Baby Aarvi was one of four leap-day babies.
Hawke’s Bay Hospital welcomed four new babies to the world on February 29 - leap-day.
One of the four newcomers, Aarvi, arrived four weeks ahead of her due date which was originally March 26.
She was born at 4.26am on Thursday and weighed 2.7kg.
Mother and baby were happy and healthy and doing well on Friday morning.
The family plan to celebrate Aarvi’s birthday at the end of the week following the end of February each year.
Hastings District and Napier City Councils are launching a joint education and marketing campaign to support their revised smokefree and vapefree Policy.
From now until World Smokefree Day on May 31 people can expect to see the roll-out of new smokefree/vapefree signage across the councils’ public spaces.
The councils said this initiative aims to create healthier public spaces and reduce the impact of smoking, vaping, and tobacco use in Hawke’s Bay.
A map of the smokefree and vapefree locations and more information about the policy can be found on both councils’ websites.
New Zealand Community Trust (NZCT) has awarded Special Olympics Hawkes Bay a $10,000 grant towards the purchase of a 12-seater van which will open up a world of competition for the region’s Special Olympic athletes.
Tina Lea from Special Olympics Bocce Sport said, “Having our own van will be a game-changer for us. It will not only enhance our ability to attend away games but also foster new friendships and rivalries, enriching the overall experience for our athletes.”
Felicity Lowes, a dedicated athlete, exclaimed, “I love going on road trips with my mates for Special Olympics events. Thanks to the support we receive, I recently won my second gold for ten-pin bowling!”
NZCT’s GM for Grants, Marketing and Communications, Ben Hodges said Special Olympic athletes’ commitment and sportsmanship is exemplary but the cost of participation, particularly for travel, is a real barrier to participation.
“These athletes don’t deserve to miss out. So NZCT is grateful for its fundraising partnership with The Clive Hotel that made this grant possible.’’
This initiative ensures that athletes can continue to embody the spirit of the Special Olympics motto: “Let me win. But if I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt.”
The journey towards inclusion and empowerment continues as Special Olympics Hawkes Bay drives towards a brighter, more accessible future for all athletes involved.
Special Olympics Hawkes Bay has over 70 athletes registered in the region, with more attending casually.
They participate in five sports - bocce, swimming, golf, football, and 10-pin bowling.
Te Mata Park now has an emergency response system installed that will help emergency services locate a person in need of assistance.
A collaboration between the emergency services in Hawke’s Bay and Te Mata Park Trust has seen over 160 waypoints installed on track marker posts in the park that rises above the Heretaunga Plains.
Each post has a red sticker with a number and letter on it that corresponds to GPS coordinates, allowing the emergency services operator to pinpoint the location of the person in need.
People in need can be found when they make an emergency call via their mobile but it is estimated that this is only 60% effective in Te Mata Park due to the park’s terrain
Fire and Emergency New Zealand’s Fred Housham, a station officer from Hastings Fire Station, was instrumental to the project.
“In the past it has sometimes been difficult to determine the exact location of someone making a 111 call in Te Mata Park. This system provides us with another tool to locate someone and potentially reduce our response time.”
If you need emergency services in Te Mata Park:
· Dial 111
· Follow the instructions of the operator
· If practical, find the nearest track marker post, look for the red sticker, relay the letter and number on the sticker to the operator
Park users should also be aware that there is an Automatic External Defibrillator (AED) located at Peak House.
Seaweek is a national, annual event and a time dedicated to our moana.
Hawke’s Bay Regional Council is holding a beach clean-up on Saturday, March 2, at Waitangi Regional Park, Awatoto.
Everyone is welcome and give a helping hand in clearing away litter from this special environment.
The morning starts at 9am with a health and safety briefing.
All the gear is supplied however if you have your own gloves and bucket, bring them along.
The barbeque will be fired up for a sausage sizzle later in the morning.
You can view details on the HBRC facebook page or contact enviro@hbrc.govt.nz for more information.
A truck that veered into a ditch on Farndon Rd in Hastings caused traffic chaos on Tuesday afternoon, leaving the road partially blocked during rush hour.
A Hato Hone St John spokesperson said one person was taken to hospital in a moderate condition.
Police said they attended the incident about 3.30pm and said the vehicle was removed from the ditch just after 5.15pm on Tuesday.
Public feedback is being called for on a proposal to change Hastings district’s subdivision rules for lifestyle properties.
The move is intended to give displaced Category 3 property owners who had signed a voluntary buy-out agreement more relocation options within their existing communities, Hasting District Council said in a media release.
The subdivision rule in the Rural Residential and Rural Zones would enable the creation of a lifestyle subdivision, outside of hazardous areas, close to people’s original homes in Category 3.
Hastings deputy mayor Tania Kerr said one of the challenging aspects of the buy-out process for some people is uncertainty around where they can move to if they accept an offer.
“We understand the importance for affected landowners of having the option of remaining near their community; living near the school, employment, marae.”
“This rule change is a positive step in this direction, and would only apply to people who have signed a buy-out offer - it is about giving them more choice in an already difficult situation.”
Feedback can be given online at www.myvoicemychoice.co.nz or submission forms can be found at the Hastings District Council customer service area or at any of the Hastings District Libraries.
