The imminent loss of ABC Morwell has drawn criticism from fire-affected regional Victorians, as senior journalists for the national broadcaster slam the cuts for missing “the elephant in the room” – the ABC’s 24-hour news channel.

ABC managing director Mark Scott announced on Monday he would cut $254 million from the budget over five years. Cuts include replacing weekly state-based 7.30 programs with a national program and closing the Morwell ABC office. Television sports coverage will be overhauled and sports broadcasts scaled back, Mr Scott said.

But former foreign correspondent Karen Percy described the 400 jobs cut from the national broadcaster as “blood boiling”.

“We are talking about staffing and inefficiency but the elephant in the room is News 24,” Ms Percy said.

“I am not saying they should be cut but we have not even had  a conversation about it,” she said.

She said she had raised the issue of the budget cuts on four separate occasions including with Mr Scott, with editorial management, with a board member and at a staff meeting, but these had come to nothing.

Ms Percy said most staff would be able to suggest ways to cut the budget by 10 per cent. She cited inefficiencies like the heavy cost of running ABC News 24 and in-house magazines as a starting point for looking at efficiencies.

She said journalists at the coalface  of reporting were well-placed to discuss ways to cut costs.

Many of those journalists were tight-lipped about the cuts, saying they feared management retribution if they spoke about the cuts.

It is understood there is one journalist at the Morwell office and news for the town would now need to be covered by the Sale ABC headquarters, about an hour’s drive from Morwell and up to three hours from areas that would be covered from Sale when Morwell closes.

The town is a power station hub and was the scene of the Hazelwood mine fire last summer.

A regional ABC source said management’s decision to shut down the Morwell studio was a “big mistake” that showed little understanding of how many major news stories were generated in the Latrobe Valley during the past year alone.

“Clearly this decision was made in Sydney,” the source told Fairfax Media.

“It doesn’t make any sense. For Gippsland, It’s where most of the news comes from, like the courts. The power stations are there, and what happens if there is another Hazelwood mine fire?”

Premier Denis Napthine weighed in to the debate about the cuts, saying the broadcaster was “too Sydney-centric”.

But Dr Napthine would not be drawn on the fate of the Morwell bureau as he was not aware of the details.

“Clearly 730 Victoria is an important medium for Melbourne and Victoria and again I think it shows that when the crunch comes to the ABC, and even in the good times at the ABC, the ABC is very Sydney-centric,” he said.

“They don’t understand the audience in Victoria, and they don’t understand the needs of Victoria,” he said.

Wendy Farmer, president of Voices of the Valley, a community group which sprung up in the wake of the mine fire, fears Morwell residents won’t have access to vital local news reporting as they approach the fire season. Fairfax Media understands there is a possibility the Morwell office could be shut down as early as next month.

“[The ABC] were vital in putting out detailed information across the Latrobe Valley throughout the fires … without these services we don’t know where we’ll get this information from,” Ms Farmer said.

Morwell CFA first lieutenant Pat Quinn said locals, including the firefighters themselves, relied on their local ABC for accuracy and up-to-date information during fire events and the cuts were a “kick in the guts”.

“It’s extremely important. It’s getting that local knowledge straight out there,” Mr Quinn said.

Media Entertainment and Arts Alliance secretary Chris Warren said the cuts would be “evident” to audiences. He said the last time the ABC offered widespread redundancies, 15 years ago, audiences mourned the loss of Australian-made shows: this time they would also mourn local stories and content.

He said cuts would be felt in country radio and television and in specialist areas like Classic FM and Radio National.

“People have a great sense that they own the ABC – in a way that governments don’t really understand,” Mr Warren said.

“When you feel that ownership – and somebody tries to diminish something that you feel you own – then people get angry about that,” he said.

with Rania Spooner, Tammy Mills, Richard Willingham

BETTER: HNC’s new recycled water plant makes a cleaner product than rain. Picture: Peter StoopHUNTER Water will open a $73 million recycled water plant at Mayfield on Monday capable of producing 3.3 billion litres of water that is cleaner than rainwater.

The plant will supply Orica’s Kooragang Island plant, reducing its use of drinking water by the equivalent of more than 12,000 homes annually. Built over four years, the Kooragang Recycled Water Scheme is the largest recycled water project undertaken in the region.

