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The Independent
17 minutes ago
- The Independent
Passengers flee smoking jet on emergency slide after apparent landing gear problem at Denver airport
Passengers slid down an emergency slide of a smoking jet at Denver 's airport due to a possible problem with the plane's landing gear, authorities said. American Airlines Flight 3023 reported a 'possible landing gear incident' during its departure from Denver International Airport on Saturday afternoon, the Federal Aviation Administration said. The Boeing 737 MAX 8 was on its way to Miami International Airport. Video aired by local media showed people sliding down the inflatable chute near the front of the plane while clutching luggage and small children. Some of the passengers, including at least one adult carrying a young child, tripped at the end of the slide and fell onto the concrete runway tarmac. The passengers were then taken to the terminal by bus. One of the passengers was transported to a medical facility, authorities said. Five people were evaluated for injuries at the scene but did not require hospitalization, Denver International Airport officials said in a statement. 'About halfway to takeoff speed, we hear a big bang and a pop,' passenger Shaun Williams told KUSA-TV. 'The pilot immediately started abort procedures for taking off. You could feel him start to hit the brakes.' Firefighters called to the airport extinguished a fire after responding to the aircraft, the Denver Fire Department said. In a statement, the FAA said it will investigate.
The Guardian
an hour ago
- The Guardian
Thousands of reports of abuse have been made in Australian childcare centres. Most alleged perpetrators were allowed to keep working
Angela* was cuddling her daughter in bed one afternoon when the then two-year-old said something she had never heard before. 'Kiss my bum?' she asked, lifting her bottom up. 'Don't be silly, I am not going to kiss your bum,' Angela said gently, kissing her own hand to transfer a kiss to the side of her daughter's bottom cheek. She then asked why her daughter had asked this. Her daughter told her a male educator at the childcare centre she attended had kissed her private parts while changing her nappy. The next day, Angela says, her daughter disclosed further allegations of sexual abuse and again named the educator. A medical assessment added weight to Angela's worst fear: that she had been the subject of repeated sexual abuse at the centre. Angela acted swiftly. She spoke to police, a GP, a mental health social worker, the childcare centre, and private and public sector investigators. She was confident her daughter's disclosure – supported by clinical notes showing the child had named the worker in the presence of a doctor before being urgently referred to a specialist – would be sufficient to have the educator removed from the system. But what followed has exposed the shocking shortcomings in Australia's childcare system that see hundreds of complaints about sexual misconduct by childcare workers ultimately dismissed, and regulators unwilling or unable to take action against alleged perpetrators if police decline to prosecute a criminal case. After three separate investigations – a preliminary police investigation that stalled because Angela's daughter was not comfortable giving an official statement to officers, as well as one by a workplace relations firm and the other by the Victorian education department – the conclusion was reached that there was insufficient evidence to remove the educator from his role. The complaint was, according to Victoria's reportable conduct scheme, 'unsubstantiated – insufficient evidence'. While the term appears to diminish the claim, technically the finding meant 'there was significant strong evidence that supports the allegation, but the evidence falls short of being able to make a substantiated finding'. Without corroborating images, footage or another witness, the disclosure of a two-year-old to her mother – supported by a letter from mental health professional describing her symptoms as 'consistent with sexual assault victims' – was not enough. This leaves the worker still employed, hundreds more children potentially at risk from a suspected paedophile and the family deeply troubled by the lack of action. Angela's experience is an almost textbook example of one of the major failings afflicting the childcare system: an opaque, inconsistent, underfunded and often ineffective regulatory system. The federal government has rushed to act on children's safety in childcare services after the harrowing allegations of sexual abuse by a childcare worker in Melbourne, using the first week of the new term of parliament to introduce legislation that would allow it to strip funding from failing childcare services and conduct spot checks of centres. But experts have told Guardian Australia the problems run far deeper, and that the government risks introducing what amount to 'reactive strategies' that won't address the real problems. They say that when complaints and allegations are made, they are assessed by state regulatory bodies beset with 'irregularities and inconsistencies' when it comes to how they investigate and how they report allegations. These bodies appear to be hamstrung in taking action against individual workers if the police decide there is not enough evidence to criminally prosecute. Sign