Friday, 11 October - 'Cause I'm under the weather

October 11, 2024

Good morning, it’s Friday, 11 October. In your Squiz Today…

  • Hurricane Milton crashes into Florida

  • Israel plans its next move

  • And adiós to a tennis legend…

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Squiz the Weather

Squiz Sayings

“We will fight hard. And we will ask them to remain in Paris!”

Said French President Emmanual Macron, who is very invested in keeping Netflix series Emily in Paris in France, even though the show isn’t popular there... It wouldn’t have anything to do with his wife Brigitte’s cameo in the latest season…

Hurricane Milton hits Florida

The Squiz

After days of serious warnings, Hurricane Milton made landfall in Siesta Key, south of Tampa, Florida’s third most populous city, at about 11.30am AEST yesterday. Despite being downgraded to a Category 3 storm and then weakening further, it’s killed at least 10 people and caused havoc for millions more. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said while the storm was “significant”, it didn’t bring the surge of seawater that was expected - and the mass evacuations and preparations saved lives. “Thankfully this was not the worst-case scenario,” he said.

What about the damage?

Winds of up to 205km/h and dozens of tornadoes flattened scores of buildings and knocked out power for over 3 million homes and businesses. Tropicana Field, home of the Tampa Bay Rays baseball team, had its roof torn off, ending plans to use it as a staging area for first responders. In the coastal city of St Petersburg, nearly 41cm of rain caused flash flooding in what reports say is a one-in-1,000-year event, with many other parts of the state also being inundated. Waves of up to 8.5m were measured near the eye of the storm - about half the size of the walls of water brewed up by Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Thousands of people have been posting eyewitness accounts on social media, including many who went out of their way to rescue abandoned animals. It’s the fifth hurricane to hit the US mainland this year, which is an unusually high number… 

How long will the storm last?

Milton is making its way out to sea this morning, but it could be days - maybe weeks - before the full extent of the damage is known. Around 9,000 National Guard members and 50,000 utility workers have been deployed to help with the response, which included rescuing at least 135 people. Emergency workers began clearing debris overnight in many areas that had already taken a battering from Hurricane Helene 2 weeks ago. Millions of people who were ordered to evacuate are looking to return home but reports say many roads and airports in the state remain closed except for emergencies. Those who didn’t evacuate before the storm had no choice but to hunker down and hope for the best. Speaking about the hurricane’s impact, US President Joe Biden said “life saving measures did make a difference.” 

Your fresh market update…

At the Squiz, we’re all about giving you the useful stuff. So, we’ve teamed up with Woolies to share their top weekly fruit and veg picks. Here’s what to grab this week:

🥭 Kensington Pride mangoes - Iconic mango with a sweet and tangy flavour. They’re ripe and ready to eat when you can sniff a sweet mango aroma.

❤️ Raspberries - Another spring fruit staple. We feel a fruit platter coming on…

🥒 Continental cucumbers - If you’re more into salads, Continental cucumbers are the old favourites: crunchy and refreshing

🍄 Mushrooms - If you’re a fungi fan, it’s time to get cooking - they’re good value at the moment.

Squiz the Rest

Waiting on the next move

Details have been released about US President Joe Biden’s call with Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu, with the pair agreeing to “remain in close contact over the coming days”. Some analysts reckon that’s code for Israel’s retaliation against Iran is coming soon... In the meantime, Israel is continuing its bombardment of Beirut, with reports this morning 11 people have been killed and 48 injured in a strike on a building in the city’s centre. There are also reports of Israeli soldiers firing on UN sites in Lebanon, injuring 2 peacekeepers. Treasurer Jim Chalmers yesterday said rising tensions in the Middle East could have significant “economic consequences” here following a spike in global oil prices - but he says the government’s focus is “on getting Australians out”. More repatriation flights have arrived, with one woman who escaped saying "I feel relief, but to be honest, it's so hard leaving beloved ones behind."  

Another parliamentary culture conundrum

With PM Anthony Albanese busy negotiating crustacean trade at the ASEAN Summit in Laos, Deputy PM Richard Marles is in charge here at home - and it’s not going smoothly… His chief of staff Jo Tarnawsky has gone public with bullying claims against her colleagues, saying when she raised concerns with Marles in April, he suggested she look for another job. She’s still on the payroll but is working remotely while she takes legal action. A spokesperson for Marles says several of Tarnawsky’s “recollections are contested”, while Marles says he’s followed the ministerial code of conduct in handling the situation. Coalition leader Peter Dutton has called on Albanese to get involved - particularly given his stance on improving Parliament House’s workplace culture. 

A short-lived dash of hope

Police in New Zealand have a new lead on a fugitive who’s been on the run with his children for nearly 3 years after they were filmed during a chance encounter with teenage pig hunters. Tom Phillips fled into the remote North Island wilderness just before Christmas 2021 after a fight with his wife - taking their children Ember (8), Maverick (9) and Jayda (11) with him. Since then, they’ve kept a low profile and were last seen on grainy CCTV footage in disguise last November. Police say the latest glimpse of them in the Waikato region is “credible” but they have not been located during a new search. Regardless, Detective Inspector Andrew Saunders says the vision was “reassuring for the children’s wider family”. Their mother Cat says she’s “so happy that they’re all there. They’re all alive.”