Water will be delivered from the Steel River industrial estate to Orica’s Kooragang site via an 8-kilometre pipeline that runs under the Hunter River.

“Water Wise Rules save the Hunter about 1 billion litres of drinking water a year. The Kooragang Recycled Water Scheme can triple those savings,” Water minister Kevin Humphries said. “Until now, Orica has been the Hunter’s largest water customer, using 5 per cent of all water consumed in the Hunter at its Kooragang site, enough to fill about 1300 Olympic swimming pools. “

Orica’s use of recycled water from the plant will result in it losing its position as Hunter’s top customer to the 19th largest customer.

“Orica believes that responsible corporate practices such as this will not only enhance the company’s performance but also benefit our customers and our community,” Orica Kooragang Island general manager Greg Holmes said.

“Using recycled water will significantly reduce the site’s environmental footprint and contribute to its sustainability.”

Hunter Water chief operating officer Darren Cleary said water produced at the plant was cleaner than rainwater because it lacks dissolved minerals.

“The process of supplying water to Orica commences when raw sewage is treated at the Shortland Wastewater Treatment Plant. It’s then piped to the Steel River site where it is passed through microfiltration and reverse osmosis to ensure suspended solids, bacteria, viruses and dissolved salts are removed,” he said.

The Australian government supported the project with a $4.2 million grant from the Water for the Future Initiative.

Merewether v Wests at No.1 sports ground -Pat Darwen. picture by Ryan Osland.THREE wickets in five balls from medium-pacer Ben Neaves gave Wallsend a thrilling one-run win over Newcastle City and kept them within reach of the top four in Newcastle district cricket.

Chasing just 110 for victory, City recovered from 5-44 to be 7-108 with 17 overs remaining at Wallsend Oval on Saturday in round six.

Enter right-arm seamer Neaves, who bowled Frankie Walsh first ball then repeated the dose against Quinn Fowler two balls later before trapping Tom Anderson in front with the fifth ball of the over.

The triple wicket maiden gave Wallsend an unlikely win and Neaves figures of 3-7, his best with the club since joining last season.

Wallsend skipper Dan McGovern said the win was a pleasant surprise for his players, who thought they had tied the game. The six points kept them in fifth place, one point outside the top four.

“The over before went for 10 or 12 and there was a bit of confusion as well about the score,” McGovern said.

“We weren’t sure how many we had made and if we had tied or won by a run. But we were certainly very excited when we found out we’d won.

“It keeps us with a sniff of a top-four spot, especially with the top teams breaking away for some big wins the last couple of weeks. It was important for us just to keep us in touch.”

McGovern said quicks Cameron Roxby (3-14 off 10 overs) and Chris Raisbeck (2-25 off seven) had kept Wallsend in the game and Neaves’ heroics were just reward for the reliable performer.

“He’s that partnership breaker for us,” he said.

“He doesn’t swing it a lot so that’s why he bowls down the list a bit, but he’s very reliable at being able to bowl full and straight at the stumps.

“He doesn’t stray either side very often. This is his second year for us, and he’s settled in nicely, and that effort yesterday would have given him a lot of confidence.”

Ryan Van Kemenade was the destroyer for City with 5-21 as they rolled Wallsend in 35.5 overs.

Nick Tantos was their best in the chase with 41 not out.

Elsewhere, second-placed Merewether routed Wests for 69 and reached 3-71 in 11.3 overs to gain maximum points at No.1 Sportsground.

Roscoe Thattil made 55 and Chris Rendina 42 as Charlestown (7-221) defeated Belmont 8-205 at Cahill Oval.

Aaron Mahony scored 56 and Grant Stewart made 47 and took 2-38 as leaders University (9-241) beat Cardiff-Boolaroo (9-185) at Cardiff Oval.

Mark Dries was Hamilton-Wickham’s best with bat and ball, making 65 and taking 3-39, in a 225 to 139 win over Toronto at Passmore Oval.

At Lynn Oval, Sam Jenkinson made 78 as Stockton-Raymond Terrace (284) beat Waratah Mayfield (181).

● A century from Jeff Goninan helped Newcastle to a seven-wicket win over North Coast on Sunday, which capped an undefeated run for the defending champions at the NSW Country Championships in Ballina.

