The Grey District mayor says the cause of contamination to one of its water networks may never be found describing the situation as "looking for a needle in a haystack" The West Coast town of Greymouth and surrounding areas have been under a boil water notice since last Wednesday due to contamination in one of the district's five water supply schemes The council had been on course to lift the notice by the weekend with consecutive days of clear test results on Friday and Saturday were found at Taylorville and Rapahoe on Sunday Council staff have been investigating the potential source of the contaminants over the past week Mayor Tania Gibson said the situation remains unexplained "It's a bit like looking for a needle in a haystack at the moment," she said "We're hoping we may find out and we have our resources thrown at it "At the end of the day we might not get an answer It is very difficult to track down what this is." The low levels of coliform that were found wouldn't typically trigger a boil water notice the council needs to keep the notice in place until three consecutive days of clear testing have been completed Gibson said the council's initial enquiries explored contaminants from animal waste as a potential cause but it was still awaiting the results of this The latest round of sampling had clouded the situation even further "We all have deferrals in our infrastructure that could be upgraded," she said "But normally that's easier to track down if there's a problem in the infrastructure." Taumata Arowai's head of operations Steve Taylor said it had been in regular contact with the council and would continue to monitor the situation closely investigate across the supply to find the cause of the contamination and be satisfied that the remedial actions taken have been effective to prevent recurrence and that the drinking water no longer presents a risk to health." Although the community had adapted over the past week there was a sense the boil water notice was starting to take its toll for some Paroa Hotel owner Alan Monk has been driving back and forth between Greymouth and Hokitika to get safe drinking water He said he hoped the problem would be quickly rectified "It seems the readings are getting lower so it seems to me that things are improving," Monk said because it's getting pretty frustrating having to provide water bottles and continually propping up our water supply for our coffee machines Greymouth's Te Nīkau Hospital and Health Centre was faring well through the challenging period Health New Zealand's associate director of operations for Te Tai o Poutini West Coast Philip Wheble said the hospital was coping with the challenges presented by the boil water notice "Bottled drinking water continues to be supplied to all inpatient areas and will be topped up as required," he said "With sufficient bottled water supplies coming from Canterbury each day as well as disposable items there is currently no concern for provisions." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday A boil water notice has been in place in the Grey District since Wednesday after bacteria linked to human and animal waste was found Some schools and businesses in the West Coast town have been forced to shut due to the notice Authorities are trying to determine exactly how the town's water supply became contaminated Greymouth residents have been told to boil their water because it could be contaminated An employee at Tararua District Council has received a written warning from the Water Services Authority after failing to report a dead possum in the drinking water at Woodville New Zealand RSS Follow RNZ News Website intended for a New Zealand health professional readership pdougan@nzdoctor.co.nz Kia ora and welcome to New Zealand Doctor Rata Aotearoa Not a subscriber? Unlock this article by subscribing here. Hall discusses the evaluation of thyroid nodules which primarily aims to determine the likelihood of malignancy He then reviews the treatment of thyroid nodules and thyroid cancer New Zealand Doctor Rata Aotearoa Online is intended for a New Zealand health professional readership. Use of this site implies acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Statement. New Zealand Doctor Rata Aotearoa Online is not a consumer medical advice service. Consumers should seek advice from a health professional and not act in reliance on any statement contained in the information provided. In a statement posted to Facebook, the Grey District Council said affected areas included Greymouth, Cobden, Blaketown, Boddytown, Karoro, South Beach, Paroa, Kaiata, Dobson Taylorville, Stillwater, Runanga, Dunollie, Coal Creek and Rapahoe. "Council has begun the required testing and monitoring process. To lift the notice, three consecutive days of clear test results are required," the post read. In an update this afternoon, the council said follow-up testing "detected total coliforms in the water supply zones of Stillwater, Cobden, and Kaiata. In addition to the total coliforms". In addition, 1 E.coli has been detected in the Kaiata water supply zone. "The presence of total coliforms and E.coli in drinking water can suggest contamination of harmful bacteria and can be a risk to public health." Sampling has been carried out in all supply zones in the Greater Greymouth area, as well as the treatment plant. Further results are expected tomorrow. An investigation into the source of the contamination is underway. Residents of the affected areas were asked to boil all drinking water before use until further notice. "This includes water for drinking, cooking, preparing food or baby formula, and brushing teeth," the council said. "We understand this situation is inconvenient for residents and businesses, and we sincerely thank the community for their patience. These measures are essential to protect public health and ensure the safety of our drinking water supply." John Paul II High School announced it was closing from 12.30pm today due to contamination of the water