An avalanche closed Mt Hutt today but the mountain has now reopened and though some skiers were partially buried, no one was hurt.

A woman who died after rolling her quad-bike was an experienced rider who appeared to have been doing everything right, police say.

A North Shore 18-year-old is lucky to be alive after falling multiple storeys from a carpark building during a night of drinking and taking Ecstasy.

A 63-year-old council contractor survived a 40m plunge down a sheer rock face from the peak of Mt Maunganui.

A man is dead after his car rolled at Leeston, about 40km southwest of Christchurch, early today.

A businessman has told of his desperate attempts to save his badly injured wife after she drove off the road in bad weather.

A climber plunged 300m to his death in front of dozens of horrified skiers on Mt Ruapehu yesterday.

The Mountain Safety Council is strongly recommending skiers and snowboarders wear helmets after another fatality at Mount Hutt skifield in Canterbury.

A Christchurch man has died from injuries after falling about 300m at Mt Hutt Ski Area, the third skiing fatality on the mountain this year.

A NZ-born woman has been killed after falling 200m down a cliff during a dream holiday.

A helicopter pilot was sending and receiving text messages in the minutes prior to being killed in a crash, a report says.