A woman caught three times over the drink-drive with three pre-schoolers in her car has lost her licence for seven months.

The North Island is in for another stormy day with heavy rain and thunderstorms as former tropical cyclone Victor sweeps past the country.

A woman who rolled her vehicle in the Waioeka Gorge near Opotiki suffered back injuries and was flown to hospital by helicopter.

An anti-Trans Pacific Partnership hikoi is planned for Wellington on Saturday, ahead of next week's formal signing of the controversial trade agreement.

Aucklanders are cranking up the air con to cope with the rising heat and humidity this week, causing a spike in electricity usage, Transpower says.

Business leaders have welcomed Prime Minister John Key's State of the Nation address - but one has indicated disappointment on the housing front.

A security guard has been robbed at gunpoint outside a Whakatane supermarket this morning, police say.

Emergency workers are trying to free the driver of a truck which has "tipped over" on State Highway 1, just north of the Bryderwyn Range Hills in Northland.

A king tide has created dangerous conditions and beach-goers should stay away from the water's edge.

The victim is being flown to Waikato Hospital by the Westpac Waikato Air Ambulance in a serious condition.

Student Shashi Sharma brutally beaten assault and robbed as he delivered pizzas in Napier.

Woman wrapped herself around her six-year-old girl and took full brunt of crash.

COMMENT: A small and diminishing pool of people are getting wealthier by buying houses from each other, writes Shamubeel Eaqub.

A 17-year-old Taupo man was taken by helicopter to hospital today after almost drowning in the sea.

Emergency services are currently at a large blaze east of Rotorua's central city at Sulphur Flats.

Another piece of geotextile material from the artificial surf reef at Mount Maunganui has been found today.

A 37-year-old man has been arrested in the Coromandel following a manhunt for an allegedly armed gang member.

The biker was trying get help for some stranded tourists when he came off the road.

Hamish Rieger spent his last lifeguard shift helping a 5-year-old with a blue-bottle jellyfish sting, and helping one of his mates out of the surf.

The man who built one of the country's best known tourist attractions has died, at the age of 80.

Mourners have gathered at Otamatea Marae in Northland to pay their respects to the little boy killed when he fell off his bike into the path of a milk tanker.

Police are investigating a sudden death in the leafy Auckland suburb of Epsom this morning.

A woman is in a critical condition after she was thrown from a vehicle that collided with a tree south of Auckland this morning.

A man's throat was cut while he was using a grinder on a Waikato farm this afternoon.

Relatives of a 5-year-old who died after being hit by a milk tanker in Northland are trying to come to grips with losing "the baby of the family".

Highways are clogging up north of Wellington as motorists head off for the city's anniversary weekend.

How many police officers does it take to undo a Nutri-Bullet blender?

An 81-year-old Whanganui man was unable to move after falling while going to the toilet and becoming jammed against the toilet door.

This proud community plays host to the best scenery - and cake - you'll find, writes Elisabeth Easther.