up: AU Breaking News email When one mother in the Northern Territory arrived at her child's daycare centre to pick them up at the end of the day, she saw her three-year-old – through gaps in a fence – in an outdoor area. The child was standing between the legs of a seated male educator she had never seen before, who was rubbing the child's backside with his hands, according to a statement she would give to NT police, a redacted version of which has been seen by Guardian Australia. The mother immediately reported the incident to the centre and to police. NT police investigated but, according to their record of investigation, released under freedom of information laws, because there were no other witnesses and no CCTV footage, police concluded there was 'not enough evidence' to prosecute and so declined to pursue charges. The early childhood education and care regulator for the territory – the Quality Education and Care Northern Territory (QECNT) – also launched an investigation. But ultimately QECNT concluded: 'As police are not pursuing [the] matter, that QECNT could not take any further action, as there had been nothing to indicate the service should have taken a different course of action.' Because the centre had not breached any rules in relation to the allegation or its handling of it, and police weren't prosecuting the individual, there was no action the QECNT could take against him. The educator was a casual worker who had been placed in the centre by a temp agency. In the QECNT's log of the steps it took as part of its investigation, it noted that after the accused casual educator heard that police were closing the investigation, he had 'phoned to state he has been cleared and requested to come back to work'. The log contains a summary of a conversation between the educator and someone, whose name is redacted but appears to be an employee of the temp agency, saying: 'There have been some services that have requested he don't come back and she can't place him in those services … She indicated he may want to seek employment directly from a service' and that she would 'keep him on the 'books'.' The case highlights an issue that experts say is of key concern when it comes to regulating childcare services: there is little that can be done about educators who are accused of serious incidents, including sexual abuse, but whom police do not prosecute. While an individual daycare centre might then request that a casual worker not come back for any shifts, or bar them from working there, there is nothing to stop the educator from finding employment at another centre, nor any record that the individual has been suspended from or asked not to return to a previous place of employment. This is not a new problem. For years key players in the sector have flagged that childcare services have no way to act on, or keep records of, 'unsubstantiated' complaints. In late 2023 the Australian Children's Education and Care Quality Authority (Acecqa) conducted a review into the regulatory system. It found that such cases often came down to 'a child's word against an educator['s]'. 'This often leads to unsubstantiated claims, where no further action is taken,' Acecqa said in its report to state and territory ministers. It said these individual workers, who could be deemed as 'persons of interest', provide a 'unique challenge' from a regulatory monitoring point of view, because the sector doesn't have a clear system for tracking them. '[Childcare services] have no way to share this information with another Approved Provider considering employing that person unless they are contacted as a referee,' it said. The federal education minister, Jason Clare, ordered the review in the wake of charges against Ashley Paul Griffith, now known as Australia's worst paedophile. Griffith was found guilty last year of abusing 73 girls while working in childcare in Brisbane and Italy over two decades. Griffith had also been the subject of previous allegations – one more than a decade before his arrest. One Brisbane mother claimed that in 2009 she went to police to report allegations that Griffith had sexually abused her son but they had not investigated. She told the Nine Network's A Current Affair that her four-year-old son had told her 'Ashley hurt me' and went into graphic detail about the alleged sexual abuse. She took her son to a police station but claims officers only spoke to the boy for a few minutes, did not attempt to build rapport with him and, when he didn't disclose the abuse to them during the brief interview, says she was 'advised that there was nothing to warrant further investigation, and it was over'. 'We left the police station feeling bewildered, disbelieved and possibly crazy.' She told A Current Affair: 'We tried so many years ago to make it known that Ashley Griffith is a dangerous paedophile – no one listened, no one cared.' A report into Griffith by the Queensland Child Death Review Board released this month found that concerns about reputation or legal risks may deter individuals from raising concerns within the childcare sector. The inquiry also found that more than one complaint was made about Griffith to his employers, the Early Childhood Regulatory Authority and the Queensland police, before his arrest. 'Of these complaints, the available information suggests they were not always progressed, and information was not shared between agencies,' the inquiry's interim report said. 