Submissions close at 5pm on March 22.
Taylor Hawks have signed hard-nosed defensively-minded point guard Tanae Lavery to the team.
The former high school student from St. Andrew’s College in Christchurch earned a basketball scholarship to Lincoln University and has previously been selected to represent Lincoln University and the New Zealand U23 3x3 team, playing tournaments in both Japan and Taiwan.
Taylor Hawks assistant coach Kaine Hokianga said, “Tanae is an exciting young talent and we are extremely happy he is joining the Hawks for the 2024 season”.
“He has certainly earned the opportunity to test his skill at the NZNBL level and we look forward to seeing him succeed in Hawkes Bay.”
The team’s general manager Jarrod Kenny said Lavery has a defensively-minded approach to the game and Hawks fans are going to enjoy watching him leave it all out on court this season.
Lavery now joins Taylor Hawks teammates Isaiah Moore, Jackson Ball, Jacob Murphy, Jordan Ngatai, Josh Roberts, Keanu Rasmussen and Kobe Kara, with more announcements soon to follow.
Duart House in Havelock North will again turn into a beer lover’s nirvana on March 9 with the return of Beer Appreciation Day.
Organiser Jim Poppelwell said there would be a huge range of beverages available, and a whole bunch of brewers keen to introduce them.
This year’s lineup features champion New Zealand Large Brewery winners Garage Project and acclaimed newcomers Pacific Coast Beverages.
“We’re super stoked with the lineup this year, which includes a bunch of new releases and some reinterpretations of classic brews. After a helluva 2023, it’s going to be awesome to be back bigger and better than ever. It’ll be an extremely enjoyable afternoon, guaranteed,” Poppelwell said.
Local music legends Deep Fried Funk will be performing sets throughout the day, with DJ Andy (Wellington) laying down bangers in between. There will also be specially developed menus from Gina’s Truck, MacDaddy and La Petite Tagarine. Tickets are available now through Eventbrite.
About 100 people attended a rally at the Hastings Clock Tower over the weekend to bring awareness to the growing issues surrounding child vape harm, with Labour Health spokesperson Dr Ayesha Verrall, local teachers and city councillors in attendance.
Rally organiser Sukhdeep Singh said he was deeply disappointed in the lack of concrete action to combat the continued proliferation of vape stores in Hawke’s Bay and across the country.
“I organised a hīkoi against a vape store opening next to our local primary school in September last year. Locals turned out in force to show their opposition, yet the store continues to trade.”
He said the rally was organised to show national political leaders that the Hawke’s Bay community was “not going to sit by quietly” while vape stores continued to cause harm in vulnerable communities.
Associate Health Minister Casey Costello was invited, however did not turn up. Costello’s proposed three-year tobacco tax freeze has previously been criticised by Verrall and anti-smoking advocates.
“As focus has shifted to the Smokefree legislation reversal, let’s not forget the growing number of rangatahi and tamariki who are being targeted by Big Tobacco companies. They are actively lobbying legislators into both relaxing rules around cigarettes, and continuing to normalise vape use,” Vape-Free Kids NZ spokesperson Charyl Robinson said.
The rally was supported by the Asthma and Respiratory Foundation NZ, Health Coalition Aotearoa and Aspire Aotearoa.
A section of Spencer Rd will be temporarily closed to all traffic from Monday 26 February to allow large trees to be safely removed from the Napier Botanical Gardens.
The work is weather dependent but traffic management is expected to be in place between 9am and 3pm until Thursday, and motorists are advised to use an alternative route around the work site. There may be stop/go traffic management in place on Friday as well.
Some of the affected trees have been damaged by last year’s cyclone while others have grown too large and pose a danger to the public if they remain on the steep bank above the road, Napier City Council said.
One elm has split down the middle and has been “wearing” a supportive brace for some months now.
The gardens will still be open to the public but caution is advised.
A large wind farm project under construction in Hawke’s Bay is over half complete.
Meridian Energy’s $448 million Harapaki Wind Farm includes the installation of 41 giant wind turbines on a mountain range between Napier and Taupo, close to State Highway 5.
Twenty-three of the wind turbines have now been installed on the Maungaharuru Range with a further five partially installed.
The first wind turbine was turned on last November.
It will be the sixth-largest wind farm in New Zealand when the project is completed in September, in terms of the number of turbines
Detours will be in place for two key Hawke’s Bay public transport routes from February 28 until March 7, with some stops not being serviced during this period.
The detours will impact routes 11N and 11H due to the current State Highway 51 Awatoto roadworks that are ongoing from 8am-4pm.
For the 11N route southbound, the bus will go onto Marine Parade via the Warren St / Marine Parade roundabout, and all the Te Awa Ave bus stops will not be serviced – the N2, N197, and N3 stops.
There will be a temporary bus stop in place on Marine Parade near the entry to the Pump Track / Caravan park.
The 11N temporary bus stop will be in place just north of the Marine Parade Pump TrackRoute.
For the northbound 11H route, the bus will turn left onto Waitahi Rd from SH51, travel north along Awatoto Rd, and then turn onto Te Awa Ave.
All stops for this route will be serviced as per usual.
Emergency services were called to the scene about 7.45pm.