Owen Jacques
Maroochydore, QLD
Owen Jacques is an ABC News journalist, working as a senior reporter on the Sunshine Coast. He began his career in 2007 in central Queensland. He has also worked throughout south-east Queensland as an investigative journalist, columnist and editor.
Latest by Owen Jacques
Forget the COVID years, international tourists are spending big and breaking records
Australia is proving a winner with international travellers, with new data showing they are staying longer and often spending more than before the pandemic.
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Australia faces critical shortage of children's antibiotic as whooping cough cases soar
By Owen Jacques
Families say they are having to visit up to 10 pharmacies to find a key medication used to treat chest infections, whooping cough, and other respiratory issues in children.
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Big Pineapple shining bright as state's big thing is back on show
Visitors will soon be able to ride the Plantation Train again, which once carried then-Prince Charles and Princess Diana around the grounds.
Fresh calls for shark nets' removal after humpback whale tangled up off Queensland coast
Environmental advocates renew calls for the state to remove shark nets during whale migration season after a humpback is freed from a tangle off the Sunshine Coast.
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Queensland 'sinkhole' afflicts barge landing popular with 4WD, campers heading to K'gari
A "near-shore landslide", often known as a sinkhole, is consuming the end of Inskip Point, sinking part of a popular barge landing.
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Queensland museum scrambling to secure F/A-18 Classic Hornet before they're lost to history
They are likely the most-recognisable fighter in the Royal Australian Air Force, but the days of spotting a F/A-18 "Classic Hornet" could be over.
Staggering cost of medical negligence payouts in Queensland revealed as patient fights to return home
In less than six years Queensland Health has been forced to pay out more than $390 million to more than 1,000 people injured as a result medical negligence in public hospitals. Michael Stewart was one of them.
Rents hit record high across Australia's biggest regions with WA and Queensland topping the list
Rental prices in Bunbury and the Sunshine Coast went up by more than 4 per cent in the past three months, with three quarters of Australia's biggest regional areas with higher rents than ever.
Bonza staff futures remain in limbo as administrators given more time to find a buyer
The Federal Court grants an extension so the airline can try and avoid liquidation, meaning employees will remain stood down without pay and unable to accept other work for a further two months.
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'Grim' mood among Bonza staff facing two months without pay
Bonza workers are told they will remain stood down for at least another two weeks, as administrators scramble to find investors to support the troubled airline.
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Brisbane-to-the-beach rail ahead of Olympics with $5.5b for Sunshine Coast link
A critical rail link between Brisbane and the beaches to its north is now locked in with a total of $5.5 billion secured from the state and federal governments.
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Passengers stranded, Bonza in administration in 'shattering news' for sector
The airline says it has "temporarily" suspended all services, leaving travellers scrambling for help to get to their destinations.
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Sharpened metal spikes hidden on popular Queensland mountain bike trail spark alarm
Bike riders warn the steel stakes could cause "a lot of damage and grief" as police and national rangers investigate the discovery in Noosa.
Bonza confirms changes to Queensland flight schedules but denies reports of engaging financial advisory firm
After less than 18 months in the sky, the budget airline is facing questions over its financial viability and mounting criticism of its customer service.
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Former Test cricketer Michael Slater in custody facing stalking, strangulation charges
The 54-year-old former Test batsman is in custody over a range charges including assault and one count of breaching bail.
Working undercover, cyber investigator discovers child 'sexploitation' is rife and a simple way to fend off predators
Young people are being targeted by criminals online, but parents, carers and friends have the power to protect their loved ones.
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Accused online predator allegedly took 10-hour round trip to exploit children
New court documents reveal further details about alleged Sunshine Coast-based sexual predator Dion Lingard, who police say used social media to procure and exploit underage girls.
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Queensland coasts top hot list for people ditching city life for cheaper, quieter living
By Cindy Wockner and Owen Jacques
Australia's capital-city dwellers are fleeing their home towns at a rate not seen since states still had COVID restrictions in place, and Queensland's beachside centres are proving the most attractive.
Queensland has no federal independents, but could a new campaign change everything?
A small grassroots movement says it hopes to win a beachside federal seat from the major parties for only the second time in 40 years.
Man drowns while swimming between flags at Queensland beach
The alarm was raised by the man's daughter when he failed to resurface at Mooloolaba Beach. Members of the public tried to revive him, but he died at the scene.
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Queensland man accused of rape and creating child exploitation material faces court on dozens of charges
A 31-year-old Sunshine Coast man is facing dozens of charges including rape and using children to create exploitation material.
'Worth every frickin' cent': Queenslanders begin marathon journey to see Taylor Swift
Some Swifties will travel thousands of kilometres from regional Queensland to see Taylor Swift's Eras tour when shows begin this weekend in Melbourne.
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After surviving a stroke, 60-year-old mum fears a fatal heatwave in social housing
Susan Jones fears her stiflingly hot social housing that does not have air-conditioning will put her life at risk if heatwaves continue to affect the state.
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Woman, 68, living in new social housing forced to take showers and hide in car to cool down during heatwave
Sixty-eight-year-old Suellyn Lott's Sunshine Coast apartment complex was officially opened less than 12 months ago, but she says living there is unbearable when the temperature spikes.
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Almost 170,000 air conditioners remotely turned down six times during blistering summer heat
Queensland’s state-owned power grid quietly forced almost 170,000 air-conditioners in homes and businesses into low-power mode six times over summer.