'Prior complaints made to QPS did not proceed to prosecution.' This meant that until Griffith's arrest, there was nothing to stop him maintaining his Blue Card – Queensland's working with children check. In its report to ministers, Acecqa recommended the government establish a centralised mechanism for sharing intelligence and keeping records so they could 'monitor and respond to suspected misconduct and allegations about a 'person of interest' who has unsubstantiated allegations'. But these warnings – and the same recommendations – have been sounded before. Almost a decade ago the royal commission into institutional responses to child sexual abuse noted that the inability to share information can enable perpetrators 'to move between institutions and jurisdictions and pose ongoing risks to children'. It too made recommendations to ensure better information sharing, and for a consistent national approach for sectors including childcare, backed by legislation, to ensure children were protected. Similarly, the 2021 Tasmanian commission of inquiry highlighted concerns that individuals feared breaching privacy laws when sharing information about alleged abusers, while noting the need to collate information regarding all allegations and incidents of sexual misconduct – even if unsubstantiated. Sign up to Breaking News Australia Get the most important news as it breaks after newsletter promotion Anne Hollonds, the national children's commissioner, says the federal government's proposal for a national register of childcare workers was an opportunity to address this enormous gap. But she argues that in developing the register, the government should consider whether it contains records of all serious allegations, substantiated or not. She acknowledges there are serious privacy and legal issues that need to be resolved before including unsubstantiated allegations on a national register, but also says it's an important way to identify a pattern of concerning behaviour. 'I think intuitively what I would say is that there should be a record … of reportable matters, whether substantiated or not. 'And I say that because it's when you look back on cases like the Ashley Griffith one that you see, maybe three reportable matters that were unable to be substantiated, maybe that's a sign of something, a pattern of behaviour, potentially. 'So then the question is: proactively, should we set the bar at a level that allows us to pick up a pattern in real time, even if not substantiated? ... I'm asking that question. I don't know the answer. I think that needs to be considered. 'Given the difficulty of substantiation with non-verbal or barely verbal children, then what other measures should we have in place that are able to pick up a pattern of behaviour that might, in its quantum, be a sufficient cause for concern?' Hollonds says that assessment of who is suitable to care for children 'shouldn't just rely on the working with children's check'. 'If we are prioritising the best interests of children … then we have to really address any barriers … for providers to be able to employ people who have a clean record, or to exclude those who don't,' which she says goes beyond people with criminal convictions. One mother who is all too familiar with the fact that a police conviction is not always possible is Jennifer*. When she went to police to report that her then two-year-old daughter, Ava*, had disclosed she was sexually abused while at daycare, police repeatedly warned her that getting a conviction, or even laying charges against the alleged offender, was highly unlikely. The alleged offending occurred at a family daycare – a service run by an individual in their home, but which still receives the federal childcare subsidy – and the alleged offender was the partner of the woman running the service. Jennifer says she had no idea a man was living at the house where the children were cared for until Ava started talking about him. Eventually, Ava disclosed that the man had exposed himself to her and touched her private parts, Jennifer says. New South Wales police took statements from Ava and her parents and investigated. The Department of Education and the Department of Communities and Justice also investigated the allegations – but no charges were laid. In a summary of its findings, the education department wrote: 'There was insufficient evidence to substantiate a breach of the National Law and Regulations. Insufficient evidence to determine [the alleged offender] posed a risk to children. No further action was taken by the department. The case was closed.' No action was taken against the man or the service, which is still operating, though Guardian Australia has not been able to confirm whether the man is still living at the premises. Jennifer would like to see reform to the way investigations into those working with children – or in close proximity to them – are undertaken, saying that the education department should be able to take some action against people who have had credible allegations made against them, even if the level of proof does not reach that required for a criminal conviction. 