Source: Radio New Zealand

Seven seconds – that was the difference between first and second place as competitors tackled a 500-piece jigsaw puzzle against the clock.

Jigsaw puzzle racing was a new addition at the last Master Games in Dunedin and it sold out within a day when it returned this year.

Individuals have a maximum of six hours to complete it, but the competition is fierce.

Walking through the door, the room is reduced to the clack of puzzle pieces on the table and muffled whispers.

Adrenaline is high and the tension is palpable.

Competitors sit intently focused on the pieces laid out in from of them, some with headphones on and snacks beside them.

The quicker competitors are expected to take between two to three hours, but some have the borders nearly finished within 15 minutes.

Games manager Vicki Kestila watches on.

“It’s very intense, very quiet. You can sort of hear the hearts beating,” she says.

Around the 39 minute mark, all eyes are on two competitors who only have a handful of pieces left to go.

A hand goes up and the room applauds as Dunedin resident Julie Eyles finishes her puzzle in 39 minutes, 38 seconds.

Seconds later, another hand goes up and more applause as Karen Easterbrook records a time of 39 minutes and 45 seconds.

Julia Eyles is excited to win gold after competing for the first time about two years ago.

“The good thing is I had no idea it was eight seconds until second place. I was just focused on what I was doing, I had an audiobook going and … I had no idea where anyone else was at,” she says.

“I always do the edges first … I have to do the edge, I can’t go to the middle until I’ve done the edge so I just turn them all up the right way, pull the edge out. Make the edge and then decide where I am going next.”

She is hoping to compete in an international competition in Spain in 2028.

Karen Easterbrook is stoked with silver after travelling down from Whangārei especially to compete.

She was hooked after doing a few Jigsaw Puzzle Association competitions.

“I’m pretty pleased with myself. I’ve done a lot of practice – a 500 piece puzzle pretty much every evening for the last couple of months so I’m pretty proud,” she says.

“I like to listen to a podcast so I’m really just in the zone of looking at all the different puzzle pieces, trying to match the colours mostly for different areas.

“Colours and patterns are the most important, rather than shape, and then I’ll just get a bunch of them together and figure it out.”

The puzzling community is really welcoming and anyone who wants to give it a go can look on the Jigsaw Puzzle Association website for more details, she says.

Bronze goes to Sonja Dobson with a time of 50 minutes and 31 seconds – she only started doing puzzles after arriving in New Zealand just over three years ago.

She got into puzzling to relax while doing a PhD and usually likes to take her time with longer puzzles.

“I came here to do a PhD, I finished my PhD and now I’m puzzle racing,” she says.

“I like animals. I think those are really fun to do, not the biggest fan of most landscapes or really artsy ones cos it’s quite hard to see what the picture is on all the small pieces. I’ve done a few circular ones which are pretty cool.”

Most competitors get their photo taken with the puzzle before it gets scrunched and packed up minutes after finishing.

“You did it. Now what? Sit around, looking at it? Well it’s not as exciting. I guess the exciting part is actually doing the puzzle and then once it’s done, on to the next thing.”

Next on her list is a 3000 piece puzzle and she recommends people keep an eye out for puzzles at op shops if they are interested in giving it a go.

Donnalouise Watts took fourth place in 54 minutes and 28 seconds – her best competition time yet.

She travels internationally to compete and loves to meet other puzzlers as it is often a solo activity.

“I’ve always loved jigsaw puzzles and I wanted to use them for art on my walls. Well, when my walls got full, I thought ‘I need to justify buying more puzzles’ so I started a YouTube channel. So that’s what I do now – content creation all about jigsaw puzzles.”

After retiring as an engineer, she now puzzles 40 to 50 hours a week.

Jigsaw puzzle racing started as a fun event in the 2024 Masters Games, but they have since made changes to align with the official racing rules.

Donnalouise Watts welcomes the changes that mean the time is displayed and anyone who does not finish in the allotted time gets all their connected pieces counted up and recorded.

“Imagine they’re nearly done and they have 20 pieces left, you don’t want to give them a ‘do not finish’.”

She also completed a 54,000 piece puzzle that was like walking through a gallery with famous artworks on the wall.

“It was in 27 bags of 2000 pieces each so I love ginormous puzzles that just come together and make just a beautiful image.”

It was more than eight metres by two metres and took several months to do.

The group jigsaw puzzle racing is on Thursday.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

An average of around 70 million litres of untreated wastewater has been pouring into the capital’s South Coast since Wednesday morning.

Wellington’s mayor Andrew Little told Morning Report there must be an independent inquiry into what happened, which he’s labelled a “catastrophic failure” and an “environmental disaster”.

“This is a sewage plant processing the sewage for a big city, and it has completely failed, it just completely stopped,” he said.

“Plants like this should not suffer the kind of catastrophic failure that we’ve seen.”

The volume of water and sewage were within safe working limits, he said.

“There seems to have been a blockage or some other factor that has led to the failure of the system.”

Little said residents’ anger and frustration were justified.

“I share it with them. This is my neighbourhood, this is where I take my dog for a walk, and along that coastline is where I spend my time, that’s where I go kayaking and swimming,” he said.

“It’s a priority for me personally to get to the bottom of what happened, to ensure that every resource available is going into restoring the plant, and then doing the remedial work on getting the environment cleaned up as well.”

Authorities were doing all they could to ensure people knew the water and beaches were unsafe for swimming, walking dogs and collecting seafood, he said.

But he acknowledged some eager beachgoers might ignore that advice.

“We can’t physically stop people entering the water if that’s what they wish to do, but as long as they are aware of the risk, then it’s our job to make sure they get the right information to assess that.”

Meanwhile, some locals have described a Wellington sewage plant shutdown as gross, sad and unacceptable.

An average of around 70 million litres of untreated wastewater had been pouring into the capital’s South Coast since Wednesday morning.

The Moa Point plant’s lower floors had been completely flooded when sewage backed up in the 1.8km outfall pipe, which normally sent treated wastewater into the Cook Strait.

Wellington Water chief executive Pat Dougherty said it was critical the company understood why the pipe failed.

RNZ went out to Wellington’s South Coast on Wednesday evening.

Lyall Bay on a bright summer evening would normally have been humming with surfers out in the waves and locals on their post-work walks.

But instead, the area was deserted – the only people there were Wellington Water staff members in large fluro coats warning people about the sewage.

RNZ spoke to locals from the safety of concrete paths and car parks.

Angus was planning to go down to the water for a surf, but decided against it after looking at the water.

