Northland news in brief: Daylight savings starts; and tsunami sirens tested

The clocks go forward an hour at 2am tomorrow for daylight saving.

This weekend is the start of daylight saving in New Zealand. Clocks go forward one hour at 2am tomorrow, Sunday, morning - so best to do it before you go to bed tonight. Of course, nowadays, many of our time pieces are electronic and will do this automatically. Daylight Saving was introduced in New Zealand in 1927.

Tsunami drill coming

Northland's network of more than 200 outdoor tsunami sirens will be tested once again tomorrow. The sirens, from Te Hapua to Mangawhai, are checked twice a year, coinciding with the start and finish of daylight saving. As usual they will be activated twice, for 10 minutes at 10am then for 30 seconds at 10.30am, and will be monitored for faults. Indoor sirens, plug-in units that are available for purchase by those who live in tsunami evacuation zones but, for whatever reason, are unable to hear their nearest outdoor siren, will be tested at the same time, while test alerts will be sent to users of the Red Cross Hazard app, which can be downloaded at no cost. Northland residents and visitors can find out if they live, work or play in a tsunami evacuation zone, and plan their evacuation route, by checking out Northland tsunami evacuation maps (at www.nrc.govt.nz/evacuationzones).

Man facing multiple charges

The man at the centre of an Armed Offenders Squad callout that saw part of State Highway 1 through Whangārei cordoned off, leading to traffic gridlock around the city, made another court appearance on Wednesday. Hiko Komene, 23, was arrested on September 6 and faces two charges of driving in a dangerous manner, three charges of failing to stop, unlawfully taking a car, three charges of driving while forbidden, driving while unlicensed and possession of a cannabis plant. He also faces several charges of breaching his release conditions. Komene will make another audio visual appearance in Whangārei District Court on November 6 for a case review.

New police officers

Seventy-eight new cops have completed their training for the frontline and will graduate today at the Royal New Zealand Police College. Three will hit the beat in Northland but it is Wellington that gets the most recruits with 12 graduating officers. The new constables will have a one-week break before starting duties in their districts. The rest will be spread across the police regions: Waitematā 6, Auckland 7, Counties Manukau 10, Waikato 9, Bay of Plenty 5, Eastern 3, Central 7, Tasman 1, Canterbury 9 and Southern 6.

Teacher selected for programme

Northland teacher Penny Cutler has been selected for the inaugural BLAKE Inspire for Teachers programme. The Ahipara School teacher will attend the five-day residential programme which runs from Monday to Friday in Auckland next week. The programme brings together 29 primary and intermediate teachers from across New Zealand who want to gain a deeper understanding of environmental issues and deliver environmental education to their students. The BLAKE Inspire for Teachers is funded by the Ministry of Education, with support from Ministry for the Environment.

Bridges to be lit for cancer

Whangārei's Te Matau a Pohe and Kotuitui Whitinga bridges will be lighting up pink for the annual Global Illumination Campaign for Breast Cancer Awareness Month. The bridges, which are on the Hatea Loop Walkway, will be lit up from October 1 to 31 at night. The campaign acts as a backdrop to Breast Cancer Foundation NZ's major fundraising event, Pink Ribbon Street Appeal, which takes place on October 11 and 12. Money raised through the Pink Ribbon Street Appeal and community fundraising events around the country will fund research into new targeted treatments, life-saving awareness initiatives, education programmes, and support New Zealanders going through breast cancer.