Schools have been shut, businesses inundated and dozens of roads closed around Christchurch today, as heavy rain continues to lash the region

Three teen killers have gone to the Court of Appeal in an attempt to get their life imprisonment sentences ruled as unjust.

Floods are likely to close State Highway One in a number of spots in the lower South Island tonight, the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi is warning.

Police are reminding tradespeople to secure their tools, after 30 thefts from vehicles in the region in three months.

Police now believe there is no specific risk after schools in three districts went into lockdown after receiving phone threats.

There are 9256 new community cases of Covid-19 today and 822 hospitalisations, the Ministry of Health says.

A cult-like church that exerts almost complete control over its members has metastasised into a multinational corporation with massive buying power.

The $620m project, due to open in late 2024, will replace narrow, windy routes motorists have been forced to endure since slips closed State Highway 3 through the Manawatū Gorge.

Police are appealing for information and CCTV footage after launching a homicide inquiry into a Dunedin man's death.

A liquor store has been ram-raided overnight in Island Bay in Wellington.

Police have new information in the unsolved murder of Canterbury teenager Kirsty Bentley, and now believe her killer was likely to have been a cannabis user.

Two families in Stokes Valley were evacuated last week when their homes were left teetering on a cliff-edge.

Secondary school principals have united to make an unprecedented call for help from the government.

A wahine Māori who has been infected with shingles several times is urging people to get vaccinated, as a new study has found a link between Covid-19 infection and an increased susceptibility to virus.

A new report from Water Safety New Zealand has shown 2021 was the worst year for drowning deaths in a decade.

Newmarket locals are frustrated with Destiny Church leader Brian Tamaki, saying Saturday's protest left people cut off from sick family and businesses counting yet more losses.

The High Court trial on charges over political donations to both Labour and National has begun in Auckland.

The specialists are accusing the government of ignoring them while going ahead and expanding the reach of facial recognition technology.