“I didn’t want to go there because it looked like I don’t know… toilet paper or jellyfish, so I was like I don’t really want to go in on either of those.”

Stacey said she came down to the beach to enjoy the view and that the plant breakdown was “pretty shocking” and “pretty gross”.

She held concerns about how Wellington Water managed the pipes and plants.

“Where I live Ngaio there’s water out quite a lot, so this is just sort of on top of ongoing issues that they seem to have with the infrastructure.”

Kristina said the news was horrible.

“Really unacceptable, this is a beach where you might see a lot of surfers and they are all in the water all year around,” she said.

“I think it is pretty toxic.”

Leila Martley told RNZ it was a “hugely sad” situation.

“I really feel for Wellington Water.”

She also felt for Tiaki Wai – the new organisation set to take over Wellington, the Hutt Valley and Porirua’s water operations.

“It is just an awful thing to set off with.”

Further to the east of the coast at Tarakena Bay Alishba said she was about to go swimming but was warned by a local not to get in the water.

“It is pretty gross; I don’t know how that would happen though.”

A Rahui was in place throughout the South Coast, with people told not to gather food and to keep themselves and their dogs out of the water.

Wellington Water said it was taking water samples from a wide area and was expected to provide an update later on Thursday.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Police hold serious concerns for a Pāpāmoa woman who has gone missing while travelling around the central North Island in a house bus.

Nicola O’Connor’s grey-coloured Nissan house bus was found on Rapurapu Track in the Kaimai Ranges on Tuesday.

Area Manager Investigations Waikato East Detective Senior Sergeant Kristine Clarke said a search and rescue team has been unable to find her after a day of searching the popular walking track near Matamata.

The 42-year-old was known to be travelling in Bay of Plenty and Matamata in the days before her house bus was found.

Clarke said they have serious concerns for the missing woman’s welfare and are appealing to anyone who might have seen her or can help them locate her to come forward.

“We would also like to hear from anybody who was on the Rapurapu track or in that area on Tuesday that may have seen Nicola or any activity that may assist the enquiry to locate her.”

The Rapurapu track is a popular day walk for trampers located off SH29 on the Matamata side of the Kaimai Ranges.

Anyone with information on O’Connor is asked to contact police via 105 quoting file number 260203/1626.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Police say one person has died following a crash in Lower Motuere on Wednesday night.

The single vehicle crash at the intersection of Waiwhero and Edwards Roads was reported at around 8.25pm.

The sole occupant of the vehicle died at the scene.

The road was closed for some time after the crash but has since re-opened.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

A pōwhiri is being held this morning as the Prime Minister and other parliamentarians arrive at the lower Treaty Grounds.

The past few years at Waitangi have delivered political fireworks and MPs bracing for, if not necessarily expecting, a reprise when politicians are welcomed with a pōwhiri about 11am.

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, who was absent from the Treaty Grounds last year, promised to bring a message of unity.

After meeting with Māori leaders at the Iwi Chairs Forum on Wednesday, he said they were “aligned” on issues like localism, devolution and lifting Māori outcomes in health, education and law and order.

Follow our live coverage of all the action through the day at the top of this page.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Families waiting for news on British passports fear planned holidays to the United Kingdom will be upended by processing times and delivery delays.

In three weeks’ time, all UK citizens in the world will need to travel with a British passport or an endorsement (COE) when they visit there – previously dual citizens could choose to use a different passport.

Sue Sands, of Te Kuiti, left Britain with her parents when she was one and was returning there for the first time with her partner next month, to see her half-sister and other relatives.

“I was born in England and came out here as a baby. And so consequently I’ve never thought about being a British citizen because I already had my New Zealand citizenship and passport.

“And so this is the first chance in 67 years to go back and see what family’s left over there. So we’re going to London for about a week, and then Jersey for a couple of weeks where my half-sister lives.”

Those plans all depended on getting her first British passport in time. Otherwise, she may fly to France, and cross to Jersey from there using her NZ passport and an ETA (electronic travel authorisation) – having to miss out on seeing an uncle in London, who is 88, and other family in the UK.

Insurance cover

Changing flight destinations and dates also costs money.

Earlier this week, the Insurance and Financial Services Ombudsman warned travellers to check both the new UK passport rules and their travel insurance.

“Travel insurance usually won’t cover situations where a traveller doesn’t meet passport or visa requirements and can’t travel,” said ombudsman Karen Stevens.

“We commonly see travel insurance claims declined because of this. If someone can’t board a flight because they don’t have the correct passport or visa, that can turn out to be a very expensive situation.”

New Zealanders with no British citizenship also needed to be aware of the requirement for an ETA before flying, which has been in force since last year, and the upcoming changes to European Union (EU) requirements, which had been delayed but were expected by the end of the year.

“These are new, unfamiliar requirements, and it’s understandable travellers may not be aware of them,” Stevens said. “Airlines won’t generally make their customers aware of entry and passport requirements, it really is the responsibility of the traveller to make sure they know what they need.”

New Zealand-based Britons have been rushing to get passports, and noticed their applications were taking time to get to the UK via an NZ Post express tracked service.

Delivery times

They had shared NZ Post tracking information with RNZ, which suggested the $121 fast-track service had been held up in Auckland.

Other people reported good experiences, with one man saying his renewal application sent away on 15 January took 16 days door-to-door.

“I understand that many people are in a more difficult situation with a looming travel date and/or children without passports, but my advice would be don’t waste time, just get the applications away.”

Sands, who found out about the border rule change three weeks ago and had to get a copy of a marriage certificate, sent her passport application with documents to the UK on Friday, 23 January. It got to Auckland’s outbound depot swiftly, but remained there until the following Friday.

“Once in the DHL system it was quickly in the UK,” she said, reporting it was delivered to the UK passport office by Monday. “I’m told there is about a four-week [passport] processing time, then of course I need to rely on getting it back. I wonder how many others are also in limbo.”

If the passport processing estimate was accurate, and the delivery time was similar to the outward-bound one, she would potentially get the passport back a week before they were due to fly.

NZ Post did not answer questions about its current international delivery timeframes or whether it was dealing with a surge in demand. It said Customs declarations were sometimes not fully filled out, though no-one who had contacted RNZ about delays reported getting queries about missing information.

“Sensitive documents like passports and passport applications are treated as restricted items when being sent overseas, including to the UK,” said a spokeswoman. “This means passports and passport applications must be sent through our express service, to make sure these important documents remain as safe as possible throughout the journey. This is our most secure service with regular tracking notifications provided and the cost to send reflects this.

