A teenager has undergone surgery after being shot in the chest in a drive-by shooting at Taupo.

Gritty New Zealand triathlete Samantha Warriner is re-igniting her future following vital heart surgery.

A mother and a man abandoned three children after the pair were caught shoplifting at Taupo's Pak'n Save supermarket.

Roads and vehicles must be "more forgiving" to curb a road toll which averages more than one death a day, the AA says. Figures released by the Ministry of Transport today show 371 people died on the roads over the past year.

A foreign rowing official who was caught by police driving over 80 km/h over the speed limit has had the charges dropped.

A "little swarm" of four small earthquakes near Taupo yesterday was not unusual or concerning, a seismologist says.

Wine, food, scenery ... Joelle Thomson samples the more sedate pleasures Taupo offers its visitors.