Goninan made 105 not out as Newcastle reached 3-195 chasing 191. Ray Cooper (4-31), Joe Price (3-47) and Josh Geary (3-28) were the wicket-takers for Newcastle.

Newcastle, who play next week’s southern pool winners in the NSW Country decider on December 7, clinched the northern division on Saturday with a double bonus-point win over Central Northern in which Goninan top-scored with 70 not out off 61 balls.

Chasing 126, Newcastle passed their target two wickets down in 19.3 overs.

Newcastle beat Central Coast by six wickets in their opening game on Friday.

Best foot forward: Ireland’s kicking game was superior to the Wallabies’ Photo: Ian Walton Best foot forward: Ireland’s kicking game was superior to the Wallabies’ Photo: Ian Walton

Best foot forward: Ireland’s kicking game was superior to the Wallabies’ Photo: Ian Walton

Best foot forward: Ireland’s kicking game was superior to the Wallabies’ Photo: Ian Walton

The last time the Wallabies lost three matches on the spring tour it cost coach Eddie Jones his job. No matter the result against England next week, Michael Cheika is under no such danger. But patience is not a virtue for modern Wallaby fans and successive three-point losses to France and Ireland will do little to becalm those with a sense of entitlement.

When ARU boss Bill Pulver addressed the media after Ewen McKenzie’s resignation, and again when Cheika was announced as his replacement, it was telling that on both occasions he said he believed the Wallabies were a team capable of winning the World Cup.

It’s at the forefront of many people’s thinking, but it should be abandoned. World Cup glitter is fool’s gold. Winning the Webb Ellis Trophy is the culmination of a good structure, not the answer to a bad one. Continual improvement should be the focus for the Wallabies; a higher winning percentage would be an excellent start. Besides, there is more than a lingering suspicion that Australia do not have the requisite cattle for World Cup success – plenty of show ponies, too few prize-winning heifers. While the potential in the Wallabies is evident – the performance against Ireland was their best this November – it should be developed without the weight of World Cup expectations.

The defence has been shored up. Neither of Ireland’s two tries came from defensive lapses and Matt Toomua’s line speed was both accurate and telling. The Wallabies were competitive against the Six Nations champions in every facet, except general play kicking. The relief Ireland showed at fulltime showed the level of physical commitment required to hold out the tourists. Increased physicality is the granite of Cheika’s game plan. Nick Phipps’ second try was a wonderful embodiment of how difficult teams are to contain when purposeful running and support play is perfected. The razzle dazzle was founded on a solid work ethic.

However, Jonathan Sexton schooled Bernard Foley and Toomua in the kicking department and proved the difference between the two teams. The Wallaby playmakers rarely, if ever, create pressure with their kicks. It’s a flaw in their games.

It all comes down to experience. Only three players in the starting side on Saturday had played more than 50 Tests and basic errors are mixed with sublime play. The dilemma for Cheika is this: do you continue to give players such as Foley, Phipps and Toomua time to develop or opt for the experienced players on the bench?

It must be tempting to pick Quade Cooper and Will Genia alongside Toomua and interchange Kurtley Beale and Israel Folau between wing and fullback.  Those players can use front-foot ball like no other and their experience could prove telling. Cooper’s performances on last year’s spring tour should not be so easily forgotten. The options for the second-row and backrow are more limited. There is simply a lack of depth, and impact, in those positions.

But Cheika has only one more game with the Wallabies until July. To remove some of the guesswork for next year he is reliant on his fellow Super Rugby coaches to buy in to his vision. Playing an up-tempo game is risky and requires souped-up fitness and commitment to keep the ball in hand. Some, such as Richard Graham at the Reds, may not have the luxury of thinking beyond the short term. It was no coincidence the Waratahs were the highest scoring team in the final 20 minutes of matches this year.

Unlike club coaching, Cheika cannot recruit to solve problems. He must make do with what he has got.

Lisa Messenger, The Messenger Group founder and editor-in-chief, The Collective.

FRESH off the plane from Necker Island where she holidayed at the invitation of island owner Richard Branson, Renegade Collective magazine editor Lisa Messenger was back in Newcastle to inspire its entrepreneurs.