“We’re focused on getting these documents delivered safely, as quickly as possible. However, in order for us to do this it’s essential that customers correctly complete their customs declarations and provide all the information required – including a recipient phone number and an accurate contents description. Unfortunately, incomplete customs declarations can cause delays, as NZ Post needs to contact senders to make sure the correct information is captured.”

NZ Post was reminding its stores about the specific requirements for international mail to help minimise delays, she added.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

Fire and Emergency says it responded to a significant house fire in Lower Hutt overnight.

A spokesperson said four fire trucks were dispatched to a house on Wainuiomata Road after reports of a house fire shortly after midnight.

They say the house was well aflame when crews arrived, and it took several hours to extinguish.

No one was injured in the fire.

A fire investigator will return to the scene on Thursday to determine the cause.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

What message is Vonn sending to the public?

What is it like to rupture an ACL?

How common is the injury for a non-athlete?

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Clinicians are warning ADHD diagnoses might have unexpected side effects for children, after two independent studies have linked it to poor performance and unhappiness at school.

The studies involving hundreds of adolescents have independently shown those with an ADHD diagnosis tended to have worse outcomes in areas like reported happiness, academic grades, even their likelihood of self-harm.

But while some clinicians are concerned by these results, it remains true that for many people, a diagnosis brought validation and life-changing help.

Meanwhile, behavioural experts say labels and medication are far from the only solution.

The two studies, one in Irelandpublished in 2020 and one in Australia in 2022 compared children with behaviours such as hyperactivity and inattentiveness (H/I) who did have an ADHD diagnosis, to those with the same behaviours but no diagnosis.

The Australian study found diagnosed teens had a worse sense of belonging, believed in themselves less, displayed more negative social behaviours and were more likely to self-harm themselves.

Among the Irish cohort, they displayed more emotional and relationship problems, worse prosocial behaviour, and poorer self-concept.

New Zealand clinical psychologist Giselle Bahr told RNZ the results were surprising, even to the authors.

“When you compare them a few years down the track, when they’ve all become adolescents, the adolescents who have been given a formal diagnosis did worse on every measure than the children who had the same behaviours but weren’t given a diagnosis,” she said.

She said it was possible a diagnosis lead to children developing a negative view of themselves, or receiving different treatment from teachers and parents.

“I know that there’s also … people feel like they belong to a community, and they feel a relief and they feel like they finally have an answer, but the research shows that this happens, but so does this other process of stigmatisation.”

The Australian authors – Luise Kazda, Kevin McGeechan and Katy Bell – found a diagnosis had “significant negative associations with academic self-concept, negative social behaviours, sense of school membership, self-efficacy, and self-harm”, with no difference between boys and girls.

They wrote they had expected the inverse effect – that a diagnosis would have improved outcomes, and concluded a large, randomised clinical trial with long-term follow-up was needed.

The authors of the Irish study – Cliodhna O’Connor and Fiona McNicholas – identified no significant differences in the demographic characteristics or socio-emotional wellbeing of 9-year-olds with hyperactivity/inattention who had and who had not received a diagnosis of ADHD.

“However, by age 13, those who had held a diagnosis at 9 years showed more emotional and peer relationship problems, worse prosocial behaviour, and poorer self-concept. Further research is required to clarify the developmental pathways responsible for these effects.”

Bahr said while correlation did not equal causation, it would be unwise to ignore these studies – clinicians should be aware of the risks, and inform parents of the risk of a diagnosis having this effect.

“I think it’s really off for us to not be at least letting parents know that this is what studies have shown,” she said. “And you can see that with a study like that, some researchers aren’t going to want to explore that more.”

For her, it sat in the context evidenced already – like the immaturity bias, wherein the youngest child in the class was far more likely to be diagnosed with ADHD than the eldest.

[https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/585715/first-gp-prescriptions-for-adult-adhd-patients-issued

Changes to ADHD prescription rules] this week mean GPs can now prescribe ADHD medication for adults, meaning easier access to medication.

And of course, for many, a diagnosis could be life-changing for the better.

Kelly Cuff, who lives in Wairarapa, told RNZ she often thought about the person she could have been, had she been diagnosed and had access to medication earlier.

She said she got lucky in childhood, attending a small rural primary school in which the student-teacher ratios were small, which meant less chance for her to slip through the cracks.

But when she moved to intermediate and then high school, she said she had trouble focusing, found school work difficult, and was often sent out of the classroom on errands to stop her distracting her classmates, meaning she missed big chunks of learning time.

“I just sort of was constantly sort of confronted by my limitations, which was wildly frustrating.”

She observed other students who had a diagnosis receiving the help of a laptop and extra time during exams.

Outside of the classroom, she was making decisions in search of immediate rewards. “I was drinking when I was younger, I was making sort of questionable relationship choices,” she said.

“If I had support and if I had, at least, just the medication to sort of pause my thinking a little, I might not have taken so many sort of personal risks.”

It was not until about four years ago, finding herself struggling to focus in a new job, that she sought a diagnosis and medication. That had been life-changing, she said.

“I look at my dishes and I go, I should do those dishes. And then I stand up and I do them, and it’s not something that I have to force myself to do. I don’t have to bribe myself with treats or bully myself into doing it. There’s no guilt there.”

Jayne Fox, a Wellington-based ADHD coach, said plenty of adults sought a diagnosis in order to have access to medication to help them focus at work, or regulate their emotions.

A diagnosis could also provide “that feeling of legitimacy” and “self-compassion”.

But it was not the only solution.

“For some people, they may already have some level of self-understanding and self-identification with those ADHD traits, and may not be seeking that validation from a doctor,” she said. “And it may be that they are quite happy to look at what strategies can support them without an actual diagnosis of ADHD.”

Her coaching played to people’s strengths, rather than putting the emphasis on where they were lacking.

Carolyn Robertson, who works with parents of children with ADHD, told RNZ some kids responded to charts, others to a rush of dopamine from doing something they love, before settling into a difficult task.

“For us, it’s more about meeting them where they’re at, and looking at tapping into what your child is interested in and can find success in, and therefore gain a better understanding of themselves, and more confidence in themselves.”

She said sometimes differences could be a strength, and tapping into what kids were excited about could be a path to a solution.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

An Auckland grandmother looking after two of her mokopuna says she went into debt with their school to pay for uniforms and fees.

Fiona Marks recently moved to secure a bigger state house, which also meant a new school and new uniforms to buy for grandchildren under her long-term care.

Then there was footwear, yet another cost.

