TONIGHT ` THE ACT PARTY'S CANDIDATE SELECTION ATTRACTS CRITICISM, AFTER THE EXTREME VIEWS OF SOME CANDIDATES COME TO LIGHT. WE FINALLY HEAR FROM THE OWNERS OF WHAKAARI WHITE ISLAND, ABOUT THE DANGERS OF TAKING TOURISTS TO A LIVE VOLCANO. AND ANOTHER MEDAL FOR AN AUSSIE SPEED SKATER, MORE THAN 20 YEARS AFTER WINNING AN OLYMPIC GOLD IN SPECTACULAR STYLE. CAPTIONS BY FAITH HAMBLYN AND JAMES BROWN. CAPTIONS WERE MADE WITH THE SUPPORT OF NZ ON AIR. WWW.ABLE.CO.NZ COPYRIGHT ABLE 2023. KIA ORA. GOOD EVENING. THE ACT PARTY IS FACING SCRUTINY OVER ITS VETTING PROCEDURES, AFTER 1 NEWS REVEALED THE EXTREME VIEWS HELD BY A NUMBER OF ACT'S ELECTION CANDIDATES. ONE CANDIDATE RESIGNED IMMEDIATELY. SHE HAD ONCE LIKENED COVID RESTRICTIONS TO NAZI CONCENTRATION CAMPS. ANOTHER ADMITS HIS VACCINE COMMENTS WERE WAY OUT OF LINE. WITH THE FALLOUT, HERE'S SENIOR POLITICAL REPORTER BENEDICT COLLINS. IT WAS A TIME OF INCREDIBLE TENSION. SOME NEW ZEALANDERS RALLIED AGAINST VACCINES AND MANDATES, INCLUDING ACT'S FUTURE CANDIDATE FOR RANGITATA, WHO LIKENED COVID RESTRICTIONS TO CONCENTRATION CAMPS. 1 NEWS ALERTED DAVID SEYMOUR TO HER POSTS TODAY. A SHORT TIME LATER, SHE WAS GONE. SHE OFFERED TO STAND DOWN IMMEDIATELY, AND I'VE ACCEPTED THAT. DID YOU FIND ELAINE'S COMMENTS UNACCEPTABLE? YEAH, I DID FIND THOSE UNACCEPTABLE. WHY? BASICALLY, BECAUSE I DON'T LIKE THE ALLUSION TO NAZISM. I REPRESENT THE BIGGEST JEWISH COMMUNITY IN NEW ZEALAND. WITH ELAINE, I MEAN, SHE WAS CALLING ACT PARTY MPs A DISGRACE. SHE SAID YOU NEEDED TO GROW SOME BALLS. HOW DID ACT NOT PICK UP ON THAT BEFORE YOU SELECTED HER AS A CANDIDATE? YOU'VE GOTTA LOOK THROUGH LITERALLY HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF COMMENTS. ACT'S WAIKATO CANDIDATE POSTED THIS DURING THE PANDEMIC, LINKING A SPATE OF SUMMER DROWNINGS WITH RECEIVING THE VACCINE. I WAS JUST ASKING THE QUESTION. SO NO, I DON'T... I DON'T BELIEVE THAT THOSE... GOSH, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE DROWN FOR MANY REASONS, RIGHT? FOR PEOPLE WHOSE LOVED ONES HAVE DROWNED, THEY PROBABLY WOULDN'T FIND IT VERY AMUSING. YEAH. YEAH, NO, EXACTLY. AND NO, I TOTALLY DISAVOW THAT COMMENT. IN ANOTHER POST, YOU'VE REFERRED TO OUR FORMER PRIME MINISTER AS 'JAB-CINDA'. LOOKING BACK ON THAT NOW, DO YOU THINK THAT WAS APPROPRIATE? NO, THAT WAS INAPPROPRIATE AS WELL. ANOTHER ACT CANDIDATE PULLED OUT RECENTLY. ANTO COATES SAID SUMMER TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS FOR THE UNVACCINATED WERE A RECIPE FOR POLITICAL ASSASSINATION. HE HASN'T BEEN A CANDIDATE FOR OVER MONTH, AND I'M PRETTY HAPPY ABOUT THAT. THE FACT THAT ACT HAVE BEEN SELECTING THESE PEOPLE REALLY IS A BIT OF A WARNING SIGN OF WHAT YOU COULD GET UNDER A NATIONAL, ACT, NEW ZEALAND FIRST GOVERNMENT. TYPICAL, I THINK. I'M NOT SURPRISED AT ALL WITH THE EXTREMISM THAT THAT PARTY HAS IN THE VEINS. SOME SAY IT'S HARD TO AVOID. LOOK, ALL THE PARTIES HAVE FOUND THAT SOMETIMES TO MAKE UP THE NUMBERS, YOU END UP WITH A FEW, SORT OF, PEOPLE WHO'VE GOT AMBITIONS, WHO MAYBE WOULDN'T REALLY THRIVE IN PARLIAMENT. AND IT WAS IN PARLIAMENT THAT SOON ACT WAS COPPING IT. IS HE RESORTING TO A DESPERATE CAMPAIGN OF FEAR BECAUSE HIS GOVERNMENT HAS NO RECORD TO RUN ON? COMING FROM A MEMBER WHO'S BEING PROPPED UP BY A BUNCH OF ANTIVAX CONSPIRACY THEORISTS, I THINK THAT QUESTION'S A BIT RICH. A TOUGH DAY IN THE OFFICE FOR ACT. WELL, THIS IS CERTAINLY VERY MESSY INDEED FOR THE ACT PARTY. YOU KNOW, DAVID SEYMOUR, HE INSISTS THAT ACT HAS GOOD VETTING PROCESSES IN PLACE AND THAT A COUPLE OF CANDIDATES HAVE JUST SLIPPED THROUGH THE NET HERE. BUT WHAT IS DAMAGING FOR ACT IS THAT WE NOW HAVE MULTIPLE CANDIDATES IN THE UPCOMING ELECTION WHO HAVE THESE EXTREME VIEWS AROUND THE PANDEMIC, AND ACT RISKS LOOKING LIKE IT'S BECOME A VEHICLE FOR THESE DISGRUNTLED PEOPLE WITH THESE EXTREME VIEWS. NOW, I THINK THE SAVING GRACE HERE FOR ACT IS THAT THESE CANDIDATES, THEY WERE PRETTY FAR DOWN THAT LIST; THEY WERE AT LONG ODDS OF GETTING INTO PARLIAMENT ANYWAY. BUT YOU'D HAVE TO THINK THAT AFTER TODAY, ALL OF ACT'S OTHER CANDIDATES ARE GOING TO COME UNDER A LOT MORE SCRUTINY. A HOMICIDE INVESTIGATION'S UNDERWAY INTO A SUDDEN DEATH AT AN APARTMENT BLOCK IN CENTRAL AUCKLAND. POLICE WERE CALLED TO AN UPPER QUEEN ST ADDRESS JUST AFTER 1PM, AFTER A MAN SUFFERED INJURIES AND COLLAPSED. HE WAS TAKEN TO AUCKLAND HOSPITAL, WHERE HE LATER DIED. TWO PEOPLE HAVE NOW BEEN TAKEN INTO CUSTODY, BUT FURTHER DETAILS ARE STILL UNKNOWN. WE'VE JUST COMMENCED OUR SCENE INVESTIGATION. WE'RE SPEAKING TO TWO PEOPLE. WE DON'T HAVE ANY MOTIVE, AND WE HAVEN'T RECOVERED ANY POSSIBLE WEAPONS. POLICE SAY RESIDENTS CAN EXPECT SOME DISRUPTION, AS THE SCENE EXAMINATION CONTINUES. AND POLICE SAY ONE PERSON IS IN CUSTODY AFTER A SUDDEN DEATH AT A MOTEL IN THE CENTRAL AUCKLAND SUBURB OF EPSOM. EMERGENCY SERVICES