'That's a hard one because, you know, you don't want innocent people to be punished,' she says. '[But] the level of evidence required for a conviction in court is so high; for beyond reasonable doubt. And when you've got no physical evidence and you've got the words of the two-year-olds, it's not going to stand up in court.' When a report of a serious incident such as physical or sexual abuse is made against a childcare worker, multiple agencies swing – or should swing – into action. If criminal activity is alleged, police might investigate. The relevant state or territory regulator, often housed within the state's education department, will also receive a report. But data obtained by Guardian Australia through freedom of information laws show that responses and record-keeping vary wildly across the country. Some jurisdictions, such as the NT, recorded just one or two reports of sexual abuse of a child in a childcare setting a year. Others, such as NSW, didn't separate out allegations of physical assaults and sexual abuse and so came back with hundreds. The responses also revealed that in the some states, in the vast majority of cases where allegations of physical and sexual assault of a child are reported and investigated, no action is taken by the regulator. In one state – South Australia – nearly 60% of the 147 reports of physical and sexual abuse of a child by a childcare worker from January 2020 until 31 October 2024 were not investigated by the regulator. It did not issue a single compliance notice (the strongest penalty which can include suspending a centre's right to operate or prohibiting a educator from working) for sexual or physical abuse of children in the nearly five years. NSW had the highest number of reports of physical and sexual abuse of children in childcare centres to the state regulator, by a large margin, with, 1,856 incidents reported from 2020 until 31 October 2024. Investigations were launched into all of the incidents of alleged physical and sexual abuse reported to it. In 1,312 cases (70%), the investigation was completed and 'no further action' was taken. In 13% of cases (244) administrative compliance action was taken, and in 180 cases (9.5%) statutory compliance action was taken. Other incidents were under investigation or handled in another case. A spokesperson for the NSW Early Childhood Education and Care Regulatory Authority said: 'We work closely with law enforcement and other agencies where required to support investigations. If a police investigation does not result in charges, we still conduct our own investigation and take strong action in line with the provisions of the National Law and Regulations.' The authority can bring prosecutions, and since 2021, it has prosecuted 34 providers, nominated supervisors and individuals, resulting in fines and conditional release, though none of these were in relation to sexual abuse allegations. 'I think one of the problems is we have a national quality framework and we're meant to have a nationally consistent approach … But because individual jurisdictions handle the monitoring and assessment of services, there are irregularities and inconsistencies across the country,' says Prof Marianne Fenech, an early childhood expert from the University of Sydney. Fenech says investment in quality education, including improving staffing levels and pay, and reducing the number of casual workers, was the hard work that needed to be done to improve the childcare industry, rather than the 'reactive strategies' of CCTV and a national register that the government has suggested. 'If we just focus on reactive strategies to safety, we're missing the point and we're not going to deal with the bigger issues that are causing the safety problems in the first instance,' she says. Hollonds says in the last few weeks, as discussions have raged about safety in childcares and the government has introduced its new legislation, difficult conversations about reforming a huge, complicated industry are being had. But in many ways, this is all happening far too late, she says. 'Everyone is looking for answers. [But] it is a concern to me that we didn't work on these much earlier. 'These questions that you're asking me now, they are fundamental questions that go to the strength of the child safeguarding scaffolding underpinning the industry. And really, this should have been worked on many, many years ago … if not before then certainly the Ashley Griffith episode should have been the trigger for very proactive work on the regulatory system, making sure the regulators had the powers and the resources to do their job well, as well as all of these other elements that are being looked at now. 'I really don't understand why we've had to wait so long … before we acted.' *Names have been changed In Australia, children, young adults, parents and teachers can contact the Kids Helpline on 1800 55 1800; adult survivors can seek help at Blue Knot Foundation on 1300 657 380. Other sources of help can be found at Child Helpline International
The Guardian
an hour ago
- The Guardian
‘Delays, breakdowns, frustration': NSW commuters left waiting at the station
