Latest from North Island

North to get a burst of rain and thunder

Auckland and Northland are about to get much-needed rain with a line of thunderstorms off the coast of the North Island.

Kiwifruit orchard sells for $40 million

The sale of a Hawke's Bay kiwifruit orchard property is believed to have achieved a record price for any sale of New Zealand kiwifruit land.

WATCH NZH Local Focus: World shearing record smashed

Three shearers from different corners of the country have smashed a world shearing record - 1611 strongwool ewes between them in just eight hours. Made with funding from NZ On Air.

Manakau Hotel's licence renewed

The Manakau Hotel's operators have had their licence renewed for three years to continue selling alcohol, but with an earlier closing

Raft horror: 'I've never been so scared'

Gliding down the steady flow of the Waikanae River, Amanda Gibbons watched from her raft as her son followed closely behind on an

Tot believed to have started scrub fire

A scrub fire north of Kaitaia is believed to have been started by a preschool child playing with matches.

'An amazing father, mentor and friend'

Prominent Maori broadcaster Kingi Ihaka dies aged 74.

Container house coming along

David Wade says building a shipping container house requires living outside the box as well as thinking outside the box. The Fonterra

Power-packed weather bomb arrives

Residents in parts of the country have been warned to brace for widespread flooding, slips and fast-rising rivers as the mid-week weather system hits.

Bus crash tourists 'lucky' - fire chief

The National Park fire chief has described the scene of this morning's Tongariro National Park bus crash.

Unsettled and muggy day forecast

Multiple severe weather warnings and watches were issued yesterday as a cold front looks set to put a dampener on summer.

Shellfish off menu on North's east coast

A stretch of Northland's east coast is out of bounds for gathering or eating shellfish due to dangerous levels of toxins found in samples.

Cannabis club pair locked up for weekend

Two members of a Whangarei 'cannabis club' facing drugs charges will have to convince a District Court judge next week to release

Watch: 18yo swims with 2.7m shark

Billy Turner waited until after he'd been for a 20-minute swim with a 2.7m shark at Pauanui to tell his mother what he'd done.

North remains hottest in New Zealand

Northland's reputation as the winterless North looks set to remain with the region the hottest in the country last year, for the fifth

Police arrest man after assault

A 22-year-old Whangarei man will appear in court in relation to an assault that has left another man fighting for his life in hospital.

English should not be 'a spoilt child'

A Ngapuhi kaumatua says the Prime Minister should not "run away" from Waitangi Day commemorations.

'Heroes helped save our daughter's life'

A Kaitaia couple will be forever grateful that their two-year-old daughter did not lose her life when she fell into an adult public pool.