WERE CALLED TO THE MOTEL IN ALPERS AVE AROUND HALF PAST 7 THIS EVENING AFTER REPORTS OF A PERSON WITH SERIOUS INJURIES. THEY DIED AT THE SCENE. POLICE SAY A SCENE GUARD IS CURRENTLY AT IN PLACE. INVESTIGATIONS ARE NOW UNDERWAY. FOR THE FIRST TIME THE OWNERS OF WHAKAARI WHITE ISLAND HAVE SPOKEN ABOUT THE RISKS, AS THEY UNDERSTOOD THEM, OF LETTING TOURISTS ON TO A LIVE VOLCANO. AN AUDIO RECORDING OF PETER, JAMES AND ANDREW BUTTLE BEING INTERVIEWED BY WORKSAFE WAS PLAYED TO THE COURT INVESTIGATING HEALTH AND SAFETY FAILINGS IN THE LEAD UP TO THE DEADLY 2019 ERUPTION. REPORTER YVONNE TAHANA WAS THERE. SPEAKING WITH PRIDE ABOUT HAVING A VOLCANO IN THE FAMILY. IT'S UNIQUE, AS FAR AS THE FACT THAT YOU CAN WALK INTO A VOLCANO FROM SEA LEVEL, UM, AND ACCESS THAT POWER AND ESSENCE OF THE EARTH. IN THIS PROMOTIONAL VIDEO, PETER AND ANDREW BUTTLE EXPLAINED HOW THEIR GRANDFATHER HAD PUT IN A WINNING TENDER TO BUY THE VOLCANO IN 1936. THEY, ALONG WITH THEIR BROTHER JAMES, HAVE BEEN ON TRIAL FOR BREACHING HEALTH AND SAFETY RULES. THEIR COMPANY, WHAKAARI MANAGEMENT, HAS ALSO BEEN CHARGED. THE BUTTLE BROTHERS AREN'T REQUIRED TO BE IN COURT, BUT THEY HAVE BEEN A SOLID FIXTURE IN THE PUBLIC GALLERY, AS LAWYERS HAVE TRAVERSED THIS COMPLEX CASE. TODAY, AS THEIR VOICES FILLED THAT SAME COURTROOM, NONE OF THE BROTHERS ` ANDREW, PETER OR JAMES ` WERE PRESENT. INSTEAD, THEIR 2020 AUDIO INTERVIEW WAS PLAYED TO AN ALMOST EMPTY COURTROOM. FOR 60 YEARS OR MORE, I'VE A RELATIONSHIP WITH THE ISLAND. THEIR COMPANY LICENCED TOUR OPERATORS TO ACCESS THE ISLAND. A WORKSAFE OFFICER ASKING THEM WHAT STEPS THEY TOOK TO FULLY UNDERSTAND THE DANGER POSED BY WHAKAARI. A RELATIONSHIP WITH A GNS VOLCANOLGIST, BRAD SCOTT, WAS KEY, PETER BUTTLE SAID. THEY ARGUED THAT RISK WAS MANAGED BY THE TOUR COMPANIES. BUT WHAKAARI MANAGEMENT NEVER DID A RISK ASSESSMENT ITSELF, AND THEY APPEARED CONFUSED ABOUT TOUR COMPANIES BEING ABLE TO TAKE PAYING CUSTOMERS ON TO WHAKAARI AT ALERT LEVEL THREE, WHERE MINOR ERUPTIONS CAN OCCUR. BUT THE BUTTLES WERE CLEAR ABOUT WHAT THEY DID NOT KNOW. AND A BLOW TO THE DEFENDANTS ` THEY'D WANTED THEIR CHARGES DISMISSED AND HAD TAKEN THAT FIGHT TO THE HIGH COURT, BUT THAT WAS REJECTED THIS MORNING. YVONNE TAHANA, 1 NEWS. THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH'S DECISION TO PAUSE THE IMPLANTING OF SURGICAL MESH INTO WOMEN WITH 'STRESS URINARY INCONTINENCE' HAS BEEN GREETED