Sikh food charity serves up free hot meals for flood-hit Australians, World News
Melbourne-based Sikh Volunteers Australia travelled nearly 1,200km to the rural town of Taree in New South Wales, one of the worst-hit from last week's floods in Australia's most populous state, to set up their mobile kitchen in the parking area of a hardware store.
"They said about 20 minutes or so, I'll tuck in then," Kappa said as the volunteers prepared pasta, rice and vegetarian curry.
More than 50,000 people in the Hunter and Mid North coast regions of New South Wales, around 300km north of Sydney, were isolated last week after fast-rising waters burst river banks, destroyed homes and washed away roads.
Five deaths have been linked to the floods.
"We've had no power for three days out at the farm. We lost our milk. We lost everything," Kappa said.
After serving almost 3,000 fresh meals over the last three days, Sikh Volunteers Australia head Jaswinder Singh said: "In times of disasters, I've seen the spirit of the Australians come even better, closer to each other... so that's a good thing. That has a very positive impact."
Despite the small space available, the charity has been distributing food neatly packed in small boxes.
"To be able to know that you can turn up and just get some food is — it's just heart-warming," said Ashari Hudson, who was picking up food for a friend hit by floods.
The Sikh volunteers have provided free food since 2017 during several crises, including bush fires and floods.
Australia has been hit with increasing extreme weather events that some experts say are the result of climate change. Following droughts and devastating bushfires at the end of last decade, frequent floods have wreaked havoc since early 2021.
[[nid:718363]]
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
30-06-2025
- Straits Times
India to see above-average July rains after wetter than normal June
A street vendor wades through a flooded street after heavy rainfall in Guwahati, in India's state of Assam, on June 26. PHOTO: AFP India to see above-average July rains after wetter than normal June MUMBAI - India is likely to get above-average monsoon rainfall, critical to the economy, in July after receiving 9 per cent above-normal rains in June, a senior weather department official said on June 30 . The monsoon is the lifeblood of India's nearly US$4 trillion (S$5.1 trillion) economy, delivering almost 70 per cent of the rainfall needed to water farms and replenishing aquifers and reservoirs. Nearly half of India's farmland is not irrigated and depends on the annual June to September rains for crop growth. All regions, except northeastern states and the southern states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala, are likely to receive rainfall equating to more than 106 per cent of the 50-year average in July, Mr Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, director-general of the India Meteorological Department (IMD), told a virtual news conference. Soybean and cotton-growing states such as Maharashtra, Gujarat, and Madhya Pradesh are likely to receive above-average rainfall, as are rice-growing northern and most eastern states, according to Mr Mohapatra. India received 9 per cent more rainfall than the long-period average for June, as the monsoon covered the entire country nine days ahead of its normal schedule. Farmers usually start planting summer-sown crops such as rice, corn, cotton, soybeans and sugarcane after the arrival of monsoon rains. The early arrival of monsoon and above-average rainfall has accelerated planting of summer-sown crops, farm ministry data showed on June 30 . Farmers had planted 26.2 million hectares with summer-sown crops by June 30 , up 11.3 per cent on the same period in 2024 . Rice was planted on 3.5 million ha, larger than last year's 2.4 million ha. Farmers had planted another 4.9 million ha with oilseeds, including soybeans, up from 4 million ha a year ago. Planting will gain further momentum in the coming weeks as recent rainfall has improved soil moisture levels, said a Mumbai-based dealer with a global trade house. 'July rainfall is very crucial for summer crops. We can expect good yields if the monsoon delivers surplus rainfall in July,' the dealer said. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
14-06-2025
- Straits Times
Death toll rises to 11 in San Antonio flooding
SAN ANTONIO - The death toll from flash flooding that overwhelmed the San Antonio region rose to 11 after six more bodies were recovered following heavy rain that inundated the area, authorities said on Jun e 13. Several people remained missing around two creeks in the city, the city's Fire Department said. Authorities said that canine units and a Texas-based Federal Emergency Management Agency task force that specialises in urban search and rescue were helping in the searches. The teams were 'conducting detailed ground searches across creek beds, low-water crossings and debris fields,' the city said. Five people were reported killed on June 12 , but more bodies were recovered as search efforts continued. At least three of the 11 dead, two men and a woman, were publicly identified as at the afternoon of June 13 , according to the medical examiner for Bexar County. The San Antonio Police Department was investigating the deaths and identifying next of kin, the city said. The Fire Department said it had responded to more than 80 water rescues and investigations since the flooding began on June 12 . Almost 20 roads had been closed, the city's Public Works Department reported, and more than a dozen low-water road crossings showed signs of structural damage. City officials said that flooding remained 'a serious concern' along two rivers in the south of San Antonio through the weekend. The National Weather Service in San Antonio said on June 13 that dry weather was expected overnight into June 14 , with a small chance of isolated thunderstorms. Much of Texas was hit with rains on June 12 , and severe thunderstorms brought repeated heavy rain to locations across south-central and southern Texas. 'The thunderstorms moved over the same location over and over again,' said meteorologist Mack Morris from the National Weather Service . Streets were flooded in the greater San Antonio area, with the heaviest rain falling from midnight on June 11 until about 6am on June 12. Mr Morris said that the Interstate 35 corridor that stretches along Dallas, Austin and San Antonio is especially prone to flooding, as the region is covered in a thin layer of soil that sits atop bedrock. 