New Year's Day is tipped to offer sunny weather for most of the country and some respite from the recent muggy, humid weather.

The bodies of five seaman and the 20 survivors from the sinking of a Korean fishing boat in the Southern Ocean arrived in Bluff last night.

Canterbury firefighters continue to battle two major fires in the region, but both blazes are under control.

A massive blaze has engulfed the hills above Waimate in south Canterbury and tonight continues to burn.

He is from another era of current affairs television and tonight (Friday afternoon NZ time) that era will end.

The Department of Conservation has condemned the massacre of more than 100 rare gulls found dead in Southland.

Hope is fading for 17 missing fishermen after a South Korean trawler sank in the Southern Ocean, claiming at least five other lives.

The search for 17 people missing after a Korean fishing vessel sank in the Southern Ocean early today has been scaled down as it becomes increasingly unlikely further survivors will be found.

Five people are dead and 17 missing after a Korean fishing vessel sank in the freezing waters of the Southern Ocean, 2700km south east of Bluff, early this morning.

State-owned coal miner Solid Energy's plans to turn low-grade Southland lignite coal deposits into massive new industries make no sense and the coal should remain in the ground, says the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment.

Making teachers' lives easier is the mantra for Invercargill company.

A weekend for BBQing is on the cards as a large and strong anticyclone in the Tasman Sea pushes over the country.