WITH RELIEF BY THOSE WHO'VE SUFFERED SERIOUS AFTER-EFFECTS. SURGICAL MESH IS A NET-LIKE FABRIC OR TAPE USED IN THE PROCEDURE. THE PAUSE WILL CONTINUE UNTIL A NUMBER OF PROCESSES ARE PUT IN PLACE. THESE INCLUDE TAILORED TRAINING FOR SURGEONS WHO PERFORM THE PROCEDURE, A NEW REGISTRY FOR ALL PATIENTS AND A MORE DETAILED CONSENT PROCESS. THE MOVE FOLLOWS AN INVESTIGATION BY A SPECIALIST MONITORING GROUP. HEALTH OFFICIALS SAY 75% OF WOMEN WHO'VE HAD THE PROCEDURE HAD GOOD OUTCOMES, BUT SOME PATIENTS SAY THEY'VE HAD TERRIBLE EXPERIENCES. USE OF THE MESH IMPLANTS IS ALSO ON PAUSE IN ENGLAND AND SCOTLAND, AND THE PRODUCT ITSELF WAS AT THE CENTRE OF A LANDMARK LAWSUIT AGAINST 'JOHNSON AND JOHNSON' IN AUSTRALIA. NICOLE BREMNER REPORTS. SURGICAL MESH IS MEANT TO FIX WOMEN WITH 'STRESS URINARY INCONTINENCE', BUT OPERATIONS ARE NOW ON HOLD, DUE IN PART TO LOBBYING BY SALLY WALKER, WHOSE OWN HEALTH WAS PERMANENTLY DAMAGED BY THE PROCEDURE. THE WORST PART OF IT WAS WHEN I HAD MY BLADDER OUT, AND I WAS DOING FINE, AND THEN I HIT ROCK BOTTOM, AND I ALMOST DIED FROM IT. 10 OPERATIONS AND A PETITION TO PARLIAMENT LATER, SALLY WALKER AND FELLOW CAMPAIGNER CHARLOTTE KORTE ARE DELIGHTED MESH PROCEDURES HAVE STOPPED UNTIL THE HEALTH MINISTRY IMPLEMENTS A SERIES OF CHANGES TO IMPROVE PATIENT OUTCOMES. WE ALL LOSE HOPE, AND WE ALL LOSE TRUST, AND WE'RE ALL TOLD, 'IT'S IN YOUR HEAD.' AND THIS IS GOING TO MAKE SUCH A DIFFERENCE. THERE'S THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE OUT THERE WHO ARE SUFFERING, SO... YEAH, SORRY. (CHUCKLES) IT'S A BIG DAY. THE QUESTION NOW ` WHAT HAPPENS NEXT WITH THE PROCEDURE THAT'S CONSIDERED SUCCESSFUL WITH 75% OF PATIENTS, BUT HAS A REPORTED INJURY RATE OF 3.6%? THAT NUMBER BETWEEN 3% AND 4% IS HIGH, WHEN YOU CONSIDER THE SEVERITY OF SOME OF THE COMPLICATIONS THAT WOMEN HAVE SUFFERED, SO IT'S FINDING A CORRECT BALANCE. THE TRICKY THING IS THAT COMPLICATIONS OR HARM DOES EMERGE OVER TIME AND SOMETIMES, YOU KNOW, 10 TO 15 YEARS AFTER THE ORIGINAL SURGERY. ALONG WITH MEMBERS OF OTHER SURGICAL COLLEGES, SHE SUPPORTS THE MINISTRY'S PLAN FOR A PATIENT REGISTRY AND MORE STRUCTURED CONSENT PROCESS. WHAT WE NEED TO REALLY HELP REBUILD THE TRUST THAT WE NEED WITH WOMEN IS THE ASSURANCE THAT WE WON'T BE LIFTING THE PAUSE UNTIL ALL OF THOSE MEASURES ARE IN PLACE. THESE WOMEN SAY THE PROPOSED CHANGES COULD TAKE YEARS AND WANT THE FOCUS TO REMAIN ON THOSE WHO