A discarded cigarette butt has been blamed for a blaze that wreaked $250,000 worth of damage to a shed, vehicles and equipment at a Masterton garden supply firm.

A drunk man who walked behind the counter at a McDonald's Restaurant in Masterton last week clutching a black-handled kitchen knife was convicted of possession of a knife in a public place at Masterton District Court yesterday.

About eight hectares of forest has been burned by a blaze in rural Masterton, with crews still on site last night to keep the fire under control.

Big dry forces stock selloffs, but Aucklanders can still water gardens, wash cars thanks to Waikato River supplies

A Wanganui fireman is now heading the country's firefighters union and says he wants to develop much closer and clearer relationships with the Fire Service on his watch.

Swallowing a sneaking suspicion she's a culture cougar, Catherine Smith is wowed by the wearable arts.

Sharon Stephenson discovers returning from an expat life can be a bittersweet homecoming.

A coroner says high visibility clothing should be compulsory for cyclists after the death of a senior police officer who was hit by a truck while riding his bike.

Conservationists fear an expressway planned for the Kapiti Coast will run through the habitat of a critically endangered duck.

Elisabeth Easther checks out the cheery Daffodil Capital.

A police officer has been left injured after a 23-year-old man allegedly fled in a stolen vehicle, then rammed police cars when he was finally brought to a stop.

Retailers might be enjoying a post-Christmas spending bonanza, but an economist warns the sales boom can't last.

Police say they have busted a "major" drug lab believed to be in the process of manufacturing thousands of ecstasy pills for New Year's Eve music festivals.

A drug-dealing grandmother has been jailed for nearly seven years for her part in a multimillion-dollar drug syndicate.

Timelapse footage of the building of Te Papa's festive Gingerbread House. Video courtesy of Te Papa.

A bill that clarifies the definition of military-style semi-automatic guns and places controls on the importation of airguns that look like real pistols has passed a third reading in Parliament today.