Whanganui news briefs: Rabbit cull at cemetery, two-car crash

Rabbit cull at cemetery

Whanganui District Council contractors will be shooting rabbits in the Heads Rd Cemetery from 10pm tonight until dawn and the next two nights, weather permitting. The cemetery gates will be closed and guarded, and contractors will be using silencers and night-vision equipment. The rabbits' burrowing has been damaging graves.. The operation is a follow-up to work in February.

Checkpoints closed

Taranaki's eight iwi have closed the checkpoints they operated with police at entries to their region. May 8 was the last day checkpoints at Patea and Urenui operated. At Patea, 64.5 per cent of vehicles were from outside Taranaki, South Taranaki spokeswoman Debbie Ngarewa-Packer said.

Heritage Month change

The Whanganui Regional Heritage Trust is postponing its planned Whanganui Heritage Month from August to October this year, due to Covid-19 constraints on funding and the size of gatherings. People with events they would like to run are asked to email whanganuiheritagemonth@gmail.com or ring Helen Craig on 021 103 0737.

Family harm charge

Police were called to a serious family harm incident at Tieke Kainga, a Conservation Department campsite in the remote reaches of the Whanganui River on May 4. A 41-year-old man appeared in Whanganui District Court last week, charged with injuring with intent to injure. A female was taken to hospital by ambulance. The pair were at the kainga without authorisation from Te Whanau o Tieke, its secretary Marilyn Kairimu-Davis said. Whanganui police area commander Inspector Nigel Allan said a prosecution for a breach of level 3 restrictions in the last week related to that incident.

Two-car crash

A Whanganui Fire and Emergency New Zealand crew was called to a two-vehicle accident at the intersection of Virginia Rd and Tulloch St just before 10am Sunday. The crew assisted one injured person into an ambulance, senior station officer Craig Gardiner said.

Cell site aids learning

Vodafone has switched on a new 4G cell site off SH4 north of Upokongaro and says it will help about 42 rural people working and learning from home. Vodafone says the extra connectivity will assist remote working, at-home learning and entertainment.