Northland's tinder-dry conditions caused a quad bike fire to extend into a blaze which threatened homes and which took four fire crews and two helicopters to extinguish.

A former diplomat convicted of assaulting a Crown solicitor claims the trial judge discarded crucial evidence that could have cleared him of wrongdoing.

Patchy showers have fallen in the central, northern and eastern North Island this morning, but barely enough to top up water tanks and penetrate dry soil.

The Inland Revenue Department has announced help for drought-hit Northland farmers.

The Government has officially declared a state of drought in Northland and authorities are expected to do the same in the Waikato today.

A New Zealand soldier serving in Afghanistan died after taking his own life, an inquest has found.

The hunt is on for four police impostors who have been stopping cars in Northland and questioning motorists about the amount of cash they are carrying.

Finding a runaway 13-year-old was a "top priority" for Child Youth and Family but it took social workers almost two weeks to contact the teen's family.

Cate Foster takes a nostalgic drive through the hill country between Herekino and Hokianga.

A Ruakaka man caught drink driving on a quad bike twice in a week - both times while more than double the legal limit - has been jailed for his third and fourth drink-driving convictions.

From kitchen cupboards and ceiling cavities to large commercial crops hidden under native bush canopy, police are destroying illegal cannabis grown in Northland as part of their annual drug blitz.

Moerewa is facing up to the gang rivalries that over recent weeks have been credited with a drive-by shooting, a stabbing and the torching of cars, but not by isolating those believed to be responsible.

An 18-year-old thief might have set a reparation record after being ordered to repay $1.25 for stolen nectarines.

A 19-year-old woman who emerged from a burning Northland house following an explosion was hosed down by neighbours until emergency services arrived.

Sergeant Patrick (Paddy) William Whiu, 62, died peacefully at home at Waipapa with family at his side on Sunday morning, after a short illness.

A man whose brother and father have been found alive almost 24 hours after going missing on a fishing trip says he feared he would never see them again.

The Auckland housing boom is having a ripple effect on Northland's coastal property market, real estate experts say.

Police arrested four members of one family after a motorbike was allegedly driven around a Kaikohe street in a dangerous manner.

A woman caught driving while allegedly almost three-and-a-half times over the legal alcohol limit had two small children in the car, horrifying police who stopped her.

A suspected arson at a beautiful but remote Northland settlement has revived grievances over land ownership.