NEED HELP NOW. IT'S NOT JUST PHYSICAL; IT IS THE MENTAL SIDE OF IT. THEY FEEL SUICIDAL. THEIR MARRIAGES HAVE BROKEN UP. NO INTIMACY. MY HUSBAND AND I HAVEN'T HAD INTIMACY SINCE 2009. SALLY ONE AMONG HUNDREDS OF WOMEN LIVING WITH THE PAINFUL CONSEQUENCES OF A PROCESS THAT'S NOW UNDER REVIEW. NICOLE BREMNER, 1 NEWS. STRANDED NEARLY 300m IN THE AIR FOR 15 HOURS, EIGHT PEOPLE, INCLUDING SEVEN STUDENTS, WERE LEFT IN A HARROWING LIMBO AFTER THEIR CABLE CAR BROKE OVER A REMOTE RAVINE IN PAKISTAN. CHANNEL 9'S CARRIE ANNE GREENBANK REPORTS. THE HIGH-STAKES RESCUE MISSION UNFOLDED IN THE REMOTE HILLS OF PAKISTAN, WATCHED INTENTLY BY HORRIFIED LOCALS AND BROADCAST LIVE AROUND THE WORLD. MILITARY HELICOPTERS AND COMMANDOS HAVE BEGUN A RESCUE OPERATION TO FREE EIGHT PEOPLE. THAT INCLUDES SIX CHILDREN, WHO ARE STUCK IN A CABLE CAR. THE STUDENTS AND THEIR TEACHER HAD BEEN ON THEIR WAY TO SCHOOL WHEN TWO CABLE LINES SNAPPED, LEAVING THEIR OPEN-AIR GONDOLA DANGLING PRECARIOUSLY ON ONE REMAINING LINE, ALMOST 300m ABOVE A RIVER CANYON. MILITARY COMMANDOS LOWERING THEMSELVES FROM HELICOPTERS TO RESCUE FIRST ONE CHILD, THEN ANOTHER, WHO WERE WINCHED TO SAFETY. THE OPERATION DANGEROUS. WIND GUSTS FROM THE CHOPPERS ROTOR BLADES AT TIMES DESTABILISED THE CABLE CAR, CAUSING THE CHILDREN INSIDE TO SCREAM OUT. ZIP-LINE OPERATORS WERE THEN BROUGHT IN BY THE ARMY, PULLING THEMSELVES ALONG THE REMAINING CABLE TO REACH THE REST OF THE GROUP. AND AFTER NIGHT FELL, MORE THAN 15 HOURS AFTER THE ORDEAL BEGAN, THE FINAL STUDENTS AND THEIR TEACHER WERE SAVED. CROWD CHEER: ALLAHU AKBAR! MAKESHIFT CABLE CAR SYSTEMS ARE COMMON IN THE MOUNTAINOUS REGIONS OF PAKISTAN, AND ARE OFTEN ILLEGAL. FROM THE CAR ACCIDENT THAT CLAIMED THE LIVES OF HIS TWO FRIENDS AND ALMOST HIS OWN, AMIT SHARMA HAS SPENT YEARS BUILDING BACK STRONGER THAN EVER, FINDING A NEW CALLING ` HELPING OTHERS FIND THEIR STRENGTH TOO. JESSICA MORRIS LOOKS BACK AT HIS REMARKABLE ROAD TO RECOVERY. THIS IS AMIT SHARMA FIVE YEARS AGO IN THE WAIKATO HOSPITAL ICU AFTER THE CAR CRASH WHICH KILLED TWO OF HIS FRIENDS. THE REMAINS OF THEIR CAR MANGLED. AMIT HAD BEEN SLEEPING IN THE BACK SEAT. I JUST REMEMBER WHEN WE SAT IN THE CAR, AND I SAW THEIR SMILING FACES LOOKING AT EACH OTHER. I SLEPT. AND WHEN I WOKE UP, NOBODY TOLD ME THAT THEY ARE NO MORE. WITH 64 BROKEN BONES AND HIS SPINE IN EIGHT PIECES, DOCTORS TOLD HIS FAMILY IN INDIA HE LIKELY WOULDN'T SURVIVE. IF