A man has been charged with the murder of a 23-year-old woman shot at her home in Otaki Beach yesterday.

The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) is investigating the cause of a helicopter crash which left a pilot with head injuries after it came down north of Levin this morning.

A woman who was injured and lost her friend after a drink driver crashed into their picnic says she is still suffering from emotional trauma.

A man has been charged with manslaughter over the death of a woman hit by a car while picnicking with a friend on the roadside north of Wellington last month.

New Zealand's road to the 2012 London Olympic begins in Adelaide this weekend at the Oceania track championships.