AJ Hackett Bungy has "sincerely apologised'' to a customer who it says received "a fright'' when they fell unexpectedly from a jump pod 160m-high.

Armed police locked down a Queenstown primary school this afternoon, as they hunted for a man they believed was armed.

Armed police have raided a house in North Canterbury this morning, suspected to be linked to illegal drugs.

A woman who drove her child to school while six times over the drink-driving limit has been sentenced to supervision and community work.

Geonet is reporting a strong magnitude 5 quake 45km northwest of Haast as striking about 7.45am, at a depth of 12km.

Wild weather yesterday aggravated coastal erosion at Cobden, with the car park at Jellyman Park now closed as a precaution due to the encroaching sea.

Police remain tight-lipped on whether they have made progress in finding the person responsible for a bomb scare at Queenstown Airport yesterday.

An ambulance is rushing to the scene of a three car crash outside Christchurch this morning, with reports of a person being trapped.

A driver had to be freed from his vehicle after a car vs bus crash outside a Dunedin supermarket this evening.

Gloriavale, the closed Christian community on the South Island's West Coast holds a strange fascination for many of us.

A light earthquake rattled Canterbury shortly after midnight on Sunday morning.

West Coast club rugby was mired in claims of racial abuse in the lead-up to today's grand final - but today's big match was played out without incident.

The Christchurch International Airport released an alert just before 9pm tonight, warning passengers to check with their airline for updates.

The charge comes more than two years after the baby died in a house on the outskirts of Invercargill in January 2014.

Her cyclist brother was killed a decade ago by a truck driver today found guilty of doing the same thing, but her family never received an apology.

Two men are facing drug and firearms charges after a special police taskforce targeting gangs in Christchurch raided two houses and uncovered a "sophisticated" cannabis operation.

Dunedin Mayor Dave Cull is vowing to defend a $500,000 defamation claim, after being served with legal papers while walking down the street yesterday.

Another suspicious blaze has broken out in an abandoned apartment block in central Christchurch.

A West Coast woman is in custody after being found guilty of 11 charges involving sexual offences against her stepson.

Expect the unexpected when it comes to tourist comments handled by Buller visitors' centre staff and tourism operators.

Lyttelton residents are worried the delay on the Timeball Station rebuild may cause the project to be abandoned altogether.

City council is defending it's decision to renegotiate spending on anchor projects, in spite of being warned it's "repeating the mistakes of the past".

Grim projections show the large cost of an extreme flood event and future sea level increases on buildings and homes.

Members of the working party tasked with looking into different options for the Cathedral are being paid $800 a day.

Former Canterbury Earthquake Recovery chief executive Roger Sutton has a new role as an Anglican church trustee.

When Rosalie Sterritt QSM joined the police in 1948, woman officers were expected to deal only with female offenders.

Guns have become an item of choice for burglars who are targeting homes where they know there are firearms, then selling them in the black market.

A near miss from being paralysed has encouraged a Papanui High School student to make most of her opportunities and try her hand in the modelling scene.

Members of a top Christchurch football club have been blasted for their actions on a flight.

In this edition of great New Zealand travels, let me gloss over Wellington and instead highlight two great provincial pubs.