As more families seek affordable housing outside Sydney, they are experiencing a daily stress: their bosses want them back in the office more frequently but the train services to get there are becoming more and more unreliable. NSW has just recorded its worst year for on time running for Sydney trains, with nearly one in five running late, but the real problem is with intercity trains. Since July, one in three have failed to meet the punctuality benchmark. 'It's usually late. It's a surprise when it's on time,' says Elita Bird, who travels from Gosford. 'The slightest thing with the weather, which is increasing, it just runs late.' 'Terrible,' says Kim, who asks not to use her surname. She makes the one hour, 40 minute journey from and to Tuggerah on the Central Coast to Central station every weekday. 'They just constantly cancel, reschedule them and they're very slow because we get stuck behind the all-stations trains.' Sign up: AU Breaking News email It raises serious questions for the Minns Labor government as it attempts to deal with a housing crisis and skyrocketing house prices, which are sending families farther afield to find a place to live. 'If you want to take the pressure off house prices we have to make it easier for people to live outside the major cities. That means having reliable public transport,' says Dr Geoffrey Clifton, senior lecturer in transport at the University of Sydney. The headline numbers the NSW government releases on train performance do not fully capture the agony of the state's long-distance train commuters as Sydney Trains combines the performance of the city and the intercity services. 'Whilst Sydney Trains did not reach its own 92% performance target over the past three years, in part due to protected industrial action during this period and severe weather events, on time running in 2022 was 92.1%, 95% in 2021 and 92.5% in 2020,' a spokesperson told the Guardian in an official statement. But it is an entirely different story if the focus is on the intercity services – trains to the Central Coast, South Coast, Blue Mountains and Southern Highlands. Those services have failed to meet the 92% benchmark – trains arriving within six minutes of their timetabled arrival during peak hours – for all seven years, where data is available. So far, in the first three weeks of the 2025-26 financial year, just 65.2% of trains on the four main intercity lines were 'punctual'. It was little better in the previous 2024-25 year: just 70% Worse still, punctuality is worse when commuters are trying to get home. In the week 30 June to 4 July 2025 just 37% of trains taking commuters home from the city were 'on time'. In the week 19 May to 23 May, when the east coast was hit by huge rainfall, just 21% of evening peak trains were on time. Rain leads to several problems: subsidence on to the lines, as well as crowding into middle carriages as passengers huddle under cover in the central part of platforms. Bird says she now looks at the weather to decide whether she should commute or work from home. 'If there is rain or wind, then often there's a line down. I know what the problem is: Cockle Creek station [on the Newcastle line] just floods really easily and that then leads to delays further down the line. It doesn't feel like they are being upfront about what's going wrong,' she says. Communication is another bugbear of commuters. 'My train stops multiple times and is often about half an hour to 40 minutes late to the final station,' says Liam, who commutes to and from Springwood in the Blue Mountains. 'There's some very quiet message. One of the days there was someone on tracks but delays are a very common occurrence.' Clifton says Sydney Trains relies on phone calls and paper instructions to tell train drivers what to do – such as skipping stations or terminating early. Digital systems are being introduced. The Central Coast and the Blue Mountains lines have seen a significant decline in the punctuality of their services since Labor was elected in 2023. The Central Coast line was on time 60 to 70% during 2024-25, with some weeks as low as 35%. On the Blue Mountains line, most weeks only 45 to 65% of trains run on time. The South Coast line's punctuality is also deteriorating while there has been some improvement on the Southern Highlands line. Clifton says NSW has struggled to provide a reliable service between cities partly because the lines are so complicated, with 'lots of old tunnels and bridges'. The other part of the equation is maintenance, he says. Sydney Trains admits maintenance backlogs are at 'a new maximum', which means temporary speed restrictions are now in place on parts of the network. A spokesperson says the maintenance backlog built up during the industrial action from September 2024 to February 2025. It's not the same story elsewhere. In Europe, Switzerland topped the list with 95% of its long distance trains arriving within five minutes of the timetabled time in 2024. The Netherlands was not far behind with 94%, followed by Belgium at 90%, France 89%, and Italy 80%. Surprisingly Germany, once a poster child for train punctuality, has achieved only 54% on the same measure, with commentators saying the deterioration is due to ageing infrastructure and a lack of investment. Sydney Trains points to the new Mariyung trains as one of the investments the Minns government has made. 'New trains can certainly help once the new fleet is introduced but the teething problems can last at least a year or so,' Clifton says. The transport minister, John Graham, says: 'Settling the rail agreement means all energy can now be focused on reliability. We have got that message loud and clear.' But Clifton says Graham and other members of the government should experience the train system for themselves. 'If they did, they'd see the delays, the breakdowns, the frustration… The truth is Labor thinks they can take these seats for granted.'
