After fires tore through parts of Queensland in an earlier-than-expected bushfire season, emergency services are warning of the growing threat to suburban backyards as the weather gets hotter and drier.

Firefighters from South Australia arrive in Queensland to give local crews a rest from battling bushfires, but the break may be short-lived with conditions forecast to get worse in the state later in the week.

A man is taken into police custody in relation to a car that crashed through the front of a house on the Gold Coast early on Sunday morning, leaving a teenage girl trapped inside.

A large bushfire that has claimed 11 properties in the Gold Coast hinterland as well as historic Binna Burra Lodge could have been deliberately lit, Queensland's Police Commissioner Katarina Carroll says.

Thunderstorms have rolled west across Queensland's southern inland, bringing more rain than expected to the Gold Coast hinterland as well as numerous lightning strikes raising concerns about the possibility of new bushfires.

South-East Queensland's bat population is in crisis as the species faces a mass starvation event which is seeing rescue groups inundated with as many as 50 calls a day reporting deaths and injuries in public spaces and backyards.

An investigation is underway after two police officers fired their weapons during the dramatic arrest of a 53-year-old man suspected of lighting up to four fires in north Queensland.

Two people are treated for hypothermia after being plucked from the hull of their overturned boat in waters off the Gold Coast overnight.

Half a century since the first miniature-golf course came to the Gold Coast, putt putt is still popular with families.

Family and friends post tributes to Jeffrey and Matthew Hills, whose bodies were found in the wreckage of a plane which crashed in northern NSW on Friday.

In the past year, Abbie Williams has written hundreds of personalised messages to people around the world struggling with their mental health.

Meet the pool tourists of Australia who go to to great lengths in their quest to get wet.

As the ban on climbing Uluru fast approaches there remains many locations attracting crowds, despite calls from local Indigenous people to stay away.

A Gold Coast couple who funded a "lavish lifestyle" peddling MDMA and cannabis on the dark web is jailed after pleading guilty to drug trafficking.

Visitor numbers plummet on the Gold Coast hinterland and Scenic Rim after devastating bushfires razed parts of the regions earlier this month a double tragedy for local businesses.

A man and woman have been charged after the Burleigh Waters branch of Suncorp Bank was robbed by two people cloaked in leather jackets and helmets who allegedly pulled out guns to threaten the tellers.

An assistance package which includes the first two picks in the 2019 player draft will be handed to the struggling Gold Coast Suns to help the club "deliver upon their football strategy".

Champion synchronised swimmer Rachel Presser wants you to know that there's a lot more to her sport than floral caps and sequential dives. Come the next Olympics, she might have a chance to prove it.

Concerned about a spike in drownings on Queensland's beaches most of which occur outside the flags lifesavers have come up with a unique way to get people where they want them.

Travel giant TripAdvisor will no longer sell tickets to Sea World on the Gold Coast as part of its worldwide ban to help end whale, dolphin and porpoise captivity, with the theme park criticising the decision saying it is based on opinion rather than fact.

A Gold Coast stripper is found guilty of glassing Neighbours star Scott McGregor after a "foul-mouthed tirade" from the actor.

In a world first, Queensland researchers say have been able to "cure" cervical cancer in mice using gene-editing technology and they are working towards performing human trials in the next five years.

Australian surfers Stephanie Gilmore and Sally Fitzgibbons will have to wait until next May for confirmation they have been selected for the Tokyo Olympics, despite satisfying the qualification criteria.

The owner of a troubled aged care centre, which suddenly closed three months ago amid a pay dispute, says he has lost his licence to operate a high-care facility, and the centre will not reopen.

It was all over quickly, but a short, sharp storm has brought hail and a little bit of rain to parts of Brisbane, Toowoomba and the Gold Coast.

A defamation trial is underway, with a high school principal suing five parents for comments they made on social media.

A man dies from injuries sustained 10 days earlier, when he was allegedly punched during a brawl outside a Gold Coast nightclub, which began after two men stole some food.

A software firm develops smartphone keyboards specifically designed to write in traditional languages to help people protect their language.

The Tait twins, Sara and Kristen, had a tough start. One was born with spina bifida, the other with two large holes in her heart. But that hasn't stopped either of them from becoming high achievers.

Marine scientists are calling for new speed limits in waters off the Gold Coast in response to an increasing number of humpback whales calving in the area.

A Gold Coast principal is asked to make pig snorting noises amid a defamation case in which she is suing five families over comments made about her on social media.

With an influx of 350,000 new residents expected by 2041, locals are concerned the planning and development will continue to alter the Gold Coast's unique identity.

A jockey who rode War Ends for a year and made numerous attempts to rehome him says she recognised the horse being slaughtered in an abattoir on the ABC's 7.30 program and laments she "failed" him.

Repair specialists say it is part of a growing trend which has seen the invasive Asian house gecko destroying cooling systems across New South Wales and Queensland.