HE DID, HE'D NEVER WALK AGAIN. I CAN'T EXPLAIN YOU IN THE WORDS, BUT THAT WAS LITERALLY A VERY BAD EXPERIENCE FOR THEM. THEY WERE IN A DEEP SHOCK. A MEDICAL NOTE FROM ONE OF HIS DOCTORS WAS THE FIRST GLIMMER OF HOPE. FOR AMIT, GETTING THE FEELING IN HIS TOES BACK WAS JUST THE START. FROM THAT SAME DAY, I STARTED WALKING ` IN MY MIND. I WAS NOW WALKING PHYSICALLY, BUT I WAS WALKING IN MY MIND. IN LESS THAN TWO MONTHS, I STARTED WALKING ON A TREADMILL. THE 28-YEAR-OLD SO INSPIRED BY THOSE WHO HELPED HIM RECOVER PHYSICALLY HE QUIT HIS JOB AS A CIVIL ENGINEER TO RETRAIN AS A PERSONAL TRAINER. I STARTED FEELING LIKE THERE MUST BE A REASON WHY I'M STILL, LIKE, ALIVE AND HAVING THIS BEAUTIFUL LIFE. IF I WILL BE ABLE TO RECOVER REALLY WELL IN THIS, THEN I WILL DEFINITELY TRY HELPING OTHERS AS WELL. AND HE'S JUST BEEN FULLY CERTIFIED. I FEEL LIKE TODAY I'M MORE STRONGER THAN BEFORE. THIS IS THE WAY THAT I MOTIVATE MY CLIENTS AS WELL. OK, IS THERE ANYTHING IMPOSSIBLE FOR YOU? THEY'RE LIKE, 'NAH. WHY NOT?' JUST STAY POSITIVE AND STAY STRONG. THAT'S IT. JESSICA MORRIS, 1 NEWS. STILL TO COME ` COULD INDIA MAKE HISTORY AND LAND ON THE SOUTH POLE OF THE MOON IN A MATTER OR HOURS? PLUS ` REMEMBER THIS FAMOUS OLYMPIC MOMENT THAT HELPED AN AUSSIE ATHLETE SKATE TO GOLD? WHY HE'S BEING CALLED AN AUSSIE HERO YET AGAIN. OVERSEAS, AND 18 BURNT DEAD BODIES HAVE BEEN FOUND IN A FOREST IN NORTHERN GREECE, AS EXTREME TEMPERATURES AND HIGH WINDS CONTINUE TO FAN WILDFIRES. IT'S BELIEVED THEY WERE MIGRANTS WHO HAD CROSSED THE TURKISH BORDER. FIREFIGHTERS MADE THE GRISLY DISCOVERY NEAR THE CITY OF ALEXANDROUPOLIS, WHERE THEY HAVE BEEN TRYING TO CONTAIN A MASSIVE WALL OF FLAMES FROM ADVANCING TOWARDS THE PORT CITY. AUTHORITIES HAVE NOW EVACUATED EIGHT SURROUNDING VILLAGES AND A HOSPITAL. INDIA IS SET TO MAKE HISTORY OVERNIGHT BY BEING THE FIRST TO MAKE A MOON LANDING ON THE SOUTH POLE. THE INDIAN SPACE RESEARCH ORGANISATION'S SPACECRAFT CHANDRAYAAN-3 IS EXPECTED TO LAND IN JUST UNDER TWI HOURS. THE LUNAR SOUTH POLE'S CRATERS ARE THOUGHT TO CONTAIN WATER ICE THAT COULD SUPPORT A FUTURE MOON SETTLEMENT. ACROSS THE TASMAN, A SYDNEY TRUCK DRIVER HAS MADE A NARROW ESCAPE AFTER A TRAIN WIPED OUT HIS TRUCK WHEN IT STALLED ON A LEVEL CROSSING IN THE CITY'S SOUTH-WEST. A DRIVER CAPTURED THE HAIR-RAISING MOMENT ON THEIR DASHCAM. THREE PEOPLE WERE TAKEN TO HOSPITAL AS A PRECAUTION. NOW TO AN AUSSIE HERO, THE OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALLIST SPEED SKATER STEVEN BRADBURY IS BEING LAUDED AGAIN, RISKING HIS OWN LIFE TO SAVE FOUR TEENAGERS CAUGHT IN A RIP. CHANNEL 9'S MIKE DALTON REPORTS. HE WOULD ADD HIS NAME TO THE LEXICON OF AUSTRALIAN SLANG BY DOING WHAT IS NOW KNOWN AS A 'BRADBURY'. (CHEERING, APPLAUSE) AND STEVE BRADBURY WOULD BE FIRST IN THE SURF IN MARCH LAST YEAR, WHEN HE AND HIS SON FLYNN WOULD SPOT A STRUGGLING SWIMMER OFF CALOUNDRA, ON THE SUNSHINE COAST. IT WAS ALMOST CYCLONE SWELL OUT THE BACK. IT WAS 2 METRES PLUS. AND I PADDLED OUT. AND BY THE TIME I GOT OUT THERE, I GOT CLOSE TO THE HEAD THAT I'D SEEN AND REALISED THAT THERE WAS THREE MORE HEADS. HE QUICKLY TOOK ONE GIRL BACK TO SHORE ON HIS SURFBOARD, THEN RETURNED FOR THE OTHER THREE. ONE OF THEM WAS HYPERVENTILATING. ANOTHER ONE WAS STARTING TO GO UNDER AND LOSING HER BREATH. I GOT ALL THREE OF THEM ON TO THE BOARD, BUT IT WAS TOO HEAVY, SO WE WERE JUST GETTING SMASHED EVERY TIME A WAVE CAME. THANKFULLY, STEVE HAD SENT FLYNN TO CALL FOR HELP FROM LOCAL LIFESAVERS, WHO WOULD ARRIVE JUST IN TIME. THEY SCOOPED UP TWO OF THEM OUT OF THE WATER, AND I GOT THE THIRD ONE ON TO THE BOARD AND PADDLED THEM IN. STEVE'S ACTIONS TODAY ACKNOWLEDGED WITH THE COMMENDATION FOR BRAVE CONDUCT, AS PART OF THE GOVERNOR-GENERAL'S AUSTRALIAN BRAVERY AWARDS. I DIDN'T THINK I WOULD MAKE IT BACK. IF NO ONE HAD COME TO RESCUE US, WE'D HAVE NO CHANCE. WITHOUT HIM, WE WOULDN'T BE HERE. ALTHOUGH STEVE WOULD CREDIT SOME ASSISTANCE FROM RESIDUAL OLYMPIC MUSCLE MEMORY. I LOVE HOW YOU DESCRIBED IT THERE, MATE, AS MUSCLE MEMORY. BECAUSE THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT IT WAS FOR ME. THAT PERFORMANCE WILL BE ONE OF THE THINGS THAT, YOU KNOW, IS IN THE TOP FEW THINGS THAT I'VE DONE IN MY LIFE. JUST AHEAD, THE STORY BEHIND A SONG THAT'S BECOME A SOCIAL MEDIA SENSATION. # I WISH POLITICIANS # WOULD LOOK OUT FOR MINERS, # AND NOT JUST MINORS ON AN ISLAND SOMEWHERE. # LORD, WE GOT FOLKS IN THE STREET # AIN'T GOT NOTHING TO EAT WELCOME BACK. 'RICH MEN NORTH OF RICHMOND' IS CURRENTLY NUMBER ONE IN THE U.S. IT'S SUNG BY PREVIOUSLY UNKNOWN AMERICAN COUNTRY FOLK SINGER OLIVER ANTHONY. SIMON MERCEP HAS MORE. # WORKING ALL DAY, # OVERTIME HOURS, # FOR BULLSHIT PAY... IT'S A GUT-WRENCHING PLEA FOR ECONOMIC JUSTICE. # IT'S A DAMN SHAME # WHAT THE WORLD'S GOTTEN TO... NO ONE HAD HEARD OF OLIVER ANTHONY, BUT HE'S FAMOUS NOW. 