North Islanders should rug up and turn their electric blankets on tonight as overnight lows drop by as much as 7C in some areas.

The Northland ringleader of the operation that produced the largest amount of methamphetamine ever cooked in New Zealand has pleaded guilty to a raft of charges.

Record rainfall in Auckland as downpours cause chaos across the city.

River, the puppy saved by a Bay primary school student last year, has settled in with her rescuer's family and grown into a lovable, large dog.

A Wellington man has today pleaded guilty to manslaughter following a person's death in 2009.

A Mount father says his family has been through a "weekend from hell" after his son suffered a serious neck injury in a secondary school rugby game.

Turangi residents have been fighting with their local power company for years, with the company alleging the group is fearmongering.

Part of a roof has collapsed on a section of a building on Victoria St, Hamilton, next to Centre Place Mall.

Six youths who might have thought a country town would be the ideal location to do burn-offs were swiftly brought down to earth after being told off by locals.

Five off-duty lifeguards have been honoured for their rescue of an unconscious woman in rough seas at Piha on Auckland's west coast.

Police believe two motorcyclists involved in a head-on collision were patched Black Power members travelling in convoy to a Northland tangi.

All lanes on the Napier-Taupo Road are open again after the trailer of a truck was blown over in high winds this morning, blocking one of the lanes.

Police have finally left the scene of horror smash on the outskirts of Hamilton last night where four young people lost their lives.

A campground manager who offered Hobbiton-bound tourists free accommodation in return for alcohol is under investigation by his employer.

Campbell Paterson and the man accused of murdering him were both addicted to ice or methamphetamine, a court has been told.

The owner of a Whangarei fun park tried to deceive safety investigators who were looking into the death of a man who fell from a flying fox at the park.

A former teacher has admitted molesting two of his male students at Mount Maunganui College in the 1970s and into 1980.

A short, sharp downpour has caused headaches on one central Auckland roadway, as a sub-tropical airflow makes its presence felt.

A Whanganui High School teacher has been charged with assaulting another staff member in a "serious incident" on Tuesday.

Hamilton authorities are on the hunt for an armed fugitive on the run with his toddler in tow.

Police are likely to tomorrow again door-knock neighbours of a Porirua woman subjected to a prolonged and horrific sexual assault in her home.

Wellington police are hunting a jewel thief who made off with two rings valued at more than $11,000.

Demolition of an Auckland building for a 46-level 150-unit apartment tower in the CBD has been stalled by a court order.