Northland news in brief: Truck drives into ditch near Ruakākā; Zonta book sale returns

The truck ended up in a ditch beside SH1 after an early morning crash. Photo / Michael Cunningham

SH1 truck crash

No one was injured after a truck crashed on SH1 near Ruakākā early on Tuesday morning. Police attended shortly before 4am but the road was partially blocked until a tow truck was able to attend several hours later. When the Northern Advocate arrived at the scene, the truck was in a ditch with a tow truck nearby preparing to remove it. The road was completely clear by noon, police said.

Rust Ave assault

Police responded to reports of an assault on Rust Ave, Whangārei, on Sunday night. No one has yet been arrested, but police spoke to one person. There were no reports of serious injuries. Inquiries are ongoing and police ask anyone with information to contact them on 105, quoting the file number 220801/2062, or call Crime Stoppers.

Zonta returns

After a successful event, the Zonta Clubs of Whangārei and Mangakahia Lions are holding another book sale on Saturday from 8am to 3pm. There will be bargains galore as hundreds of books still need to go to new homes. The book sale will be at the same place in the old Smith City building at the corner of Tarewa Rd and Porowini Ave.

IRD text scam

Police are warning of a text message scams referring to the cost-of-living payment being distributed through Inland Revenue NZ. Often scammers use timely and current events to try to deceive people. They will use a sense of urgency to get people to act without thinking and will include a link. Police says to not click on any links in the message or download or install attachments. Suspicious texts can be forwarded to 7726 free of charge or people can contact IRD directly on 0800 473 777 to verify text messages.

School van vandalised

Staff at Mangōnui School were disappointed to discover on Monday morning their van had been vandalised over the weekend. The van was used mostly to take students to Rangikapiti Pa, to do pest management work and to take care of the land, all of which will be on hold until a repair of a smashed window is possible.

Local elections

Nominations for the local government elections close on August 12. Northlanders will be voting for three new mayors as well as councillors representing them in the Whangārei, Kaipara and Far North Districts and on Northland Regional Council. Elections will be held on October 8.

Upsurge Arts Festival

Upsurge Bay of Islands Arts Festival will go ahead from September 18 to 25. The last festival was held in 2019 but the 2021 festival was postponed due to Covid. This year's event is over seven days and includes dance, theatre, music, a writer's programme, street performances, visual arts and more. The full programme will be announced on August 11.

Kauri protection

National Pest Management Plan has come into effect this week to step up activity to protect kauri. The national plan to fight back kauri dieback under the Biosecurity Act comes as part of a $32 million injection of funding. Newly established management agency, Tiakina Kauri, will work in partnership with mana whenua, councils, central government agencies and NGOs to deliver a co-ordinated kauri protection strategy.