Start your day with a smile. 

7.35am. BERRIMA. From October 5, Berrima Gaol will be back in operation. The Gaol was officially recommissioned on September 27 and will house 75 C classification minimum security inmates on a permanent basis. See videos and photos here.

7.30am. BRAIDWOOD. A home has been destroyed after a house fire near Braidwood reignited after firefighters left the scene on Sunday, September 25. Find out more here.

7.20am. CROOKWELL. Landcare takes a community based approach to managing and protecting our natural resources and Landcare Week is designed to encourage people to take an active role in protecting local environment. Read more here.

7.15am: GOULBURN. New kid on the block Leah Ferrara says she is not going into council for herself, but for the whole community.  Read more here.

Several roads in the Yass Valley are flooding. The rail line is running smoothly. 

Need a national news snapshot first thing - well, we have you covered. 

BENDIGO: Police closed a main road in Bendigo after discovering a suspicious package in a suburban yard. Read more.

TASMANIA: THE occupants of car which crashed and killed the driver may not have been wearing seatbelts, early police investigations have revealed. Read more.

WANGARATTA: A Wangaratta woman is recovering in hospital after being stabbed in the throat in her own home. Read more.

GLEN INNES: A POLICE manhunt is underway after an inmate was sighted in Glen Innes just days after he escaped from the local correctional centre. Read more.

NEWCASTLE: NEW legal representatives for accused serial sex offender and Newcastle immunologist Dr Jeremy Coleman will apply to have his estimated six-month trial moved to Sydney, Newcastle District Court has heard. Read more.

WOLLONGONG: Wollongong’s iconic glass building at 90 Crown Street has sold for $43.9 million to a Melbourne based funds management group. Read more.

REDLANDS: FAMILY and locals have honoured the memory of Redlands boy Matthew Stanley who died 10 years ago after a one punch attack at an 18th birthday party. Read more.

MORNINGTON: Mornington Shire locals believe that a crocodile photographed near a doctor’s yacht is the rumoured and elusive ‘Whitey’. Read more.

BALLARAT: In-depth  analysis of the driving factors of bushfires in all Victorian communities is needed to ensure the state does not face continuous “Black Saturday” events, researchers say. Read more.

MELBOURNE: Australia has lost in its claim that an international commission has no jurisdiction to hear a complaint by East Timor in the bitter dispute over undersea oil and gas riches. Read more.

NEW SOUTH WALES: The NSW branch of the RSL is preparing to launch a forensic audit of the past seven years' spending by its senior leadership amid concerns about possible fraud and questions about financial transparency. Read more.

CANBERRA: Maverick Liberal senator Cory Bernardi has called on the government to support similar positions to One Nation in order to reconnect with voters concerned about Muslim immigration and declining industries. Read more.

BELGIUM: A top-secret memo sensationally leaked by a Belgian energy minister cites Australia's decision to block China from buying into the NSW power grid. Read more.

UNITED STATES: A Houston lawyer whose business was struggling opened fire on morning commuters on Monday, injuring at least nine people before being shot dead by police, authorities said. Read more.

935 – Saint Wenceslas is murdered by his brother, Boleslaus I of Bohemia

1066 – William the Conqueror invades England landing at Pevensey Bay, Sussex

1781 – 9,000 American and 7,000 French troops begin siege of Yorktown

1887 – Yellow River or Huáng Hé floods in China, killing an estimated 1.5 million people

1939 – German-Soviet Frontier Treaty is signed by Joachim von Ribbentrop and Vyacheslav Molotov; redraws German and Soviet spheres of influence in central Europe and transfers most of Lithuania to the USSR

Facts supplied: onthisday.com

Just two years ago, Ben Winwood was involved in a car accident that left him unable to walk. 

He spent months in rehabilitation and was faced with the enormous challenge of relearning how to take a step.

Read his story.