The spring rainy season had already brought death and destruction to northern Afghanistan.

Editorial: Four times in a month heavy rain has turned the Flockton Basin in Christchurch into a lake - and the country watches in disbelief that nothing's being done.

Another strong aftershock has rattled Solomon Islands early this morning, following yesterday's 7.6 quake that's compounded flood misery in the country.

More than 50,000 people have been affected by the flash floods that have devastated the capital and a number of provinces of the Solomon Islands.

The condition of about 12,000 people crammed into Solomon Islands evacuation centres is of grave concern, says a Unicef sanitation specialist.

Auckland is a long way from high earthquake activity and can expect a major shake every 10,000 to 20,000 years, says a new study.

New Zealander Rachel Lilburn has felt earthquakes in Chile before but said yesterday's big one was much stronger than any others.

Firefighters, police officers, Urban Search and Rescue experts, and courageous passersby risked life and limb to drag several survivors from the CTV Building.

Highway 530 once led drivers on a winding route along tree-lined valleys between the Pacific Ocean and the snow-capped Cascade Mountains.

Derelict buildings are scary. I know this from experience.

The world's leading meteorological authority suggests that many of last year's weather extremes are likely to have been heavily influenced by rising global temperatures.

Hopes are dwindling of finding any survivors among the 174 people missing after a mudslide buried part of a small Washington state town under 6m of sludge and debris.

People in coastal regions of Asia, particularly those living in cities, could face some of the worst effects of global warming, climate experts will warn this week.

Former cyclone Lusi proved to be more of a wind bag than a raging beast - to the delight of beach-bound thrillseekers.

In some areas, the number of people who have died from illnesses related to the quake and tsunami is higher than those who died directly from the disasters.

The ongoing impacts of the Canterbury earthquakes are disproportionately impacting children from low-income families, with health problems and family violence on the rise, a new report says.

'We're obviously going to review the sandbagging issue,' says Christchurch's mayor amid residents' complaints the council failed to handle yesterday's floods.

There were times when whistles should have been blown and loudly, but were not, writes Brian Rudman. Is it any wonder the police are taking their time?

Nick Walls knows the slow pace of recovery better than anyone.

February 22 is Bonnie Singh's mother's birthday. But for the past three years there has been no celebration.

Mick Dummer got a nasty shock when he arrived at work.

Homes "exploded" as a massive grassfire that started on Melbourne's northern fringe burned through regional areas, residents say.

Australia was burning again last night, with homes lost and flames licking at the outskirts of Melbourne as much of South Australia.

Tired, panicking and gulping sea water, a grandfather struggled to hold on to his 8-year-old granddaughter in strong currents at an East Auckland beach yesterday.

Visiting expert points to Christchurch as example of cities or cultures that struggle to recover after catastrophe.