“You’ve got to have two different sets of shoes because they are in the high school side of the kura so they need their normal school shoes but when they get dressed into their number one uniform, when they’re representing the kura whether its powhiri or whatever, they have to have dress shoes.”

Her grandchildren wore blazers, shirts and ties as part of their school uniform.

“It’s around $700 for one child.”

Otago University research showed secondary school uniforms could cost anywhere from $250 to about $1000.

Charities and politicians are calling on school boards to keep the price of uniforms in check.

Last year, more than 38,000 hardship payments were granted to help parents with school expenses, including uniforms, totalling $11 million.

Marks said it was hard to keep up – she needed a grant from Work and Income (WINZ) to pay off debt owed to the children’s previous school.

“Last year I ended up, with the school trips, the uniforms and everything for the whole year, I ended up still owing the school around $500 at the end of the year.”

The debt parents and guardians owe schools was unknown – both the Ministry of Education and School Boards Association said they did not keep such data.

Marks receives an invalids benefit and two unsupported child benefits which, after household expenses, left $160 a week for food.

“Everyday living is just so hard and my grandson is coming up 15 in April, I mean he eats like a horse so it’s just constant in the cupboard. He can have dinner then he’s back in the cupboard.”

Her granddaughter was at high school and said her Nan did an amazing job providing for them.

A teenager, she also worried about the cost of school uniforms.

She did not have the exact uniform required for Monday – and did not end up going to school.

Variety sponsors Fiona Marks’ two grandchildren and chief executive Susan Glasgow said moving to a new area could put huge pressure on families.

The charity recently helped a father to pay for his children’s third school uniform after he moved the family out of transitional housing.

“When they were moved to a third transitional house, they were moved to a third school requiring yet another uniform and they couldn’t borrow any more money from WINZ so they came to us,” Glasgow said.

“He was in tears at our door asking for our help so we provided the funding for him to get a school uniform for his children.”

She said some families were forced to move if they were in temporary housing.

“That’s the reality of the situation, families are being moved so they require more than one school uniform. It’s really hard for many members of our community.”

This year Variety had recorded a 16 percent increase in requests for help to pay for school uniforms and fees.

Glasgow said it would help if schools allowed generic school uniform basics to be bought anywhere.

“One of the things that schools might consider is this notion that they have in Britain of the uniform uniform, where a family or a child is only expected to have a maximum of three branded items.”

Variety sponsored more than 7000 children and there were 3000 on its waitlist.

Now in her 60s, Marks had looked after grandchildren off and on since she was in her 40s and has had custody of two for over a decade.

“I am enjoing life with my grandchildren but I should be able to be sitting in my home just relaxing doing what I want to do without responsibilities of grandchildren, but I wouldn’t give them up for anything.”

Even so, she would like the government to do more to support grandparents looking after their mokopuna.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

This year, the most contested “ice” at the Winter Olympics isn’t on the rink – it’s US Immigration and Customs Enforcement

For Kiwis, the Winter Olympics no longer feels like we’re on the outside looking in.

RNZ First Up presenter and sport reporter Nathan Rarere says New Zealand has a great team of 17 for the Italian games which start on Friday.

In a Games that has long been dominated by Northern Hemisphere countries – specifically, Norway – our young snow athletes are really starting to make their mark. And that should add excitement to what has long been a thrilling spectator event.

Today on The Detail, Winter Olympics tragic Rarere talks about the highlights, the anticipated wins, and the controversies of the Games.

And before the world’s spotlight has even reached the Italian snow, a different kind of ICE has secured a part in the 2026 Winter Olympics story, dominating headlines, causing anger, and a chilling unrest.

The focus is meant to be on tomorrow’s opening ceremony, but away from the slopes, controversy has followed reports of ICE agents operating around Olympic infrastructure to support American security operations during the 19-day-long Games, hosted in Milan and Cortina.

“This is a militia that kills… of course they’re not welcome in Milan,” the city’s mayor, Beppe Sala, was quick to tell an Italian broadcaster.

An ICE spokesperson responded by saying that “all security operations remain under Italian authority”.

But still, hundreds of protestors took to Italian streets at the weekend, arguing it risks chilling effects – on athletes, spectators, and media – particularly those travelling on complex visas or from politically sensitive regions.

Rarere, a long-time Winter Games follower who covered the most recent Summer Olympics in Paris, tells The Detail that while the locals aren’t happy about the arrival of ICE agents, teams have been known to send security with their athletes in the past.

“When I did Paris [in 2024] … the security was incredible, I had never seen so many actual soldiers,” he says.

“And on the Champs Élysées, I think it was the second to last day, I saw a group of about 12 of them coming along, all the mirrored glasses and what-have-you, and then there was a guy walking along and then up goes the finger to the earpiece and there was a nod, and then they all turned and follow, and they completely enveloped him and demanded to have a look in his bags.

“The security everywhere was massive, even coming in from the airport… my cab driver was so excited, he said ‘the German police are doing the motorway, they are the best, you watch them’, and they were just right up to cars – vans in particular, they were very worried about vans, they would bang on the side of them…. so, security is always massive at these Games.

“I don’t think America really needed to send their own. I don’t understand why they did. I don’t think the rest of the world understands either, and I know from the Europeans, they were like ‘hey, we have it covered, we are fine’.”

Sports not politics

He says the focus should be on the athletes and their performances, not the politics.

This year’s Games, he says, will be spread across two distinct hosts: the fashion capital of Milan and the dramatic peaks of Cortina d’Ampezzo in the Italian Dolomites. It will be “visually stunning”.

For New Zealand athletes the road to get there is always longer than most – geographically, financially, and often psychologically.

Rarere says competing isn’t just about medals. It’s about legitimacy – proving New Zealand belongs in winter sports’ biggest arena.

“From a New Zealand point of view, these games are all about where we stand in the world now, in these sports, because we have made massive strides.”

He says, “Possibly, we have three medals coming our way, which will be massive.”

“That’s if [alpine skier] Alice Robinson can recapture her form, if [free ski halfpipe athlete] Ben Harrington can keep his as well, and if [women’s snowboard slopestyle and Big Air athlete] Zoi Sadowski-Synnott can keep hers as well, I think those are the three medallists.”

It should be noted that Kiwi gold medal Olympian Nico Porteous won’t compete at the Games; he walked away from competitive free skiing last year, retiring at age 23.

Rarere did point out that the difference between winning an Olympic medal in ski jumping or being disqualified this year could come down to a tiny piece of fabric.

In an unusual cheating scandal, it’s been discovered that the cold temperature on the ski jump ramp has an indirect effect on aerodynamics.

