WEATHER
Cairns: 23-30C max, 90% rain
Port Douglas: 25-31C max, 90% rain
Mareeba: 20-28C max, 70% rain
Innisfail:23-26C max, 90% rain

TODAY'S TOP STORIES

CAIRNS POLICE INVESTIGATE SUSPICIOUS DEATH
Police are investigating the sudden death of a woman at Bentley Park, first discovered by officers in a Herald Street at around 3.40pm yesterday.
A crime scene was established and investigations are continuing into the cause of death. 

FATAL CRASH IN CREEK
Police are investigating a fatal traffic incident after a vehicle was located in a creek at Diwan in the Daintree area yesterday.
Shortly before 3pm, Mossman police were called to Cape Tribulation Road following reports of a utility in Little Creek, just south of Turpentine Road. On arrival, police located a man lying on the creek bed. Members of the public had pulled him from the utility, and emergency services declared the 37-year-old local man deceased at the scene.
The Forensic Crash Unit attended the scene to commence investigations. At this stage, the time and cause of the traffic incident is unknown.

SCIENTISTS TO EXAMINE REEF
Scientists working alongside the Climate Council will travel to Cairns next week before releasing a report on the health of the Great Barrier Reef.
The report will look into the impacts of climate change on the reef, following the longest coral bleaching event on record.
It will discuss the damage and long-term risks to the reef, recovery options and cover the economic impact on the tourism industry.
The scientists will meet with local tourism industry leaders.

JT TO END HIS CAREER AS A COWBOY
The far north’s favourite son, Johnathan Thurston, will sign on for a $1 million one year contract to ensure he finishes his wildly successful NRL career as a NQ Cowboy.

The deal will be the richest for a 34-year-old in NRL history.

The Courier Mail reported that the Cowboys would put aside uncertainty over the salary cap and Collective Bargaining Agreement talks to secure Thurston to a 12-month extension.

“I haven’t taken Johnathan to the open market. He will finish his career a Cowboy and so he should,” Thurston’s manager Sam Ayoub told News Ltd.

BIG OPERA EVENT AT MUNRO MARTIN PARKLANDS
Opera Australia will present a new interpretation of Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro at the Munro Martin Parklands on Saturday July 29.
It will be the only opera event in 2017 as presented by the Cairns Regional Council, and with the sold out success of last year’s Barber of Seville by Opera Queensland, the July 2017 show will be a date not-to-missed in the region’s must-do calendar. Tickets are available from Ticketlink.