Firefighter bravery recognised

NSW firefighters have been awarded for their actions at a major fuel spill that threatened Sydney. Source: AAP

FIREFIGHTERS who attended a fuel spill with the potential to ignite and threaten a Sydney peninsula faced a choice.

Leave the two million litre tank to leak, evacuate the peninsula around Banksmeadow on Botany Bay and wait for a catastrophic explosion.

Or volunteer to wade through the fuel pool and repair the leaking valve.

NSW Fire and Rescue (NSWFR) station officer Ron Morasso looked at his colleagues and made his choice.

"I said to him, 'what was going through your mind'?" NSWFR commissioner Greg Mullins told AAP after presenting Mr Morasso with the fire service's highest bravery award.

"[Mr Morasso] said to me, 'I looked at my crew and thought - he has two young kids, his wife is pregnant, he is only young...it's got to be me'."

Mr Mullins said even a spark from a car passing the Caltex fuel terminal would have risked an explosion with enough ferocity to close Sydney airport and any subsequent fire might have taken days to extinguish.

Mr Morasso, who has since retired, was presented with the NSWFR medal for conspicuous bravery on Saturday.

Other crew members who responded to the spill in July 2013 also received commendations.

Meanwhile, two firefighters who rushed to the aid of a man on fire after a petrol tanker crash on Sydney's northern beaches were also recognised.

Mosman crew members Lloyd Mulder and George Cheeke stayed with the man, who crawled from his car after it burst into flames, until he died at the roadside last October.

Witnesses Andrew Cochran and Maria Tosone also received commendations for trying to pull the man and another person from the car on Mona Vale Road.

And 12 firefighters who responded to a fire at a unit complex in Bankstown in the city's west, where two women attempted to escape by jumping from a fifth floor window, were also among commendation recipients.

Mr Mullins said the blaze was so intense that firefighters' uniforms caught fire and helmets melted.

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Male survival gene under threat in UK

MANKIND has come a long way since the days of hunters and gatherers - but the modern British man's survival gene could be in danger of becoming extinct.

According to a new television survey, ready meals and toiletries are the luxuries more than a quarter of UK men couldn't live without on a remote island, above taking a hunting knife or fishing line.

Some 26 per cent named toiletries as a must-have item and 29 per cent said they couldn't do without their pre-prepared tucker, the Channel 4 survey of 2000 British men found.

And 62 per cent said they wouldn't be able to start a fire without the aid of a lighter - so they may have trouble heating up their TV dinner anyway.

When asked to rate their practical DIY skills, Welsh men were the least-educated in the UK, with 83 per cent claiming they were never taught the skills.

The survey found just one in 10 spend their spare time playing sport, only nine per cent pursue outdoor activities and 15 per cent tend to their house or car.

The top recreation was lazing around and watching TV, with more than a third admitting to spending their free time in this way.

The survey findings come as Channel 4 launches the five-part series, The Island with Bear Grylls, featuring the real-life experiences of a group of men struggling to survive on a remote island.

Grylls said: "What happens when you strip man of all the luxury and conveniences of modern living and then force them to fight for their very existence?

"When pushed to the extreme do they still have what it takes to survive? I believe the spirit is still there and in us all.

"It's not until it's squeezed and put under pressure that we find that spirit of resourcefulness and courage again."

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Man dies trying to cross major NSW freeway

A MAN has died after being hit by two cars while trying to cross a major highway in Sydney, causing several other vehicles to crash.

He was walking south across three lanes of the M4 at Parramatta on Saturday evening when he was hit and about seven other cars then slammed into the back of the two vehicles that struck the man, a police spokeswoman told AAP.

The man died at the scene, on M4 eastbound near the Church Street exit in western Sydney.

A crime scene has been established and forensic officers will investigate.

Police aren't sure why the man was trying to cross the elevated highway, which has no footpaths.

The drivers of the cars which hit the man have been taken to hospital for mandatory drug and alcohol testing.

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Missing Vic man's friends fear foul play

FRIENDS of a Melbourne man who went missing while working his delivery route fear he may have met with foul play.