Dubbed the “crotch-enlarging scandal” or even “Penisgate”, the controversy centres on Norwegian team officials who were caught illegally modifying athletes’ suits to gain an aerodynamic edge, specifically by enlarging the crotch area for extra lift and distance.

“They can jump an extra five to six metres… that’s the difference.”

Regulators have now added new measures to ensure all competitors play by the same rules after the scandal rocked the sport.

All up, about 2800 of the world’s best athletes will participate in the 2026 Winter Games, which run until February 22.

The Winter Paralympic Games will be from March 6-15.

Ski mountaineering will make its Olympic debut, featuring three events – men’s and women’s sprints, and a mixed relay.

Skeleton will also feature a mixed team event for the first time in the Games’ history, while separate men’s and women’s doubles events will be held in luge, replacing the open doubles event.

The alpine skiing mixed team parallel event has been removed, with the men and women set to compete at separate resorts.

But the question hanging over these Games isn’t just who will win.

It’s whether the Olympics can still be a place where the hardest part of the journey begins at the start gate – not at passport control.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

The Tauranga mayor said any decisions on the land immediately surrounding the fatal Mount Maunganui landslide will be months away, but feels it is unlikely that the area will remain a campsite in the future.

Six people died after a section of the maunga collapsed into a campground during the extreme weather event two weeks ago.

On Wednesday, Mayor Mahé Drysdale announced that Tauranga is moving to a “transition period” for a month, focusing on assessing damage and making plans for what reopening Mauao looks like.

The mayor said any decisions on the future of the land surrounding the landslide will require conversations with iwi, communities, and people closely affected by the tragedy.

“We’ve got a number of conversations to have with the families of those that lost loved ones, because we also want to be respectful and understand what they’d like to see,

“I think I can probably confidently say we don’t have a campground where the slip happened, we got to make some decisions around what we do with that land and how we remember this very tragic event,” he said.

Access to Mauao is restricted, and cordons remain along parts of Marine Parade and Adams Avenue, as geotechnical experts assess conditions.

Drysdale said the current focus is to mitigate risks around the Mount Maunganui landslip, so that businesses nearby can open before the Waitangi weekend.

He said three businesses remain closed on Adams Avenue, but he’s hopeful that they can safely open by Friday.

Drysdale said shipping containers have been put in as a precaution, and more work will be done on Thursday to stabilise the land.

“By putting these mitigations in place, and this is always subject to geotechnical advice, we’re confident that we can make it safe enough that we’re happy to open that,” he said.

Drysdale said businesses have had a hard time since the tragedy, and he hopes that visitors can still come and support them during the Waitangi weekend.

“We hope that people still come down to the area and support these businesses, this was a natural disaster and no doing of themselves, but they have been caught in the crossfire, so we’re doing what we can to support them,” he said.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

Some locals have described a Wellington sewage plant shutdown as gross, sad and unacceptable.

An average of around 70 million litres of untreated wastewater had been pouring into the capital’s South Coast since Wednesday morning.

The Moa Point plant’s lower floors had been completely flooded when sewage backed up in the 1.8km outfall pipe, which normally sent treated wastewater into the Cook Strait.

Wellington Water chief executive Pat Dougherty said it was critical the company understood why the pipe failed.

RNZ went out to Wellington’s South Coast on Wednesday evening.

Lyall Bay on a bright summer evening would normally have been humming with surfers out in the waves and locals on their post-work walks.

But instead, the area was deserted – the only people there were Wellington Water staff members in large fluro coats warning people about the sewage.

RNZ spoke to locals from the safety of concrete paths and carparks.

Angus was planning to go down to the water for a surf, but decided against it after looking at the water.

“I didn’t want to go there because it looked like I don’t know… toilet paper or jellyfish, so I was like I don’t really want to go in on either of those.”

Stacey said she came down to the beach to enjoy the view and that the plant breakdown was “pretty shocking” and “pretty gross”.

She held concerns about how Wellington Water managed the pipes and plants.

“Where I live Ngaio there’s water out quite a lot, so this is just sort of on top of ongoing issues that they seem to have with the infrastructure.”

Kristina said the news was horrible.

“Really unacceptable, this is a beach where you might see a lot of surfers and they are all in the water all year around,” she said.

“I think it is pretty toxic.”

Leila Martley told RNZ it was a “hugely sad” situation.

“I really feel for Wellington Water.”

She also felt for Tiaki Wai – the new organisation set to take over Wellington, the Hutt Valley and Porirua’s water operations.

“It is just an awful thing to set off with.”

Further to the east of the coast at Tarakena Bay Alishba said she was about to go swimming but was warned by a local not to get in the water.

“It is pretty gross; I don’t know how that would happen though.”

A Rahui was in place throughout the South Coast, with people told not to gather food and to keep themselves and their dogs out of the water.

Wellington Water said it was taking water samples from a wide area and was expected to provide an update later on Thursday.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

An Auckland couple who accidentally received $158,000 in a bank transfer error, spending most of the money within days, have each been sentenced to six months of community detention.

Senia Filipo, 39, and her 37-year-old husband, Alexander, were sentenced at the Auckland District Court on Tuesday.

Mistaken transfer

In January 2024, Mt Roskill pensioner Sit Bong (Andrew) Che, now 79, tried to transfer his life savings from Barclays Bank in the United Kingdom to his Westpac account in New Zealand.

However, Che missed a digit when entering his account details due to what he claimed was a “sticky keyboard” and, following the bank’s own protocols, Westpac added a zero to the suffix, which ended up sending the money to Senia Filipo’s account.

Senia received the money a couple of weeks later, withdrawing $3000 from two ATMs, paying off a loan worth about $18,694 and making two large transfers to her husband’s Westpac account on the same day, according to the summary of facts.

Two days later, she bought a car for $49,000, and then withdrew a total of $9000 on five other occasions, primarily using the money at food and retail stores.

In March, Senia made her last large purchase of $1500 at Mag and Tyre before the acquired funds had been used.

She was charged with intending to deprive Che of $158,643.88 after obtaining control over the money, irrespective of how it was obtained.

Senia told Alexander she had unexpectedly received a large sum of money in her account.

Alexander then received two payments from Senia totaling $59,000, and another $5000 on a later date.

He was charged with having been reckless as to whether the money transferred to him had been obtained by an imprisonable offence.

The couple’s charges each carried a maximum penalty of seven years in prison, with both pleading guilty.

Che only discovered that he had not received the funds in March, notifying Westpac.

Following an investigation, the bank recovered a little over $28,000.