Ms Messenger was one of four “entrepreneurial disrupters” to speak at the inaugural Hunter Collective event.

Newcastle business collaborators Heidi Alexandra Pollard from UQ Power and Christina Gerakiteys from Ideation at Work selected speakers who had all successfully disrupted their respective industries by thinking outside the square.

For example, launching a magazine into a collapsing print-media market – which Ms Messenger did last year.

Listen to what the speakers, including Pandora Internet Radio managing director Jane Huxley, author and lactation consultant Pinky McKay and founder of BrandHook Pip Stocks, had to say when the talks are aired at huntercollective上海龙凤论坛m.au from Tuesday.

Auctioneer Sam Dawe at a car auction. Photo by Marina Neil

LEGENDARY auctioneer Sam Dawe is retiring.

Mr Dawe steps down from his role as manager and senior auctioneer at the Valley Auction Group next week.

In a career that spans 49 years, he’s sold everything from goats to million-dollar houses to machinery, paintings and vehicles.

“I was once told you have to pick their pocket with your tongue – that’s virtually what it is all about,” Mr Dawes says.

It was a yearning to go bush that set Mr Dawes on the auctioneer career path. A job selling sheep and cattle for Elders took him to Narrabri where he still remembers his first nerve-racking auction in 1966. There were no microphones or PA systems back then, he says.

“They taught us to project our voices right from the bootlaces and throw it right out,” he says. “I’ve been blessed with a strong powerful voice . . . I developed a passion for what I did.”

After 15 years in the livestock trade he returned to Newcastle where he has built up a name as a motor and property auctioneer.

He says it’s always a thrill, but his most memorable auctions have raised money for charities.

“I know that I’m raising money for people that I’ll probably never meet or never see, but I’ll put a lot of smiles on a lot of faces,” he says.

THE number of Hunter companies employing more than 90 people has fallen to 107, according to Map Marketing’s 2014 Top Hunter Employers List.

In 2012, 128 enterprises with more than 90 staff employed about 82,692 people, while in 2014 companies with more than 90 staff employed 70,772 people.

Map Marketing managing director Maria Charlton, who has done the survey for four years, said the greatest change had been the globalisation of enterprises.

Hunter New England Health outranked all contenders by more than 10,000 people with a staff of 15,500, according to the survey.

The health giant is followed by Glencore Coal, RAAF, University of Newcastle, the Catholic Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle, Coal and Allied Operations, Mt Arthur Coal, Arrium Ltd, Ausgrid and Downer Group.

The report is available for purchase at newcastlebusiness上海龙凤论坛m.au.

A BERESFIELD company has been named outstanding supplier of the year at the NSW 2014 Industry and Supplier Awards.

Quarry Mining managing director Kari Armitage said she felt like she was still dreaming the day after receiving the gong.

“It’s the most prestigious award you could win in NSW mining,” she said.

Ms Armitage said the award recognised the work her team had put in to help the company’s mining clients save money during the downturn.

Glencore Australian coal operations chief operating officer Ian Cribb won the outstanding contribution to mining award. Mr Cribb has almost 40 years’ experience in the coalmining industry and joined Glencore in 1999. Glencore’s Bulga underground mine was named mining operation of the year.

THE mediation services of former federal attorney-general Robert McClelland are now available in Newcastle.

Carroll & O’Dea Lawyers have launched an alternative dispute resolution service and secured the services of the former Labor politician and mediation expert.

McClelland joined Carroll & O’Dea Lawyers this year as a partner in the firm.

Mark Twain is just one of many famous visitors to the Hunter.NOT as a matter of importance, but just to while away the finite hours till we die, who do you reckon is the most famous person ever to set foot in the Hunter?

Topics doesn’t mean Mike Rabbitt famous here (though we’d take that in a heartbeat). We’re talking Mick Jagger, Keith Richards famous. Someone who’d be hassled for a selfie from Hope Estate to Hanoi.

So, Stones aside, who makes the list?

Mark Twain does, surely. On a stopover in 1895, the father of American literature famously quipped: ‘‘Newcastle consists of a long street with a graveyard at one end with no bodies in it, and a gentlemen’s club at the other with no gentlemen in it’’.

Lady Gaga.

He had our number, sure. But say we define ‘‘fame’’ by the sheer number of ears that, when a name is dropped, prick up with recognition? What then?

