150th extravaganza

What a night.

So take a big, big bow organisers and helpers of Kyabram’s 150th birthday bash on Friday night, October 23.

Every second you put into making the Kyabram 150th anniversary milestone proved worthy of the effort.

When an occasion like this is being put together there are so many scenarios.

But on this occasion, there were no negatives.

The weather gods played a significant role by dishing up an almost cloudless, warm evening.

The venue – the Kyabram Recreation Reserve – was a big winner, with its carpet of green providing the space for the hundreds who attended to watch the entertainment in comfort.

The variety of food on offer was another huge plus.

It was an occasion that focused on family, and it delivered in every way.

And the huge crowd respected the occasion without incident, which was hoped for but in these times not always guaranteed.

Even the security team praised the behaviour of the throngs who attended.

And the entertainment matched, and even exceeded, everyone’s highest expectations.

Most of the entertainers were people with Kyabram connections and would not be out of place on any stage at any venue in the world. They were all class acts.

MC Andrew Moore was a last-minute recruit but with his musical background slotted into the role like a true professional.

Not many occasions like this, or similar to it, could boast the success this milestone enjoyed.

Organisers worked so hard for so long to bring it all together and it was an evening Kyabram can boast about long into the future.

Bring on the 200th anniversary!

Pulling back the chain

One of the most significant revelations at the 150th Birthday Bash was the announcement Kyabram is to get its mayoral chain back.

The campaign reached a crescendo at the recent 150th dinner celebrations when five living former Kyabram mayors advocated for giving a local home to something that is very much Kyabram’s.

Just where the chain will now be displayed, or housed for eternity, is still being debated but it is coming home, news the reunion crowd reacted to with loud applause on a night to remember for a proud town.

Expensive breakfast

A good lesson to be learnt here.

Cooking breakfast outdoors on a total fire ban day has proved costly for two men.

They recently fronted Seymour Magistrates’ Court and were ordered to pay a combined $1500 to the CFA.

The Melbourne men lit a campfire that was found burning near Seymour.

Under total fire ban conditions, lighting fires in the open air is illegal, which should be noted with the weather now conducive to camping.

Big bridge boost

A win for the locals — Kirwans Bridge near Nagambie is to get a $4 million makeover.

The bridge has been out of action to all traffic since the October 2022 floods, turning the 5km trip to Nagambie into a 15km cross-country jaunt through back roads.

The Federal Government has confirmed it will commit $4 million to design and deliver the renewal of Kirwans Bridge under the Safer Local Roads Infrastucture Program.

The project will cater for passenger vehicles but further funding will be needed to achieve a higher load limit.

Camels claim crown

There is just about a competition for everything these days, and this is one of them.

Recently at Barellan in NSW a new record was set by camels pulling a wool wagon at the Good Old Days festival.

Cosgrove’s Peter Hodge formed part of the team of cameleers that harnessed 32 camels to break the previous record set at the same festival two years ago.

Deni’s turn to turn 150

There seems to be a lot of 150-year milestones being celebrated this year, with Kyabram being one of them.

The latest to celebrate the anniversary will be the Deniliquin Town Hall, built in 1876.

A week of activities from November 23 to 27 culminates in a commemorative civic reception and community celebration.

Set for scorchers

Summer is sneaking up on us, as you have probably realised.

Temperatures have been on the rise recently, with the mercury recently peaking at 33.3°C — our hottest day since March.

Last Friday, October 30 was also warm, reaching a peak of 29.4°C.

A total of 3mm of rain was recorded overnight Friday into Saturday, which took the October total to 50mm, 8.3mm than the average for this month.

Tower toppled

There is now a gaping hole where one of Echuca’s former landmarks once stood.

The Echuca Water Tower on the corner of High and Pakenham Sts has been slowly dismantled.

It was built from an estimated 646 tonnes of reinforced concrete in 1915-16 and a significant volume of that is expected to be recycled and repurposed.

Kotta on track

The Kotta railway trail recently had a memorable christening, with nearly 100 runners hitting the track for the 8km route from Lockington to Kotta.

The trail has been a victory for community spirit and dedication during the past decade, with Kotta resident Neil Haines sharing the rich history of the railway line and the hard work behind the trail’s creation at the celebrations.

Firey funding

Echuca Fire Brigade’s firefighting armoury has been boosted with a $543,000 funding windfall.

The grant will allow the CFA to replace its current ultra-light tanker with a new medium tanker.

The new vehicle will increase the brigade’s capacity to respond to emergencies and ground support crews.

Aisle be confused

Free Press reader has contacted Traps to remind shoppers it may be worth pointing out Kyabram’s Woolworths Supermarket has changed all its aisles around and doing shopping now takes a considerably longer time, as nothing is where it used to be!

Lucky escape

A female driver had a frightening incident driving along the GV Hwy near Moorilim recently.

The driver pulled over when she detected smoke in the vehicle and no sooner was she out of it than it burst into flames and was destroyed.

A very lucky escape.

Burner phones

Some 50 mobile phones were involved in a lithium battery fire in Shepparton on October 23.

The fire in a courtyard in Maude St was attended by first responders Fire Rescue Victoria officers, who found 50 mobile phone batteries had burnt.

Square dinkum

G’day.

Yesterday I tested myself to see if I had any psychic abilities. I started with a simple project, to see if I could melt an ice-cube with my mind.

It worked, but took a really long time.

Hooroo!

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