Mildura-Swan Hill and Wimmera local news briefing: Monday, November 2, 2026 - ABC News & Headlines – Australian Broadcasting Corporation

Here's what's making news in the Mildura-Swan Hill and Wimmera regions today.

Vandals have caused extensive damage to a commercial redevelopment in Mildura's central business district.

Glass panels at the large retail complex on the corner of Eighth Street and Pine Avenue were pelted with objects at the weekend, while vinyl flooring, electronics and construction equipment were damaged by a binding material.

A supermarket was expected to open as the site's first tenant in March next year.

It is not yet known whether the damage will delay the opening.

Drivers in Horsham who rely on LPG have nowhere left to fill up after the town's last service station selling the fuel went into receivership.

Truck driver Barry Nuttal said he would now have to drive to Warracknabeal to fill up with LPG, a round trip of about 120 kilometres.

He said that defeated the financial benefit of running on gas.

"Friends of mine have recently gone over to gas and paid a couple of thousand dollars to have it all fitted up and now they can't fill up with gas at all in Horsham," he said.

Australasian Convenience and Petroleum Marketers Association CEO, Rowan Lee, said demand for LPG had fallen as LPG cars left the fleet, and service station owners were generally not replacing tanks when they wore out.

A Wimmera sports reporter who stole $117,000 from his former employer has had his sentencing delayed to give him time to prove he is beating a gambling addiction.

Christopher John Graetz, 43, pleaded guilty in the County Court to four counts of theft and one of burglary.

The court heard his victims, David and Christine Ward whose family operates the regional media network Wimmera Mallee News, had their retirement nest egg stolen in the year to March 2025.

Mr Graetz moved into the couple's Warracknabeal home in September 2023, when he worked for the local newspaper.

While living with the Wards, he stole money from a safe, a desk, a wallet and an office, chasing his losses on three gambling platforms.

The Wards asked the judge not to jail him, but to focus on his rehabilitation, so he could start paying them back and turn his life around.

Labor has named lawyer Stella Zigouras as its candidate for the Victorian seat of Mildura.

Ms Zigouras ran for the party at the 2022 state election, winning about 6.5 per cent of first-preference votes in a field of 11 candidates.

At this stage, five candidates have been confirmed for the seat.

The Victorian Department of Health is warning of a high risk of thunderstorm asthma across Victoria's Mallee and Wimmera districts today.

A high forecast means an epidemic thunderstorm asthma event is more likely, with many people suddenly developing asthma symptoms at the same time.

Thunderstorm asthma is thought to be triggered by a mix of high grass pollen levels and a particular type of thunderstorm.

The Victorian government is trialling drones to help farmers protect their livestock.

The Dingo Drone Pilot Project will test how well the drones work and help shape future dingo management.

The project will initially focus on Victoria's north-west and north-east and run until June next year.

Victorian Farmers' Federation acting president Peter Star welcomed the trial but said landholders should also be able to see the drone footage.

"If the drone's up there and I'm the landholder, it'd be good if I was able to actually see the same vision that the department's seeing," he said.

Irymple's first Halloween walk-through haunt has raised $4,245 for local charity CHAILIS.

A steady stream of families visited the new animatronic yard display in Sunraysia on Saturday, making their way through a variety of spooky settings.

Creator Shari Archibald said she would try to incorporate scare actors into the experience next Halloween.

"This year was kind of just a test just to see how everything kind of went … it just was so much bigger than what we thought," she said.