Is this where David Beckham enters the discussion? Or even – and this will cause beverages to be spat out with incredulity – Lady Gaga?

Who’s your tip, dear reader? Answers to [email protected] herald上海龙凤论坛m .au, or Tweet @TimConnell.

AT the drive-in: part three.

When John Duggan of Gateshead was a teenager (he’s 74 now), he and his mate Ronny Cameron asked two girls out to the Metro Drive-In. The girls said yes.

So, armed with stern parental instructions about when to be home, the four set out. As they joined a queue of cars idling at the entrance, John had a thought.

‘‘I asked Ron ‘how much money you got?’’’ he recalls. ‘‘Because we might be a bit light on here.’’

He was right; a quick count confirmed they only had enough for two tickets. Ron, ever resourceful, suggested the girls hide in the boot. The rationale was that they could fit.

‘‘They weren’t thrilled, but they were good sports,’’ says John.

‘‘Then when we got in, the people behind us realised what was going on and flashed their lights and blew their horns.’’

The double date earned John and Ron the collective nickname ‘‘the big spenders’’. John says that the Metro, before it was a drive-in, was a racetrack called Nickel Park.

EVERY time we think it can’t be long before all correspondence is delivered electronically, someone shows us a scam like the following. It’s pretty convincing.

‘‘Details of infringement notice,’’ reads the official-sounding email.

‘‘The goal of this letter of advice is to apprise you that you have exceeded the speed limit … The offence was detected by an approved speed measuring device and recorded by an approved camera recording device (within the meaning of the Road Transport Act 2014).’’

Sounds legit, huh? There’s also a link labelled ‘‘View camera images’’, which you’d be forgiven for clicking on. Alas, instead of being directed to evidence of you doing the wrong thing, you’re gleefully told you’ve got a computer virus and that your files are now ‘‘locked’’.

It can become an expensive, time-consuming exercise. Give us a good old-fashioned letter of infringement any day.

Western Sydney are winless after their first six matches, but coach Tony Popovic believes his Wanderers are placed “very well” heading into this Saturday’s Sydney derby at Pirtek Stadium.

Popovic’s side could easily have accumulated more points during the past week had it put away a litany of chances against Central Coast on Wednesday and then against Newcastle three days later.  Instead the Wanderers had to settle for a point from each occasion. However, the coach is adamant they can convert their domination over the opposition into something tangible in the season’s second derby – especially after losing the first  3-2 at Allianz Stadium.

“If we’re going to talk about performances – which we always do talk about – you can see an improvement. From Wellington to Perth, there’s just little moments, and the moments got bigger against Central Coast, they got bigger against Newcastle, and we want that now for the derby,” Popovic said. “Derbies, from my experience here, are unique, they’re unpredictable. Form doesn’t really matter in these games too much. There are always incidents and flashpoints, but we want the flashpoint to be a Western Sydney top performance. I believe, with that, that the three points will be matched.”

Squad selection will again be a hot topic this week as the Wanderers will likely have a fully fit and fresh squad to choose from, minus Brendon Santalab whose shoulder injury will keep him sidelined until the new year. Big-game specialist Mark Bridge looms to be one of the major talking points after being benched for the past two matches and there is no guarantee he’ll start against his old side.

Bridge has been sidelined recently as Popovic looks to get game time into new trio Nikita Rukavytsya, Vitor Saba and Romeo Castelen, all of whom showed glimpses in the past two matches. “We want our squad to get better and we want to keep evolving. We’ve had a lot of success in a short period. But the reason these players have come in is: can we get better? That’s why they’re here and that creates competition for places. I want everyone looking over their shoulder, including the new players,” he said. “They’re not guaranteed a start just because they’re new players. They have to earn that right. Every week the players train extremely hard to try and get in that first eleven. That’s the environment we want to create because all successful teams have it and if we want to keep challenging for honours, we’ve got to have that. We can’t get complacent.”

Castelen was blistering against the Jets early, but was brought off less than an hour into the contest with Popovic blaming fatigue for the Dutchman’s early exit. “If you watched the game, you would have seen he was probably tired after 35 minutes. He was dead, in terms of his physical [output],” Popovic said. “He’s a player that plays at a high intensity and we’re getting him match fit now, through the season. As I’ve said numerous times, with all the players, he was again better, but he will take time to finish a 90-minute game, to play at the tempo that he plays.”

