Fires extinguished
Whanganui fire crews were kept busy with scrub fires over the weekend. The Whanganui Fire Brigade was alerted to a small shed fire on Morgan St just before 7pm on Friday. Crews arrived to find scrub and rubbish on fire, with the blaze extinguished in just under an hour. Fire and Emergency was called to an out-of-control burnoff in Feilding around 4pm on Saturday. The Feilding crew took around 15 minutes to extinguish the 40m x 40m fire. The Marton Brigade was called to a scrub fire on Bruce Rd near Turakina around 5.10pm on Saturday. A Fire and Emergency spokesman said it was the size of a rugby field but firefighters had no issues putting out the blaze.
Quake recorded
A magnitude 4.9 earthquake near Waverley was recorded just before 5pm on Friday. The tremor was centred 60km southwest of Waverley, offshore in the Whanganui Basin, at a depth of 120km, Geonet reported. Thousands of people in the lower North Island and top of the South Island reported feeling the earthquake.
Local Lotto winners
If you bought your Lotto ticket for Saturday's draw online, check your numbers. Two MyLotto players from Whanganui-Manawatū each won $18,968 in the second division draw.
Open day for iwi
The public is invited to Te Rūnanga o Ngā Wairiki-Ngāti Apa's open day at Te Poho o Tuariki on February 27. The complex at 85 Henderson's Line in Marton hosts the iwi's health and social services, and also holds training courses available to all. The 10am to 2pm open day will include the launch of a research project, health clinics, entertainment and a sausage sizzle.
Landfill repair
Rangitīkei District Council has contracted Central Demolition to repair the damage done when the Rangitīkei River tore into a former landfill in Putorino Rd in late 2018. The contractors are setting up the work site. They are likely to start removing waste in early March, managing director Ian Butcher said.
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