Shiva Chauhan, 27, was last heard from via text message around 11.30pm (AEST) on Thursday.

On Friday morning, it was discovered his deliveries had not been made.

His van was found on Huttong Road in Keysborough in Melbourne's southeast around 3pm on Friday with his belongings, including his wallet, still inside.

A friend of Mr Chauhan identified only as Andy told the Nine Network he feared he had been "taken".

"We personally do believe there was some sort of foul play involved," Andy said.

"All of his personal belongings were left in the car.

"We sort of think that someone's stopped and taken him."

Another friend, Jap, described Mr Chauhan as caring.

"He loves his family too much just to do something," he said.

"He's always on the phone. There's no way he would have actually switched off his phone for three days now."

Police have released a photo of Mr Chauhan, who is described as Indian, 177cm tall, with a slim build and dark-coloured straight hair.

They are urging anyone who may know his whereabouts to contact them.

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Investors want Woodside to look at shale

Woodside shareholders are urging the oil and gas giant to look more closely at shale gas. Source: AAP

AS Woodside Petroleum hammers out a big offshore deal in the politically unstable Middle East, some shareholders have called on the company to drill for shale gas in its own backyard.

The Perth-based oil and gas producer has made a name for itself developing offshore liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects in Western Australia, and it is now eager to cement a lucrative long term project in Israel.

But some believe the company should look to unconventional areas, such as the onshore Canning Basin in Western Australia, after the success of the shale gas boom in the United States.

Chief executive Peter Coleman said Woodside's deepwater and sub-sea capabilities were its major strength, and any move to onshore shale would likely involve dedicated unconventional gas players.

"We haven't ruled shale gas out," Mr Coleman told the company's recent annual general meeting.

"We've always said we'll look at all sources of hydrocarbon, and what we need to do is decide whether we've got the capability to go after that.

"Anyone who ignores the shale gas revolution that's happening globally does it at their own peril."

He also acknowledged it could take years before Woodside established itself as a shale gas player.

"We're not chasing what everyone else is doing," Mr Coleman said.

Woodside is yet to commit any serious money to its Leviathan project in Israel, as it needs to finalise tax issues and hold talks with joint venture partners.

It has also left the door open to develop the Sunrise project near East Timor, and is weighing up options in Myanmar, Canada and Ireland.

Mr Coleman said Woodside was also looking at opportunities to boost its oil production, from 10 per cent of the company's portfolio.

He pointed to the company's increased willingness to partner with substantial players, such as Noble Energy in Israel, and BG in Myanmar.

"As you extend that to unconventionals we'll be looking for opportunities with partners who have those particular capabilities as well," Mr Coleman said.

By his own reckoning, relationships with partners require a lot of work, especially after Woodside held off signing a contract which would have sealed a $US2.7 billion deal for a stake in Leviathan.

"Going into Israel on March 27 with a view that we were going to finalise the agreements and then not being able to do that was a very very hard decision," he said.

Mr Coleman believes the company is in a strong position in Myanmar, with the recent awarding of offshore exploration territory.

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Dairy company plans $127m expansion

The owner of the Devondale dairy brand is spending 127-million dollars to expand its operations. Source: AAP

THE owner of the Devondale dairy brand is spending $127 million to expand its baby food, cheese and beverages operations.

Murray Goulburn Co-operative will make the new investments in the next 18 months, adding to its current operations at sites in Victoria and Tasmania.

"These investments secure sustainable, skilled jobs in regional Victoria and Tasmania and add to higher farmgate returns which, in turn, funds regional growth with the vast majority of money spent by farmers in their local communities," chief executive Gary Helou said.

But the expansion of its sites at Cobram and Koroit in Victoria, and Edith Creek in Tasmania, will need upgrades to regional infrastructure, particularly energy.

The company said it would seek to work with the government and energy providers to deliver those upgrades.

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NSW man who stabbed neighbour gets 8 years

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A SYDNEY man has been sentenced to at least six years imprisonment for stabbing his "loud and aggressive" neighbour to death.

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