'Think of it as a sponge,' he added . 'The sponge is thinner here because the soil is so shallow. It can only hold so much water.' Areas across the north side of San Antonio recorded 10 to 20cm of rain on June 12 , Morris said. The gauge at the San Antonio International Airport measured 15.5cm , which made it the second-highest one-day rainfall total for June at that site and the tenth wettest day ever, according to weather service records. San Antonio usually records less than 15.2cm of rainfall in June and July combined. 'One of my colleagues has been here since the mid-'90s, and he called this a top-10 event,' Mr Morris said. Mayor Ron Nirenberg of San Antonio expressed condolences for the victims of the flooding on J une 13. 'Our hearts are with the families of those we've lost to this week's flash floods and the families who continue searching for their loved ones,' Mr Nirenberg said. NYTIMES Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
01-06-2025
- Straits Times
China paraglider's thundercloud survival claim featured likely AI-faked video
The video's opening showed Peng Yujiang, 55, among the clouds, his face encrusted with ice. PHOTO: VISUALS_CHINA/INSTAGRAM BEIJING - A Chinese paraglider's account of having been unwittingly swept into a thundercloud and dragged 8km into the sky has come under question after his video of the incident, carried by Chinese state media, turned out to have been likely faked in part. The video, originally posted after the paraglider's May 24 flight by his support team on Douyin, China's TikTok, employed artificial intelligence to fake some of the footage, according to a review by a digital security firm consulted by Reuters. The video's opening showed Peng Yujiang, 55, among the clouds, his face encrusted with ice. The video, which caused a sensation in paragliding circles, was aired in China and distributed internationally by state-run broadcaster CCTV. Other news providers also distributed the video, which was picked up globally. California-based digital security firm GetReal said it was 'fairly confident' the first five seconds of Peng Yujiang's video contained AI-generated images. There are also inconsistencies noted by GetReal and paragliders who pored over the video: Mr Peng's legs are initially dangling without the insulating cocoon shown later. His helmet is first white, then black. Still, five expert paragliders interviewed by Reuters said it was possible Mr Peng had flown to 8,589m as he claimed and survived. But four of them also challenged his claim that the flight had been an unavoidable accident, which Reuters is reporting for the first time. The current record for a planned flight is held by French pilot Antoine Girard who flew 8,407m over a stretch of the Himalayas in 2021. Mr Peng recorded and then deleted his flight log on XContest, a website popular among paragliders, according to Jakub Havel, a Czech paraglider who helps run the forum. Mr Havel said other flights by Mr Peng remained on the site. 'Nobody intentionally lets themselves be sucked into a thunderstorm cloud in an attempt to break a record - it's something that any sane paragliding pilot tries to avoid at all costs,' said Mr Havel, who said Mr Peng's flight should not be considered a record. Mr Peng could not be reached for comment. CCTV, which distributed the video on a platform owned by Reuters, could not be reached for comment. Like other Chinese media, CCTV faces a pending regulation from Beijing that requires all AI-generated content to be labeled as such from September. Contacted on the weekend, China's State Council, which oversees and coordinates government policy, had no immediate comment. In a statement, Reuters said it had removed the CCTV package on Mr Peng's flight from Reuters Connect, an online marketplace that carries material from more than 100 news organisations. 'This content is clearly labelled as third-party content and is not verified or endorsed by Reuters,' the statement said. 'When we became aware of a piece of content that likely contained AI-generated elements on the Reuters Connect platform, we investigated and took it down because the material does not comply with our partner content policy.' Storm clouds In a report published on May 28, the Gansu Aeronautical Sports Association said Mr Peng had broken an altitude record after being swept off the ground by a strong wind while testing second-hand gear he had just bought. 'According to Peng, he didn't plan on taking off,' the report said. The association, a private group that oversees air sports in the province, did not respond to a request for comment. It deleted its report on Mr Peng's flight from its WeChat account and by May 29 the association's website was blocked. The association suspended Mr Peng from flying for six months. A member of his flight team was suspended for six months for releasing the video without authorisation. Expert pilots interviewed by Reuters said there were reasons to doubt Mr Peng's flight was a fluke accident, saying he was either trying to make an unauthorised high ascent or should have seen the risk. Storm clouds like the one Mr Peng flew in 'don't just appear above your head and hoover you into space. They build over a period of time,' said Daniel Wainwright, a flight instructor in Australia. 'He shouldn't have been flying.' The specialised heavy mittens shown in the video seem to undercut Mr Peng's claim he had not intended to take off, said Brad Harris, president of the Tasmanian Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association. He said he believed Mr Peng may have made up the accidental take-off to avoid sanction for entering restricted air space. 'These are not things you would normally wear or have ready if you were just ground-handling to test a wing,' Mr Harris said. Godfrey Wenness, a former paragliding distance world record holder, said a veteran paraglider could have managed to reverse the extreme but manageable ascent shown in Mr Peng's flight data. 'He was either inexperienced or he was trying to (keep climbing),' Mr Wenness said. Mr Wenness said, however, he believed Mr Peng hit the altitude he claimed based on flight data posted on XContest and then deleted. That data has to be transferred from a GPS in a 'tamper-proof' format, he said. 'We conclude and are confident that the actual flight did occur,' he said. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
