A man has been jailed for historical sexual offences against two girls - sisters who were his own children's friends.

Police say two women involved in a fatal crash on a farm north of Wanganui were not wearing seatbelts.

The fire was covering at least 1 hectare of tussock grass between the ocean and the airport. It was windy and the fire spreading fast, a Fire Service spokesman said.

Two Wanganui men have been handed community-based sentences for their involvement in a pack attack on a drunk motorcycle racegoer.

Napier JP Pat Magill says the "dark clouds of retribution" are entrenched in New Zealand society, with the public and media reaction to the likes of Stewart Murray Wilson no help to those incarcerated.

Serial sex offender Stewart Murray Wilson will return to prison until at least May 2 after being denied bail this morning.

Serial sex offender Stewart Murray Wilson has appeared in Whanganui District Court this morning in relation to an alleged breach of his parole conditions.

Sex offender Stewart Murray Wilson has been recalled to prison after allegations he phoned someone he was directed not to contact.

Wanganui residents are fed up with the "disgusting" foul stench coming from the city's water treatment plant, but know it will be a while before the problem is fixed.

A woman was lucky to escape with her life from an exploding house in Wanganui East early on Saturday morning.

Bella the dog is tiny and and only 11 months old, but her insistent urgent bark on Monday night saved a family of four from tragedy.

A dog that refused to stop barking when a fire broke out helped save a mother and her two children from the blaze in the bedroom of a Wanganui house.

Michael Laws has posted of a photograph on Twitter which he says shows paroled sex offender Stewart Murray Wilson at a fishing competition over the weekend.

Four people have been hospitalised after a fire at Wanganui last night.

A Wanganui woman who was attacked by a large dog during a bike ride with her daughter was shocked when it escaped and returned for a second attack.

A woman has been taken to hospital after being found floating down the Whanganui River in Taumarunui.

Two Wanganui charities have been left reeling after they were broken into over the weekend.

The "very old" maternity services building where a newborn baby died when he did not receive effective ventilation following his birth has been demolished and replaced.

A coroner has found that a newborn baby died because he did not receive effective ventilation following his birth at Whanganui Hospital.

The Whanganui River Rd has more tourists than last year, including an increasing number of cyclists.

Two firefighters suffered injuries likely to keep them off work for days while battling a "wall of fire" at a Wanganui house.