Daniel Alessi was another pulled prematurely from the contest, with the coach admitting the teenager was overwhelmed at right-back. “He wasn’t injured, but I thought the young boy found it very difficult. He’s 17, he’s a young boy that has promise, but it was just one of those days,” Popovic said. “It’s part of his development. I had it when I was 16-17, and I had Ron Corry [now Wanderers’ goalkeeping coach] coaching me at 16, and he took me off numerous times at half-time. It’s just part of [Alessi’s] development, him evolving, it was a tough game for him.”

A more pleasing sign in the draw against Newcastle was the form of Saba, with the Brazilian previously flattering to deceive as the replacement for Japanese legend Shinji Ono. “It was good to see. We see his talent at training, we see small glimpses, then he gets tired at training. But the glimpses are getting more and more,” Popovic said. “The moments are getting more and more, and longer. This was his best game and I think he walked off feeling like ‘I’m starting to adjust, I’m starting to settle in to a new country and new football’. He’ll only gets better and better.”

More public service news

Senator Eric Abetz’s department is forging ahead in hardline negotiations with public servants by offering staff a slightly higher pay rise at the cost of even more of their mates’ jobs.

The Department of Employment’s best pay offer will be 2.8 per cent over three years – a real pay cut because it is well below inflation.

But it would come with another 46 job cuts through natural attrition, a 30-minute longer working week, scrapping the half-day shutdown before Christmas and health allowance, slowing pay progression and making it harder to receive higher duties pay.

This pay increase would be a third less in percentage terms than the controversial pay deal given to Australian Defence Force members which Prime Minister Tony Abbott suggested would set the ceiling for public service negotiations.

The 2.8 per cent option at the Employment Department – 0.8 per cent to 1 per cent annually – would cost the Abbott government $11.7 million over three years while a second cheaper option being considered would cost $7.4 million.

The alternative of 1.7 per cent over three years – or 0.5 per cent to 0.6 per cent annually – would not include the job cuts or longer working week.

About 1800 Employment Department workers had until Monday to give their feedback to managers about the two options.

The department hoped to put forward a formal offer before Christmas and possibly become the first public service employer to send employees to a ballot on a proposed enterprise agreement in this round of Commonwealth bargaining.

Do you know more? Send confidential tips to [email protected]上海龙凤论坛m.au

Community and Public Sector Union national secretary Nadine Flood said she expected either of the “mean and nasty” offers put forward would receive a “no” vote from staff.

Staff could potentially then look at going to the Fair Work Commission for permission to take industrial action.

“The two options should not be a distraction – this is similar to what has been put forward in other departments,” Ms Flood said.

“Workers at Employment are already indicating the department’s proposals are completely unacceptable.”

She said the note sent to Employment staff outlining the two options revealed savings made in travel, accommodation, printing, reducing duplication and simplifying business processes would not be counted as productivity measures in bargaining.

Ms Flood said the Australian government was the only major employer in the nation defining productivity as cutting workers’ conditions.

In floating two informal offers the department could be testing a viewpoint put by Senator Abetz in June when he said public servants might want to forgo a pay rise to save their mates’ jobs.

At the time the senator said “regrettably” the higher the pay increases “the more people out the door”.

The federal public service was scheduled to reduce its workforce by 16,500.

The CPSU was preparing its members for potential industrial action across the public service.

Staff at the Department of Human Services have voted in favour of taking industrial action while Department of Veterans Affairs employees were taking part in a ballot.

A man has drowned while rescuing his daughter after their kayak overturned near Bathurst. Photo: Paul JurakA 36-year-old Bathurst man has drowned while saving his five-year-old daughter.

The pair were kayaking at Chifley Dam near Bathurst on Saturday night when their vessel overturned and they fell into the water. While the man managed to save his daughter, he failed to resurface.

Inspector Rhys Dive, who attended the search, said the man was at the dam with his family and friends when the “horrible” accident occurred.

“It upturned and they both ended up in the water and he managed to lift his child onto the boat,” Inspector Dive said. “The first thing he did was save his little girl.”