Che made several efforts to get his money back, contacting police, the banks in New Zealand and the UK as well as the banking ombudsmen in both jurisdictions, receiving a refund in full by Barclays in May last year.

Gambling windfall implausible

Senia and Alexander Filipo claimed they thought the money was winnings from an online casino game.

However, Judge Simon Lance found the explanation implausible.

The couple failed to make further enquiries into the nature of the funds, even though Senia’s bank statement listed Barclays as the sender instead of a casino, Lance said.

The judge also noted discrepancies in the couple’s accounts, questioning why any winnings would be paid to Senia if Alexander was the person who gambled.

He also considered the way in which the large amount of money was spent.

“They didn’t think to themselves that this can’t be right. They just went and spent it,” Judge Lance said. “[Claiming the money was a] windfall from online gambling lacks plausibility.

“It makes it hard for me to accept that the couple honestly thought the money was theirs and now they have pleaded guilty.”

The couple both applied for discharge without conviction and had sought permanent name suppression.

Acknowledging the couple did not hold any previous convictions, accepting their remorse as genuine and recognising their need to support five young children, Judge Lance sentenced each of them to a six-month community detention.

The judge refused to grant permanent name suppression as he didn’t feel the threshold for extreme hardship had been met.

In a victim impact statement, Che said he had “suffered significant financial, physical and emotional hardship over approximately 18 months”.

“The funds taken represented my retirement savings,” Che said. “During this period, I experienced severe stress, difficulty sleeping and eating, and lost over 10kg in weight.”

Che said he had been unable to make a substantial financial contribution to his son’s wedding and had become socially withdrawn.

“Justice [has] been served,” he said.

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

An inmate has died after being transported to Mt Eden prison on his way back from court.

Corrections acting deputy commissioner men’s prisons David Pattinson confirmed in a statement to RNZ that a man had died after being transported to the prison in a First Security escort vehicle about 3pm on Wednesday.

“The court escort had returned to Mt Eden Corrections Facility after taking the prisoner to court. Upon opening the prisoner’s cell, staff have found the prisoner unresponsive. Our staff made every effort to save him, however they were unable to revive him.

“The prisoner was secured in his own cell within the van. There are no indications the death is suspicious.”

Do you know more? Email sam.sherwood@rnz.co.nz

Pattinson said Corrections’ thoughts were with those impacted by the man’s death.

“Staff and prisoners are being provided with support, including access to Chaplains and cultural support where requested.”

Police had been notified, and had contacted the man’s next of kin.

“All deaths in custody are referred to the Coroner for investigation and determination of cause of death.

“An investigation by the independent Corrections Inspectorate will also be carried out.”

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Source: Radio New Zealand

A man has been charged with murder after the death of a woman in Clutha on 23 January.

Emergency services were called to Adams Flats Road in Crichton around 6.10pm.

A woman was found deceased, and a second person was critically injured.

Police said a man has been arrested and charged with the murder after a bedside hearing on Wednesday.

“We understand this is a distressing event for the small community,” detective senior sergeant Nik Leigh said.

“Police would like to reassure residents that officers are not searching for any other people in relation to the matter.”

Friends and co-workers named the murdered woman as Jillian Clark, who worked at Clutha Vets in Milton.

John Smart said he worked with Clark for about 30 years at different branches of the veterinarian practice. He said Clark had a keen interest in sheep health and production.

“She was a highly respected vet, it’s a hell of a shock,” he said.

The tight-knit Clutha Vets team would be heartbroken, as would farmers from Taieri to Milton, Smart said.

“I know the whole community down there will be absolutely in mourning for the tragedy of losing Jillian. She was just a great lady, a great community member, and supported the farmers in particular.”

A death notice described Clark as a much-loved family member who was tragically taken.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Te Arikinui Kuini Nga wai hono i te po, the Māori Queen, has pledged to give the proceeds of the annual Turangawaewae Regatta to Māori communities impacted by severe weather events.

Ngātiwai in the North, Tauranga Moana and Te Tai Rāwhiti will receive the proceeds from the annual event, which sees thousands descend on the bank of the river at Ngāruawahia every year.

Waikato-Tainui chair Tukoroirangi Morgan made the announcement on Wednesday afternoon, following a formal welcome onto the Waitangi Treaty Grounds.

Speaking to RNZ, Morgan said the regatta was a chance for the community to celebrate culture and enjoy each other’s company.

He said the century-old gathering would now be a chance to give some relief to those affected by recent flooding.

The announcement comes off the back of a visit by Te Arikinui to Ngāiotonga Marae, a marae belonging to Ngātiwai, whose rohe was ravaged by the weather.

Morgan said the visit was a first-hand look at the degree and the level of devastation in a tiny community tucked away on the coast.

“It’s really important that people hear the stories… the stories of rescue, of struggle. As a result of that, [Te Arikinui] was driven to make this gesture of financial support.”

“People have lost their homes, people have worried about the short-term and long-term future. The best way to help is to reach out, provide some relief and some form of support – that’s exactly what the Queen is doing.” he said.

Green MP and former Ngātiwai Trust Board chief executive Huhana Lyndon told RNZ her people were grateful for the manāki.

“That announcement took my breath away.”

Lyndon said there had been ongoing support from groups all over the country, and the Queen’s announcement “demonstrates the way that we come together in times of crisis.”

Welcoming Te Arikinui onto Ngāiotonga Marae left the local “starstruck”, she said.

“Our tamariki mokopuna were there, whānau came… for myself, I’m from that rohe as well. My kainga is there and our farm was heavily impacted by the storm.”

“We’ve got significant damage and many months of work to come. So it just lifts your spirits, having that attention.”

The Turangawaewae Regatta celebrations kick off on Saturday, 21 March on the riverbank at Turangawaewae Marae.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

A man has been charged with murder after the death of a woman in Clutha on 23 January.

Emergency services were called to Adams Flats Road in Crichton around 6.10pm.

A woman was found deceased, and a second person was critically injured.

Police said a man has been arrested and charged with the murder after a bedside hearing on Wednesday.

“We understand this is a distressing event for the small community,” detective senior sergeant Nik Leigh said.

“Police would like to reassure residents that officers are not searching for any other people in relation to the matter.”

Friends and co-workers named the murdered woman as Jillian Clark, who worked at Clutha Vets in Milton.

John Smart said he worked with Clark for about 30 years at different branches of the veterinarian practice. He said Clark had a keen interest in sheep health and production.

“She was a highly respected vet, it’s a hell of a shock,” he said.

