NZ@Noon: Smoke alarm saves home

A Mount Maunganui home was saved from extensive fire damage by a working smoke alarm.

A smoke alarm has saved a Mount Maunganui home after residents were alerted to a fire in the kitchen, and a $1000 reward is being offered after a $30,000 generator was stolen. These are just two of the stories making headlines around the regions today.

A Mount Maunganui home was saved from major damage after smoke alarms alerted occupants to a fire in the kitchen.

A $1000 reward is being offered after a $30,000 generator was stolen Hawke's Bay's Gala Caterers.

Rotorua Lakes Council has back-tracked on its announcement of a new name for the City Focus with some councillors saying the process has been a complete embarrassment.

A ban on some forms of freedom camping in Whangarei looks set to soften following public feedback and a legal scramble.

A group of young bikers, believed to have been tearing up a newly-upgraded Masterton park and using river trails to evade police, have finally been caught.