Emergency services personnel were called about 7.15pm.

“There were already people searching on kayaks and fishing boats and swimming when we arrived,” he said.

Police and SES volunteers began a search of the water and the man’s body was discovered just before 9pm.

Police confirmed the man and his daughter were not wearing life jackets.

The father of three was a dedicated community member who regularly volunteered with the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church’s Rapid Relief Team, Inspector Dive said.

“We know him, that church group is part of the group that come and feed us at emergencies,” he said.

A spokesman for the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church, John Wells, said the deceased man had been a member of the church’s rapid relief team for a number of years. The team is made up of church members who volunteer to provide catering to emergency service personnel.

Inspector Andrew Spliet from the Chifley Local Area Command  said the man and his daughter were paddling in water that was 3.5-to-four metres deep when the kayak flipped.

Despite the flat water, and innocuous nature of kayaking, Inspector Spliet said people should still be aware of the risks in deep water, especially if they are not strong swimmers, or they are with children.

“If you’re going into the waterways, especially if you have children, you need to ensure you have lifejackets with you.

The cause of the man’s death has not yet been determined. Police will  prepare a brief for the coroner.

Map of where the baby was found. The drain where the baby was found at Quakers Hill.

Found: the boy was down the drain for six days. Photo: Supplied

It was an unmistakable sound in the most unexpected of locations.

“I’ve got two kids of my own, so I know what a baby screaming sounds like,” Rydalmere resident David Otte said.

But the father of two said it was “unbelievable” to find a newborn boy down a western Sydney stormwater drain along a Quakers Hill bike path next to the M7 on Sunday.

The discovery sparked a police search for the boy’s mother – identified later as a 30-year-old Quakers Hill woman – and calls for the public to withhold judgment until it became clear what had led to the baby being abandoned.

Police on Sunday night confirmed the mother had been charged with attempted murder in relation to the incident.

Police believe the baby was born last Monday and placed in the drain on Tuesday, six days before it was found.

Mr Otte said he had been cycling with his daughter Hayley when at about 7.30am they were flagged down by two men who had heard an unusual noise coming from a drain in unkempt grass 150 metres from Quakers Road.

“It was so intense. You couldn’t not tell it was a baby,” Mr Otte said. “We couldn’t see it but we could hear it.It was distressed.”

It took about seven people to lift the concrete lid off the drain so police could retrieve the boy, who was described as malnourished, dehydrated and just a few days old.

The baby’s umbilical cord had been cut and clamped. He was wrapped in what appeared to be a striped hospital-issue blanket.

“We were going to get that lid off no matter what it took,” Mr Otte said. “Physically, no one could have fit themselves down into that drain. A child maybe but not an adult, no way in the world.”

The baby, who was taken to the Children’s Hospital at Westmead in a serious but stable condition, was believed to have been pushed through a narrow gap below the lid, before falling 2.5 metres. Police said on Monday the baby was in a stable condition.

Inspector David Lagats, from Quakers Hill, said police would have had grave fears for the child’swelfare if he had remained undiscovered for much longer.

The temperature soared above 45 Celsius in parts of western Sydney as the day wore on.

‘It’s a horrific incident, but with all the team work from the bystanders, too, it was a good result and hopefully the child will survive,” Inspector Lagatssaid.

There were unconfirmed reports a man of Indian appearancewearing an orange shirt was seen on the cycle track soon after the baby was discovered, he said.

By early afternoon, checks of recent hospital births and doorknocking of the local area had led police to the newborn’s mother, who had given birth at Blacktown Hospital.

Department of Family and Community Services western Sydney district director Lisa Charet saidsuch incidents were rare.

But post-natal depression, or young mothers who did not know where to turn for help, had been factors in previous cases, she said.

“I think you have to be in a fairly desperate place to commit this sort of act,” she said before the mother was located.

Andrew McCallum, from the Association of Children’s Welfare Agencies, urged people to withhold judgment until the circumstances surrounding the incident were clear.

“And even then there’s usually a lot of other factors involved in these things,” Mr McCallumsaid.

Police said investigations into the incident were ongoing.

“You go through life seeing things but you never, ever imagine you’ll see something like this,” Mr Otte said.

“That baby had no chance if we and the other people hadn’t been there. Something made us find that baby today.”