The tight-knit Clutha Vets team would be heartbroken, as would farmers from Taieri to Milton, Smart said.

“I know the whole community down there will be absolutely in mourning for the tragedy of losing Jillian. She was just a great lady, a great community member, and supported the farmers in particular.”

A death notice described Clark as a much-loved family member who was tragically taken.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

When strong New Year’s Eve winds broke the cabling on an historic bridge, its future came under a cloud.

Sitting above the flat lands surrounding State Highway 56 in southern Manawatū, the former Ōpiki toll bridge will now dramatically change shape, as this week its decaying cables come down.

This will leave only the landmark’s pylons still standing.

Time has taken its toll on a bridge that for nearly 50 years cost some loose change to cross – saving motorists a lengthy trip.

For the second time in just over two years, the ageing structure has sagged into the water below.

And this week regional council officials announced the fix – removing the cabling, meaning the old bridge becomes less recognisable.

No one’s crossed since shortly after it closed in 1969 and its decking was removed, but thousands of people drive past what remains every week.

Toll days recalled

Spanning the view from Clive Akers’ living room window, the concrete towers and cabling of the Ōpiki bridge dominate the skyline – it’s a view that’s about to change.

Originally build for the family flax business in 1918, that industry’s collapse meant it instead became a private toll bridge over the Manawatū River until its closure in 1969, when the current highway bridge was built.

“Oh yes, there was a toll keeper,” Akers said.

The position was similar to a lighthouse keeper, in that the worker would live onsite and almost always be on call.

This and other parts of the bridge’s history are detailed in the book Suspended Access, written by Akers’ mother Molly two decades ago.

Akers recalled how one toll keeper was rescued by boat when the surrounding area flooded. The area still floods regularly today, which often closes the highway.

The busiest days of the week were Saturdays, when there was horse racing on.

“I remember as a teenager, when [the toll keeper] had his day off and would go to town, myself and one of my brothers or sisters would go up there and be toll keepers for half a day,” Akers said.

“We were warned of a car coming – one side there was an air pipe. When the car tyre ran over it it rang a bell in the house.”

From the other side the toll keeper would hear a car rattle the bridge’s loose boards – because a suspension bridge moves, the wooden planks couldn’t be nailed down.

In later years it cost 10 cents a trip for vehicles under three tonnes.

At night there was a barrier arm to keep vehicles out – although if a motorist was insistent on getting through, the toll keeper could charge them triple, Akers said.

While locals were happy enough to contribute to the bridge’s upkeep in exchange for quicker trips between Palmerston North and Foxton, not everyone was as impressed.

“During the 1930s the minister of public works was horrified when he came through Ōpiki and he was charged a toll to cross this bridge.

“He said, ‘Nowhere in New Zealand should there be a toll bridge.’ He told the toll keeper, ‘I’m going to have a public bridge here in the next five years.’ That never happened.”

Instead, the arrangement of a private bridge spanning the river, with public roads either side, continued for three more decades.

Akers said he was relaxed about the cabling’s removal.

“Of course, there’s not so many people now who have actually got memories of going over the bridge.

“It closed in 1969. That’s over 50 years ago.”

Tough breaks

One of the bridge’s cables, which are said to come from Waihi’s gold mines, failed in 2023 and fell into the river.

It was fixed the next year, paid for by Horizons Regional Council, which now owns the structure, but the same cable again broke on 31 December.

The bridge has a category 1 rating from Pouhere Taonga Heritage NZ and Historic Places Trust Manawatū Horowhenua chairwoman Cindy Lilburn said it was an icon.

It was significant as New Zealand’s first private toll bridge and, when built, the country’s longest suspension bridge – about 150 metres.

“It stands alone in what’s a very flat landscape and it has a certain sort of spookiness, which has been suggested for use in films, because it rises out of the mist in the morning.

“It is such a landmark.”

Lilburn said the trust had favoured a solution to ensure the bridge’s long-term survival.

“We’d like to at least have the opportunity to talk about a long-term plan.

“The reality is suspension bridges aren’t actually that difficult to build. It requires running cabling up and over, so there is the potential solution that you could put new cabling up and over and then clip the old cabling to that.”

But with the news this week that wouldn’t happen – at least any time soon – she said the trust was saddened.

The cables had contributed visually to the bridge’s status as a landmark.

“There’s a certain degree of elegance we’ve now lost,” she said.

Council general manager catchment operations Dr Jon Roygard told RNZ last week that officials were working through options to fix the latest break, while also considering a long-term solution.

Until something was done, the broken cabling remained a hazard, he said.

“It’s a stretch of the river where people can use it for jet boating or that sort of thing. I don’t think it’s a highly used area.

“We have put signs up. We really recommend caution in that area. In fact, we’d rather people weren’t in there and operating around it.”

This week, Roygard confirmed that the cabling, which was in poor condition, was coming down.

“The other cable, while it has not fallen, is in similar condition to the one currently in the river. We will remove this cable at the same time to avoid the possibility of it also falling,” he said.

“Removing both cables at the same time also helps to bring the cost of the works down.

“Doing one cable now and the other at a later date is significantly more expensive than removing both at the same time.”

He acknowledged the bridge’s history, but said the regional council also had obligations for navigational safety in the Manawatū River and for the use of public money.

Sections of the cabling would be gifted to the Historic Places Trust and the Akers family, Roygard said.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

Cries of “shame on you” rang out from the public gallery as Clutha councillors voted to drop an investigation into vehicle-free zones on beaches in the district on Wednesday afternoon.

The council is instead investigating beach speed limits as a means to protect the coastline and its wildlife, following complaints about drivers harassing seals and sea lions.

The review of the Vehicles on Beaches bylaw started a year ago after a group allegedly harassed a sea lion at Tautuku Beach in the Catlins.

In 2024, three sea lions were found dead with gunshot or stab wounds

Councillors opted to defer any decision-making until after October’s local elections. Then, at a workshop in December, the new council moved to cancel the beach ‘safe zone’ review.

That was formalised by a vote at Wednesday’s council meeting, where just one councillor was opposed.

Councillor Simon McAtamney said he was part of the previous council and he was still open to looking into the safe zone review.

Councillor Bruce Graham argued vehicle bans would be hard to enforce and there would always be “dickheads that are going to break those rules”.

“I can’t see any advantage of changing what we have here except for a speed limit changes… I can’t see any advantages of closing beaches or making safe zones,” he said.

Council staff said work was underway on a speed limit review covering the district’s beaches and it would be complete by October.

During the meeting, a group of residents could be seen in the back of the chamber holding a sign that read ‘Honour Your Word’.

