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Speaker 1: Know that recovery efforts at that facal helicopter crash or

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Speaker 1: well crash are going to continue for at least ten

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Speaker 1: days as part of the extensive investigation following the crash

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Speaker 1: on Melville Island. Now joining me on the line is

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Speaker 1: the Northern Territory Police Commissioner Michael Murphy. Good morning to

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Speaker 1: your commissioner. Good morning, Katie, Good morning to listen police Commissioner.

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Speaker 1: What is the latest on the situation on Melville Island.

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Speaker 2: So, we've still got the Emergency Operations Center functioning in

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Speaker 2: Darwin with all the functional groups coordinating the recovery effort

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Speaker 2: on the tiewis on Melville Island at the crash site.

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Speaker 2: We've got the Police Forward Command Post on the island

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Speaker 2: under the leadership of Commander Sean Gill coordinating the efforts there,

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Speaker 2: and obviously really close closely working with the Australian Defense

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Speaker 2: Force and the United States Marine Corps. And obviously the

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Speaker 2: crime scene, like I said, on recovery. So we're expecting

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Speaker 2: to recover the three Marines that died in the crash

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Speaker 2: by mid afternoon today, and obviously the United States Marine

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Speaker 2: Corps has released the names of the Marines. Corporal Collar

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Speaker 2: who was twenty one, Captain LAbau who was twenty nine,

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Speaker 2: and Major Lewis who is twenty seven, And it really

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Speaker 2: adds that human element to it and the impact that's

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Speaker 2: having on our defense forces and the response. So, yeah,

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Speaker 2: a lot of work being undertaken there at the moment,

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Speaker 2: and obviously it's a complex investigation. We're undertaking a number

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Speaker 2: of different layers, but particularly for the Northern Territory Coroner.

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Speaker 1: So Commissioner you said that you are expecting to bring

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Speaker 1: those three Marines back to Darwin before lunchtime today.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, the Disaster Victim Identification team are at the crash

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Speaker 2: site and working through are removing the bodies of the

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Speaker 2: Marines from the airframe. And again we extend our deeper

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Speaker 2: sympathies to the families and friends and the colleagues of

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Speaker 2: the deceased Marines and you know, we just wanted to

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Speaker 2: know where treating with respect and the dignity they deserve

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Speaker 2: and the care for all the loved ones. They know

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Speaker 2: that they're in good hands ess, Bess they can be

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Speaker 2: as we work through this process.

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Speaker 1: Absolutely, and I think you know it's an absolute tragedy.

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Speaker 1: And then when you hear the ages of the three

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Speaker 1: people whose lives have been lost. It's heartbreaking.

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Speaker 2: Well, it absolutely is. It shows you the dangers of

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Speaker 2: service to the country. You know, the highly disciplined team

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Speaker 2: and they put their lives on the line. Our members

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Speaker 2: of the Defense Force, you know, frontline services of the

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Speaker 2: US Marine Corps. It's incredibly impacting. And the members of

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Speaker 2: the Defense Force and international military who often come to

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Speaker 2: the Northern Church in particularly due and our integral part

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Speaker 2: of our community. You know their friends and neighbors. And

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Speaker 2: there's probably many of your listeners that know people that

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Speaker 2: are associated with this work and may be impacted by it,

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Speaker 2: and I'd encourage those to seek help if they need it.

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Speaker 1: Police Commission, can you tell us I'm not sure whether

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Speaker 1: you're able to give us much of an update, but

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Speaker 1: how are those eight people that remain in hospital?

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Speaker 2: So at this point in time, my information as we've

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Speaker 2: got three US Marines remaining in Dulen Hospital. They're getting

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Speaker 2: the best possible treatment and care in hospital, one remains

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Speaker 2: in ICU in a critical condition, and now the two

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Speaker 2: are on the ward and the rest the remaining seventeen

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Speaker 2: have been discharged to their chain of command and getting

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Speaker 2: appropriate care on base.

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Speaker 1: Okay, so it is just the three now that remain

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Speaker 1: in hospital, but as you've said, they're one of them

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Speaker 1: in intensive care.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, that's right. Yeah.

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Speaker 1: Now I know that there is an exclusion zone remaining

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Speaker 1: in place. Can you give me some detail about that.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, So where the crash site is, it's a radius

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Speaker 2: of about two kilometers around. That's a no fly zone,

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Speaker 2: so only authorized aircraft can come into the vicinity. That

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Speaker 2: includes getting Unauthorized aircraft can't come into that two kilometer

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Speaker 2: of radius around the crash site or up to eighteen

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Speaker 2: thousand feet. It's actually a fence to actually enter that

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Speaker 2: Arizona and it will be well broadcast and communicate across

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Speaker 2: the air channels for aviators and that includes drones as well,

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Speaker 2: so we encourage people to take either of that. So

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Speaker 2: it's a safe operating environment for our personnel on the ground.

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Speaker 1: Now, Commissioner investigations are expected to go on for around

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Speaker 1: ten days. It does seem like quite a long period

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Speaker 1: of time, but I'm assuming that there is quite a

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Speaker 1: bit of work to get through.

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Speaker 2: Yeah. Absolutely, I think just to clarify that ten days

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Speaker 2: is at least ten days for the crash site and

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Speaker 2: the crime scene as we work through that. Obviously, we're

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Speaker 2: working through to recover the three Marines, and then we

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Speaker 2: have to work through the airframe and the crash site

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Speaker 2: as well to collect evidence. That's only really that that

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Speaker 2: would be at least ten days, maybe longer, but the

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Speaker 2: actual investigation into the circumstances and the wider remit of

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Speaker 2: the coronial Inquiry and the investor will be.

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Speaker 1: For months, and so what will be the focus over

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Speaker 1: the coming days.

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Speaker 2: The number of aspects is obviously the cause, identity, what's

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Speaker 2: actually occurred, the collection of accounts from those involved. When

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Speaker 2: we're working really closely with the Australian Defense MORSE and

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Speaker 2: the United States Marine Corps, we've got some pretty high

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Speaker 2: level discussions occurring shortly with the US Marine Corps Commanding

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Speaker 2: Officer of the Australian Defense FORRSE and the coroner. So

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Speaker 2: working through the aspects of collecting the evidence to have

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Speaker 2: an account of what's occurred. And the coroner obviously looks

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Speaker 2: at all the aspects of the coronial inquiry and basically

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Speaker 2: has some mandates under the Act, but looking at prevention

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Speaker 2: and advice and causation and what can be done better

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Speaker 2: for the future. If that's the case, and.

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Speaker 1: My understanding is that police are indeed leading the investigation.

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Speaker 1: I would imagine though with assistance from the Defense Force

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Speaker 1: and also the United States Marine Corps.

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Speaker 2: Yeah. Absolutely, so we do have the lead, but we're

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Speaker 2: working incredibly closely with the United States Marine Corps in

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Speaker 2: this trying time and the Australian Defense Force, so we're

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Speaker 2: speaking often. They're actually the United States Marine Corps and

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Speaker 2: the Australian Defense Forces are actually embedded in our Emergency

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Speaker 2: Operations Center as well, so we've got clear line of

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Speaker 2: site and communication occurring across the REMIT. So it's basically

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Speaker 2: the objectives, the functionality and the mission that's clear.

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Speaker 1: Commissioner, I know you are limited for time today. There

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Speaker 1: is so much work that is going on following on

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Speaker 1: from this tragedy. Really, what are the next steps right now?

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Speaker 1: You mentioned just a moment ago that there is going

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Speaker 1: to be those discussions that have had today and all

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Speaker 1: efforts to bring those marines back to Darwin.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, it's absolutely The priority today is to repatriate the

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Speaker 2: three marines from the crash site back to Darwin. That's

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Speaker 2: the absolute priority, and then obviously we'll need to work

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Speaker 2: through the crime scene, the crash site rounds collect evidence

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Speaker 2: and the evidential material, and then perhaps rehabilitate the area.

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Speaker 2: Numeracy inquiries and investigative layers obviously stemming across a number

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Speaker 2: of complex issues,