Emergency services are at the scene of a one car crash at the intersection of Waikite Valley Rd and SH5, south of Rotorua.

Acting Civil Defence Minister Gerry Brownlee has been accused of vilifying a Geonet scientist who spoke out about the need for a better tsunami warning system in New Zealand.

Emergency services say a crash on Redoubt Rd in South Auckland could cause delays for commuters.

An elderly woman and her son-in-law were close to death when a tree fell in Cornwall Park, an off-duty cop says.

TRAGEDY: Sixty-eight-year-old Bruce Smith died during the Sand to Surf event on Saturday. PHOTO/ANDREW WARNER 191116aw21bop By staff

Emergency services are attending the scene of a car crash involving 11 people in Christchurch, where there are concerns a fight could break out.

The family of an 11-year-old who was critically injured in a horror crash in Ngaruawahia had to turn off his life-support.

A 9-year-old boy in a critical condition in Waikato Hospital's Intensive Care Unit is one of seven young people hurt in a car crash in Ngaruawahia last night.

A man suffered serious head injuries after crashing into a power pole in Waiuku, and three others were injured in a Glenn Innes crash.

A string of motorists is stranded on State Highway 2 as authorities across the Wellington region prepare for evacuations.

Tourism leaders fear the image of New Zealand as a destination will be harmed by the earthquakes.

There are reports that a floor in Statistics House has pancaked onto the one below. Staff won't be returning for up to a year.

Little crime in Kaikoura overnight, but police now gearing up for traffic issues further north as weather worsens.

On an impulse, Jamie Brosnahan and Jonathon O'Neill spent Sunday night in Kaikoura. The Rotorua couple were heading for Hanmer Springs

Wellington CBD is open for business, but workers should check with their employers before heading into town for work.

Two men armed with guns who tried to rob a shop were chased from the scene by a woman wielding a broom handle.

A 100-year-old woman pulled alive from the rubble of her farmhouse had lived on the homestead for 64 years. Margaret Edgar was asleep

Government forces including transport ship Canterbury will be mobilised to get about 1000 tourists out of earthquake hit Kaikoura.

People forced out of their homes and hotels in Wellington following this morning's severe 7.5 earthquake have all found somewhere to go.

Images are starting to come out of Kaikoura where widespread damage and one death has occurred.

The dog was spotted by a rescue helicopter on Saturday morning after going over the top of the hill on Tuesday.

A man is dead after an incident in Whanganui.

Some of the victims of the Croydon tram disaster were decapitated, say witnesses.

Emergency services confirm an elderly man who fell into a causeway has died.

A truck carrying an estimated 5700 litres of bitumen crashed between Feilding and Halcombe this morning.

A man in his 40s has died and another is in a serious condition after an ammonia gas leak at a Carlsberg factory.

Police are investigating whether a tram driver fell asleep at the wheel after at least seven people were killed when his speeding vehicle derailed.

Emergency services responding to reports of a car in the water at Blockhouse Bay today soon learned the car had been there for a number of weeks.

The body of a woman killed while crossing the road was left lying on the road for three hours after her death.

A Fire Service spokesman said the fire in Napier was contained fairly quickly.