When the council voted in favour of scrapping the review, the protesters called out “shame on you” and filed out of the council chambers.

Earlier, during public deputations, Papatowai Beach resident Keith Olsen argued the beach needed stronger protections to make it safe for all users – human and “non-human”.

The beach was home to ground-nesting birds such as oystercatchers and had a regular visiting elephant seal, he said.

Signage was not enough to prevent the dangerous use of vehicles on the beach, Olsen said.

“Just saying don’t be a dickhead doesn’t cut the mustard with the sort of people who are likely to be dickheads,” he said.

Papatowai resident Diana Noonan said some councillors had made important promises relating to the environment.

“I appeal to you today… that you remember your promises from the past and that you do not dishonour them,” she said.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

The High Court has dismissed an environmental charity’s claim that an emergency ban on set net fishing around Otago Peninsula didn’t go far enough to protect hoiho.

The Environmental Law Initiative (ELI) filed proceedings against Fisheries Minister Shane Jones last year, claiming the ban failed to protect hoiho from the risk of extinction.

It said the closure should have encompassed the entire northern hoiho range, including North Otago, the Catlins, Stewart Island/Rakiura and Foveaux Strait.

While the court recognised the severe risk facing northern hoiho, it found the temporary emergency closure lawful, as section 16 of the Fisheries Act gave the Minister significant discretion in establishing the parameters of an emergency closure.

Hoiho, yellow-eyed penguins, are critically endangered. The northern hoiho population, which is found in and around Canterbury, Otago and Southland, has been in sharp decline in recent years.

The court said hoiho were “priceless” and a taonga, and emphasised that their protection was essential, with the the minister required to take whatever measures are necessary to ensure the survival of the nothern hoiho population.

ELI senior legal advisor Megan Cornforth-Camden said it was important to challenge the decision, given hoiho numbers were declining and little had been done to protect hoiho at sea.

“The judgement contains some of the strongest statements written by the courts about the sustainability provisions in the Fisheries Act and how they apply to threatened species, so although ELI were not successful on the grounds of the judicial review we were very pleased with the outcome.”

Hoiho numbers have fallen by around 80 percent since 2008, with fewer than 150 breeding pairs remaining. Several factors are responsible for this collapse, one of which is commercial set net fishing. Every year the birds become entangled in fishing nets while foraging for food.

Jones initially closed the set net fishery around Otago Peninsula in September for three months, before announcing in December it had been extended for a further nine months, to September 2026, with the public to be consulted during the closure on long term protections.

Justice David Boldt said the decision to implement an emergency ban was a precursor to a set of longer-term measures that would be far more important to the long-term future of the northern hoiho.

“It is difficult to escape the conclusion that ELI, in its haste to do whatever it can to protect the penguins, has challenged the wrong decision.”

However, the court found potential economic detriment to commercial fishers could never be a justification for allowing the decline of the population to continue.

“There is no dispute that the [Fisheries] Act’s sustainability imperative extends to the need to take whatever steps are necessary to ensure the survival of the northern hoiho population.

“In practical terms, that means that if commercial fishing cannot occur in an environmentally sustainable manner – which in this context means in a way which ensures it poses no material risk to the survival of the northern hoiho – it cannot occur at all.”

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Source: Radio New Zealand

A child has died after being hit by a car in Springston in Canterbury.

The police say the child was walking when they were hit at about 3.30pm.

Emergency services responded but they died at the scene.

A large portion of the rural part of Leeston Road is closed while the Serious Crash Union investigates.

Leeston Road was closed and diversions were in place at the Goulds Road and Leeston Road intersection and at the Bethels Road and Leeston Road intersection.

Motorists were advised to avoid the area and expect delays.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

The head of Wellington Water says about 70 million litres of raw sewage is now flowing into the sea each day.

Untreated water is leaking onto the capital’s south coast beaches due to the Moa Point Treatment Plant flooding and being turned off from early this morning.

The water company said it could take months to fully repair the sewage infrastructure.

The Department of Conservation said given the location of the sewage spill, mussels, kina, pāua, sponges, fish, and penguins could be at risk.

How long the discharge continues, the volume of effluent, and ocean current, swell and wind would determine if other species would also be at risk.

And there may be environmental impacts like algal blooms and deoxygenated water as a result of the spill, as well as bacteria, viruses, and parasites.

It said it doesn’t intend to visit the site at this time because of the risk to human health.

Wellington Water chief executive Pat Dougherty told Checkpoint the critical question will be why the Moa Point’s outfall pipe backed up this morning.

“We need to get a camera down there to understand why that didn’t perform.”

Dougherty said Wellington Water was alerted to the issue two hours later than it should have.

“That’s one of the things I will be asking about but at the moment I don’t want that team distracted from things getting fixed.”

He guessed it would be two months before the plant was fully operational.

Dougherty confirmed an average of around 70 million litres of raw sewage was now flowing into Wellington’s South Coast.

At 4:42pm on Wednesday, RNZ saw just over a dozen people out at the South Coast.

No one was in the water other than a dog or two and there was no smell or obvious change in water colour.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

An advocate for Aucklanders affected by the 2023 storms says a group of homeowners should have been advised of a move to avoid writing-off their properties.

Auckland Council will amend the buyout terms to increase funding for 13 homes at risk of future flooding or landslides to build retaining walls, move or lift the homes, to make them safe.

It means the homes can be lived in and the council will not have to pay up to $14 million buying out the properties – the homeowners have not yet been advised.

West Auckland is Flooding spokesperson Lyall Carter said some of them likely would have preferred a buyout.

“The people that are advocating on behalf of storm-impacted people, we don’t know who these people are and as far as we’re aware, these people don’t know who they are.”

He said they did not know what situations these homeowners were in.

“How far are they through this process, are they near the end of the process, do they expect to be bought out through this process? I mean, can understand why from a fiscal point of view they’re making this decision but you don’t change the rules halfway through the game.”

Carter said the homeowners should have been notified of the change before it went to councillors to vote on, on Tuesday.

“While I can understand on one hand the need to be good financial stewards, this is not the way in which you in my view that you work with victims of a weather disaster.”

As part of the buyout scheme, the council can now fund grants up to 40 percent of the property’s capital value (CV), an increase from 25 percent.

If building work exceeded that 25 percent limit, a variation could be sought to increase it or the homeowner could opt to be bought out.

Council’s recovery office said it would be contacting the homeowners with the details once the buyout terms are changed.

There are 75 Auckland properties in the early stages of having building works costed that would make them safe to live in.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand