Author: DispatchTimes News Desk

Anthony Albanese is travelling to Palau for a Pacific Islands Forum summit overshadowed by disputes over regional security, China’s growing influence and a series of last-minute absences among island leaders. The Australian prime minister will arrive on Monday afternoon with Energy Minister Chris Bowen and Pacific Island Affairs Minister Pat Conroy for the meeting, which is intended to focus on climate change, food and fuel security, and transnational drug crime. It will be Mr Albanese’s first official visit to Palau, one of Taiwan’s remaining diplomatic allies in a region where Beijing has been seeking to deepen its strategic and economic…

Ontario’s largest electricity provider has apologised after its online outage map displayed Lake Ontario as “Lake America”, following a US-backed name change ordered by President Donald Trump. Hydro One said on Sunday, August 30, that the lake had been “incorrectly labeled” on its map and blamed the error on a third-party mapping service. The company said it was working with its supplier to restore the name Lake Ontario. ([hydroone.com](https://www.hydroone.com/abouthydroone/Pages/default.aspx?utm_source=openai)) “The issue originates from a third-party mapping service. We are working with our vendor to correct the issue as quickly as possible and restore the proper geographic reference,” a Hydro One…

Search efforts are under way for hikers who may be missing after flash flooding swept through Bright Angel Canyon in Arizona’s Grand Canyon on Saturday, 29 August. The National Park Service said on Sunday that it was seeking information about approximately 15 people who may have been in the affected area, while earlier reports had put the number of potentially unaccounted-for people at more than 20. Officials have not reported any injuries. ([nps.gov](https://www.nps.gov/grca/learn/news/public-assistance-requested-to-account-for-individuals-following-grand-canyon-flash-flood.htm)) The flooding began at about 2.30pm local time in the Bright Angel Canyon and Phantom Ranch area, causing extensive damage to trails and infrastructure. Nearly every footbridge…

More than 500,000 Australians could share a proposed A$249 million settlement after a class action alleged that superannuation trustees invested members’ retirement savings with Commonwealth Bank at interest rates below those available elsewhere. The agreement involving Colonial First State Investments Limited (CFSIL), Avanteos Investments Limited (AIL) and Commonwealth Bank of Australia was reached without an admission of liability. It remains subject to approval by the Federal Court of Australia. ([businessnewsaustralia.com](https://www.businessnewsaustralia.com/articles/slater-and-gordon-secures-249m-settlement-against-colonial-first-state-and-cba-over-low-super-interest-rates.html)) The proceedings alleged that the trustees failed to act in members’ best interests by placing cash and deposits with their parent bank without properly seeking the most competitive rates. They…

Two people are missing after a French-registered fishing boat sank in the English Channel off Plymouth, with three others rescued and taken to hospital. The Maritime and Coastguard Agency was alerted shortly after 6pm on Saturday, August 29, after the vessel, carrying five people, was reported to be in distress. The boat was believed to have been southwest of the Eddystone Lighthouse, about 15 miles south of Plymouth, when the emergency response was launched. HM Coastguard deployed a rescue helicopter and fixed-wing aircraft, while RNLI lifeboats from Falmouth and Plymouth joined local vessels in the search. A Falcon 50 aircraft…

Former AFL star Lance ‘Buddy’ Franklin and his wife, Jesinta, have stepped further away from public life after moving their family to a farm on the banks of the Coomera River in Queensland’s Gold Coast hinterland. The couple left Sydney several years ago for Queensland before relocating in 2025 to the rural property, where they are raising their three children away from the attention that followed Franklin throughout his football career. The Guanaba estate, known as Avonleigh Park, covers about 3.2 hectares and was purchased for a reported $4.6 million. It includes a modern farmhouse, stables, a barn, chicken coop,…

The Wisconsin Better Business Bureau has warned that scam calls and text messages are becoming the leading way fraudsters target consumers, as it publishes a new study examining how criminals exploit everyday technology. The report, Blueprint of a Scam, was produced by the BBB’s International Investigations Initiative after analysing more than 433,000 reports submitted to its Scam Tracker since 2022. Investigators used an artificial intelligence model to identify recurring patterns in the way scammers contacted victims, conducted their schemes and obtained money or personal information. How phone and text scams operate The BBB says criminals are making use of legitimate…

Luxury townhouses already approved and under construction in Melbourne are being reassessed after updated flood mapping placed their Brunswick site inside a new flood zone, raising concerns about the gap between planning and building approvals. Work is under way on the 24-home development at 144-146 Union Street, where excavators are carving out underground car parks for the $40 million Neometro project. Several of the architect-designed three-bedroom properties, advertised at prices ranging from $1.6 million to more than $2.2 million, have been pre-sold. The development received planning approval from Merri-bek council in June 2025 and had also been issued with a…

Prime Minister Andy Burnham is facing a fresh backlash after changing the early-release policy to ensure the two men convicted over the death of PC Andrew Harper remain in prison. Mr Burnham announced that anyone convicted of unlawful killing, including manslaughter, would be excluded from the scheme designed to ease overcrowding in England and Wales. The change means Jessie Cole and Albert Bowers, who were each sentenced to 13 years for manslaughter over the death of PC Harper, will no longer be eligible for release after serving half their custodial terms. PC Harper, 28, suffered fatal injuries while responding to…

Over a 10-day period, the Trump administration sent more than 100 deportees from Afghanistan, Cuba, Nicaragua and other nations to eight countries across Africa, expanding its “third country” deportation campaign, according to internal U.S. government documents obtained by CBS News.Three Immigration and Customs Enforcement deportation flights, the government documents show, dropped off dozens of men and women expelled from the U.S. in Burundi, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea, Eswatini, Liberia, Rwanda and Sierra Leone.None of the deportees were from the countries where they were deported, according to the documents. In addition to Afghans, Cubans and Nicaraguans, the ICE…