aussie music legend

The Newcastle Airport closure wasn't enough to stop Aussie music legend John Paul Young from heading to North Queensland to surprise a school musical cast with a stunning performance of Love is in the Air, during the school's production of Strictly Ballroom. JPY's flights from Newcastle were re-routed at the last minute, and he got up at 3am to drive to Sydney so he could make the appearance.

If you need a lift after a week of grim news, the video on this story shows him arriving on stage ... goosebumps!

Recipes for our readers

This week's recipe, for jam drops, comes from our Saturday Breakfast presenter Craig Hamilton. It's a great one to have with a nice cup of tea.

Ingredients
125g salted butter, softened
100g (1/2 cup) caster sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
1 egg
190g (1 1/4 cups) self-raising flour
Plain flour, to dust
115g (1/3 cup) strawberry or raspberry jam

Method
Preheat oven to 180C. Line two baking trays with non-stick baking paper. Use an electric beater to beat the butter, sugar and vanilla essence in a medium bowl until pale and creamy. Add the egg and beat until combined. Sift flour over the butter mixture and stir until combined.

Use lightly floured hands to roll teaspoonfuls of the mixture into balls. Place on the prepared trays, about 5cm apart. Use a lightly floured finger to make an indentation in the centre of each ball. Spoon 1/2 teaspoon of jam into the centre of each biscuit.

Bake in preheated oven for 15 minutes, swapping trays halfway through cooking, or until the biscuits are cooked through and light golden. Remove biscuits from the oven. Set aside on trays for 30 minutes to cool completely.
 
Store the biscuits in single layers between sheets of non-stick baking paper, in an airtight container out of direct sunlight for up to 2 days.

Fly high as the RAAF marks 100 years

Next week marks 100 years since the Royal Australian Air Force was established and to celebrate, ABC TV and iView are bringing you two high-flying programs showcasing the history of RAAF.

The action starts with To The Stars: 100 years of the Air Force on Monday, March 29 at 9.30pm. From the canvas and wooden-framed planes to the high tech, supersonic strike fighter, watch exclusive archival footage and learn about the RAAF's increasing focus on peacekeeping missions. 

Then don't miss Air Force 100 on Wednesday, March 31 at 10am. Join us for a spectacular two-hour event to commemorate and pay tribute to 100 years of the RAAF, including the presentation of the Queen's Colours and a flypast of more than 60 aircraft, from historic war birds to the current fleet and the advanced fighter jet the F-35A. This will also be streamed on ABC Australia's Facebook page.

And if that isn't enough, you can watch our Instagram Live event on Tuesday, March 30 at 4pm, featuring Lisa Millar speaking with Flight Lieutenant Aimee Heal. Check out the ABC News Instagram account @abcnews_au.

The best photos from around the country

Newcastle is featured in ABC Australia's Pic of the Week gallery this week, thanks to this great sunset shot in Belmont. It was taken by @vivid_divine_clicks and shared via #ABCmyphoto on Instagram. 

The #ABCmyphoto team is always on the lookout for the best photos from around Australia. You can show us what the world looks like where you are by using the hashtag on Instagram, or by uploading your photos online here. Let's make sure more photos from the Hunter are featured across the ABC! 

How's the weekend weather looking?

Well, the weather settled down eventually, as this photo at Dixon, taken by Dave Anderson, shows. Look how calm that ocean is! Looking ahead, it will be mostly sunny over the weekend, with possible showers (*sighs) early next week.

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