Some mex-cellent results

Holy guacamole… Aussie Mexican-themed fast food chain Guzman y Gomez is on a high after reporting sales above expectations for the July-September quarter, raking in $278.8 million. The restaurant, which pitches its burritos/nachos/tacos as healthier takeaway, has had a big year… In June, its listing was the biggest debut on the Australian Stock Exchange in 3 years, and since then, its share price has increased by almost 30% - so yesterday’s update is grated cheese on the nachos of executives/investors… With nearly 200 stores in Australia so far (plus a few overseas…), the plan is for Guzman to open another 31 by the end of the financial year. Its ultimate goal is opening 1,000 stores Australia-wide in the next 20 years - rivalling McDonald’s. RBC Capital Markets analyst Michael Toner reckons that pace of growth would be “unprecedented in Australia”.

Adiós Rafa…

Spanish tennis champion Rafael Nadal has announced he’ll hang up his racquet after the Davis Cup finals next month. Known as the ‘King of Clay’ and one of the greatest players in the sport’s history, the 38yo is calling time on his career with 22 grand slam titles under his belt. He announced the news on social media, where he said the last two years of battling injuries had been “difficult” and that he’d had “a career that has been long and much more successful than I could have ever imagined." His titles include 2 Australian Open victories and a record 14 French Open championships at Roland Garros, where he chalked up 112 wins from 116 matches. He’ll play his last professional matches representing Spain in the Davis Cup knockout phase from 19-24 November. 

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Friday Lites - 3 things we liked this week

We’ve recommended the foodie travel show Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy before, but we learnt a lot about the Hollywood star and his life in this interview about his family, getting through illness, and passion for cocktail-making… He’s on our dream dinner party list for sure… 

It dropped in cinemas last year, but The Iron Claw recently came out on Amazon Prime, giving us the perfect opportunity to catch up on this highly regarded true story about a family of wrestlers. It might not usually be our bag, but it’s good to get out of your comfort zone…

We’re whipping up these salmon and salad rice bowls this weekend. They're like a poke bowl in that you can riff on the basics and add any crunchy fresh veg you like to pad it out. Plus more fish/veg justifies us having a square or 2 of chocolate for dessert.

Squiz the Day

Friday
10.00am (AEDT) - Women’s Cricket: T20 Spring Challenge begins with Sydney Thunder v Brisbane Heat - Sydney, and watch on Kayo

8.00pm (AEDT) - The 2024 Peace Nobel Prize will be announced - Oslo, Sweden

Birthdays for Dawn French (1957), Joan Cusack (1962) and Cardi B (1992)

Anniversary of:

  • the inauguration of the University of Sydney, Australia's oldest university (1852)

  • the premiere of Saturday Night Live, with George Carlin as host (1975)

  • a wedding anniversary for Bill and Hillary Clinton (1975)

  • the death of singer Édith Piaf (1963)

Saturday
1.00am (AEDT) - ICC Women’s T20 World Cup: Australia v Pakistan - UAE, and watch on Prime 

Spain’s National Day

Independence Day in Equatorial Guinea

World Sight Day

Birthdays for Hugh Jackman (1968) and Josh Hutcherson (1992)

Anniversary of:

  • the first Oktoberfest, when the Bavarian royalty invited the citizens of Munich to join the celebration of the marriage of Crown Prince Ludwig of Bavaria to Princess Therese von Sachsen-Hildburghausen (1810)

  • Scottish chemist Charles Macintosh begins selling raincoats (macs) after patenting them (1823)

  • The Day of Six Billion: when the 6 billionth human in the world was born (1999)

  • the Bali terrorist attacks that killed 202 people – including 88 Australians (2002)

Sunday
7.00am (AEDT) - Get your huffy puffy on for the Melbourne Marathon - Melbourne

7.00am (AEST) - More opportunities to sweat - it’s the Coolangatta Gold’s 40th anniversary - Gold Coast

10.00am (AEST) - Queensland Labor’s election campaign launch 

2.00pm (AEDT) - Women’s Rugby League: PM's XIII v Papua New Guinea women's international, and watch on Kayo

4.00pm (AEDT) - Rugby League: PM's XIII v Papua New Guinea men's international, and watch on Kayo

7.00pm (AEDT) - Australian Poetry Slam National Final - Sydney

Start of Veterans Health Week (until 20 October)

Start of National Carers Week (until 19 October) 

Birthdays for Sacha Baron Cohen (1971), Ian Thorpe (1982), and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (1989)

Anniversary of:

  • Greenwich in London established as the universal time meridian of longitude (1884)

  • the 'miracle in the Andes' plane crash that inspired the film Alive (1972)

  • US champ Simone Biles becoming the most decorated gymnast in history when she won her record 25th medal at the World Championships (2019)

Monday
1.00am (AEDT) - Women’s Cricket: ICC Women’s T20 World Cup: Australia v India - UAE, and watch on Prime