Whanganui news in brief: Sleepout burns to the ground

A Fire and Emergency spokesman said the sleepout was flattened when they arrived at the scene.

Fire crews called out

Fire and Emergency crews assisted a couple of minor incidents around the region on Tuesday. They were alerted to a car accident on State Highway 41 near Ngapuke around 3.30pm. Everyone was out of the vehicle when they arrived. Fire crews helped with road clean up and assisted the ambulance crew with patients with minor injuries. They were then alerted to Warrens Rd, just north of Marton, at 3.34pm to a sleepout that had burnt to the ground. A Fire and Emergency spokesman said it must have happened a while beforehand as it was flattened when they arrived at the scene.

Hinch joins board

Ohakune business owner Janelle Hinch has been elected into a vacant position on Ruapehu District Council's Waimarino-Waiouru Community Board. The by-election was conducted using the single transferrable vote (STV) system. In it Hinch got 524 first preference votes, and Jerry Nelio got 217. The result gave Hinch a 371 absolute majority, electoral officer Warwick Lampp said.

Illustrating signs

Whanganui illustrator Desmond Bovey's detailed pictures of native plants feature on 20 signs added to a new botanical loop trail at Bushy Park Tarapuruhi. The trail follows the Twin Ponga Loop, has two hihi feeding stations and a wheelchair accessible seating area. The signs were paid for by a community grant from Horizons Regional Council, and printed by Morrie Gibbons Signs. More booklets and posters, using Bovey's illustrations, are planned for the forest sanctuary.

Rag Poets playing

Wellington band Rag Poets plays two gigs in the region this weekend. They will perform at the Whanganui Musicians Club's club night on Friday, October 2, and at the Marton Players Theatre on Saturday, October 3. Doors open at 7pm for both events. Entry to the Musicians Club is $15 ($10 for members). Tickets for the Marton event are $25 and can be pre-booked by calling 027 2299 303.

Nomintions sought

Project Marton will hold its AGM on Monday, October 12, and is seeking nominations for committee members. Anyone interested in joining the committee should submit a short bio and photo to projectmartoncomms@gmail.com by October 7. Everyone is welcome at the AGM which will be held at the Project Marton Office, 18 Humphrey St, starting at 6pm. Doors open at 5.45pm and there will be a guest speaker. RSVP to projectmarton@gmail.com