Emotional scenes as whale rescue volunteers sang to and even named many of the pilot whales stranded - and those refloated - on Farewell Spit.

The man who spent two hours trapped in a dam by an excavator has described how he survived in an emotional interview on the Today show.

Volunteers desperately trying to save 100 surviving whales that have beached on Farewell Spit are being warned about the risk of sharks in the water.

A fishing boat has run aground off the sensitive Otago coast.

A large number of elderly people have still not recovered from last year's campylobacter outbreak in Havelock North, the inquiry panel

The decision to close a Taupo District Council reserve in Kinloch to cars has been revoked - as debate rages about the causes of erosion in the area. Made with funding from NZ On Air.

A man was up to his nose in water after his excavator rolled into a dam and trapped him there for two hours.

The swimmers tried to jump to safety in front of horrified witnesses.

A man has been airlifted to hospital with moderate injuries after jumping off the top of Omanawa Falls.

CHILL OUT: Lucy Langeluddecke, left, and Komisi Bloomfield enjoyed One Love's line-up. PHOTO/ANDREW WARNER 040217aw20bop.JPG By Sandra

The teenager who drowned after he was swept into the flooded Hutt River on Thursday was trying to rescue his friend.

Police have responded to a boat that has raised an alarm at Hooks Bay this morning.

If you thought summer was missing in action last month, official figures released today prove it.

Large parts of Hamilton are still dealing with water shortages.

A young man is missing after he was last seen swimming in the swollen Hutt River last night.

Motorists face flooding and road closures across the Wellington and Wairarapa regions this morning.

Residents are on the highest water alert level after one of its most important water mains ruptured when a large portion of the Waikato riverbank collapsed.

Earthquakes could have contributed to the contamination of Havelock North's water.

In just two months almost 23,000 people in this southeast Queensland tourist hot spot have been stung by jellyfish.

A health warning has been issued for a toxic algae bloom in a Canterbury river.

Wildlife experts concerned dolphin wearing a T-shirt may be in trouble.

A pregnant woman watched helplessly as rescuers tried to save her fiance after he was pulled from a Northland beach.

Sheep faeces were the likely cause of last year's gastro outbreak, an inquiry into the contamination of the Havelock North water heard

The number of unprovoked shark attacks across the world fell last year, in the wake of a record figure in 2015 that scientists partly put down to warmers waters created by a strong El Nino system.

A man is in a critical condition after a boating accident in the Coromandel.

Kiwis "must be vigilant" about swimming in our rivers, a freshwater scientist says, with data often showing high levels of E. coli in waterways.

MAIN PIC MC270117NADSUP1.JPGStand up paddle boarder Marcus Hansen will soon be swapping the tranquil waters of Whangarei's Town Basin

Water Stories #5: The support for an online petition calling for the removal of chlorine from Hastings and Havelock North's water continues to grow. Made with funding from NZ On Air.

Mangawhai residents' empty water tanks are being filled, thanks in part to the milk of corporate kindness. Last weekend's rain eased

Water Stories #4: Retired Havelock North couple David and Nola Bassett say they have never before witnessed such an outbreak as was the Havelock North water contamination crisis. Made with funding from NZ On Air.