'RICH MEN NORTH OF RICHMOND' REFERS TO THE ELITES OF WASHINGTON DC, WHO HE SAYS ARE DIVIDING THE COUNTRY. MAKING EVERYONE IDENTIFY EACH OTHER'S DIFFERENCES AND NOT THEIR SIMILARITIES. (CROWD CHEERS) MANY AGREE WITH HIM. THESE POLITICIANS, THEY DO NOT CARE. ALL THEY WANNA DO IS CONTROL, CONTROL, CONTROL. A FEW WEEKS AGO ANOTHER RIGHT-WING COUNTRY SONG, 'TRY THAT IN A SMALL TOWN', ALSO HIT NUMBER ONE. CONSERVATIVE COMMENTATORS HAVE SEIZED ON THE TREND. WE DON'T TRUST THE PEOPLE IN POWER TO CARE ABOUT US. # ...MILKING WELFARE... # SOME LYRICS CRITICISE THOSE ON SOCIAL WELFARE, WHICH THIS COMMENTATOR SAYS TAPS INTO DEEP DIVISIONS. THERE ARE PEOPLE THAT SOMEHOW FEEL THAT MORE WELFARE, FREE HEALTHCARE IN AMERICA, IS SOMEHOW DANGEROUS OR COMMUNIST. BUT THE FACT THAT THE SONG WENT TO NUMBER ONE SO QUICKLY SHOWS THERE'S A LOT OF PEOPLE THAT FEEL THAT WAY. IT'S PROMPTED BRITISH SINGER BILLY BRAGG TO RELEASE AN ALTERNATE VERSION. # YOU BETTER JOIN A UNION, BROTHER. # MUSICIANS SQUARING OFF ISN'T NEW. 50 YEARS AGO NEIL YOUNG ATTACKED THE RACISM OF THE SOUTH IN A SONG CALLED 'SOUTHERN MAN'. # SOUTHERN MAN... # THAT PROMPTED A FAMOUS REPLY. (LYNYRD SKYNYRD'S 'SWEET HOME ALABAMA') IN 'SWEET HOME ALABAMA', THE SOUTHERN BAND LYNYRD SKYNYRD HIT BACK. # A SOUTHERN MAN DON'T NEED HIM AROUND ANYHOW. # THE DIFFERENCE TODAY IS THAT OLIVER ANTHONY DIDN'T NEED RADIO OR RECORD COMPANIES ` HE USED SOCIAL MEDIA TO CAUSE A SENSATION ALL ON HIS OWN. SIMON MERCEP, 1 NEWS. NOW TO TOMORROW'S WEATHER, WITH TROYE SIVAN AND 'ANGEL BABY'. # I NEED A LOVER TO KEEP ME SANE, # PULL ME FROM HELL, BRING ME BACK AGAIN. # PLAY ME THE CLASSICS, # SOMETHING ROMANTIC. # GIVE HIM MY ALL WHEN I DON'T EVEN HAVE IT. # I ALWAYS DREAMED OF A SOLEMN FACE, # SOMEONE WHO FEELS LIKE A HOLIDAY. # BUT NOW I'M IN PIECES, # BARELY BELIEVING, # STARTING TO THINK THAT I'VE LOST ALL FEELING. # YOU CAME OUT OF THE BLUE ON A RAINY NIGHT. # NO LIE. # I'LL TELL YOU HOW I ALMOST DIED # WHILE YOU'RE BRINGING ME BACK TO LIFE. # I JUST WANNA LIVE IN THIS MOMENT FOREVER, # COS I'M AFRAID THAT LIVING COULDN'T GET ANY BETTER. # STARTED GIVING UP ON THE WORD 'FOREVER' # UNTIL YOU GAVE UP HEAVEN SO WE COULD BE TOGETHER. THAT'S IT FROM US HERE ON TONIGHT. THANKS FOR WATCHING. PO MANAHAU. GOODNIGHT. CAPTIONS BY FAITH HAMBLYN AND JAMES BROWN. CAPTIONS WERE MADE WITH THE SUPPORT OF NZ ON AIR. WWW.ABLE.CO.NZ COPYRIGHT ABLE 2023.