The partner of the Napier siege gunman received nearly $10,000 in ACC compensation after he committed suicide.

The teenage girl driver of a van involved in a horror double fatal smash early today had been drinking alcohol, say police.

A cold southerly is set to dump more snow on the Desert Road and bring a chill to much of the country.

The former partner of deceased Napier gunman Jan Molenaar has told a court he bullied her into selling cannabis.

This week's snow storm could have killed up to 200 lambs on each Hawkes Bay hill country farm affected, Federated Farmers says.

Police say the Napier-Taupo highway will stay closed until all of the abandoned cars have been removed.

Two major highways may re-open this afternoon after unseasonal heavy snow in the last two days stranded motorists for two nights.

Motorists who spent a freezing night in their snow-trapped cars on the Napier-Taupo Highway are rescued.

A High Court decision ordering a financial adviser to pay an elderly widow $250,000 could become a "benchmark" for other claims.