supply. "We will open Thursday and Friday as usual, and students must bring their own drinking water. There are no supplies available at school." A boil water notice has been issued for Greymouth and surrounding areas after possible contamination of the water supply was identified during routine sampling, leading one of the town's high schools to close early. How this city is bucking the national trend for new home builds More than 500 homes were built in the city last year about half of them social housing or affordable rentals New Zealand New Zealand's most valuable state house cannot be subdivided The almost $4 million villa sits on 619 square metres of land in one of Auckland's sought-after heritage areas Politics Lake Tarawera locals push for lower sewerage costs Residents' group has three non-negotiable funding conditions The state home worth almost $4m - 'I reckon they should sell it' The state house is on a leafy street in Auckland's inner-city suburb of Ponsonby and is worth close to $4 million Final piece of new 15km-long Auckland watermain installed Watercare completed the replacement Huia 1 watermain this morning when crews lowered the final section of pipe into place in Blockhouse Bay 'Not putting up with that sh*t': Coast councillor storms out of meeting Buller Mayor Jamie Cleine said he is hoping for an explanation or apology from a councillor after the outburst Film industry anxiously awaits details on Trump's 100% movie tariff 7:17pm Search underway for Masterton man, 74, missing since Sunday 7:07pm Crooks, culture first order of business for Mike Bush in Victoria 7:05pm Charges filed against Woolworths over pricing, misleading specials 6:45pm Police, experts warn 'emerging risk' of 3D-printed firearms rising 6:33pm Trade war: Sir John Key's 'optimism' on Trump's next tariff moves 7:28pm 1Two men's shared name brings years of trouble and a hefty bill to one US woman who disappeared for more than six decades found safe Person dies following morning crash on Auckland motorway Govt halts all current pay equity claims, makes it harder to lodge new ones Sole survivor of poisoned beef Wellington takes the stand DOC apologises after non-toxic pellets spark warning at Nelson sandflats Photos: Lorde among stars at 2025 Met Gala A$AP Rocky and Rihanna also revealed they are expecting their third child. Two arrested over alleged plot targeting Lady Gaga concert in RioBrazilian police said they thwarted an alleged bomb attack planned for Lady Gaga's concert on Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro. Lady Gaga rocks Copacabana Beach with free concert for over 2 million fansSun, May 4 Lorde announces new album name, dateThu, May 1 Kim Kardashian to testify in Paris trial over 2016 armed robberyMon, Apr 28 Chubby Checker, Outkast, Cyndi Lauper join Rock & Roll Hall of FameMon, Apr 28 Kim Kardashian to testify in Paris trial over 2016 armed robberyMon A boil water notice has been issued for Greymouth and surrounding areas after possible contamination of the water supply was identified during routine sampling leading one of the town's high schools to close early the Grey District Council said affected areas included Greymouth "Council has begun the required testing and monitoring process three consecutive days of clear test results are required," the post read the council said follow-up testing "detected total coliforms in the water supply zones of Stillwater 1 E.coli has been detected in the Kaiata water supply zone Sampling has been carried out in all supply zones in the Greater Greymouth area An investigation into the source of the contamination is underway Residents of the affected areas were asked to boil all drinking water before use until further notice and brushing teeth," the council said "We understand this situation is inconvenient for residents and businesses and we sincerely thank the community for their patience These measures are essential to protect public health and ensure the safety of our drinking water supply." John Paul II High School announced it was closing from 12.30pm today due to contamination of the water supply "We will open Thursday and Friday as usual and students must bring their own drinking water There are no supplies available at school." Rotorua has hit its highest number of new build homes in 14 years It comes as a new assessment finds the city has more than enough future housing capacity Rotorua Lakes Council destination development group manager Jean-Paul Gaston told an April meeting many of the 522 houses were built in the central and western areas Net new homes reached 483 after accounting for homes removed to make way for developments It was the third year in a row that new home numbers peaked since 2011 and another 600 homes were in the pipeline for the next couple of years Data provided to Local Democracy Reporting showed 304 of the new houses were built in Rotorua's western and central areas: The council had a goal of building 3000 new homes in those areas by 2032 Rotorua Mayor Tania Tapsell said improving housing options for the city remained a top priority for the council as it would have "huge benefits for our community" "These housing developments are not just public homes including affordable rentals and retirement options for our older residents "I know the economy has been uncertain but despite slower markets elsewhere we've got a strong number of building consents coming through in Rotorua." Tapsell said the council would continue to work to unlock land and opportunities for new homes Local Democracy Reporting wrote that $259 million worth of new residential and commercial buildings were consented in Rotorua in the year to September — more than double the $112.2m of consents issued in 2023 new dwelling consents nationwide in 2024 were down 9.8% on 2023 Gaston wrote in the meeting’s agenda the city avoided the national decline in building numbers because of multi-year investment by Kāinga Ora and the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development support for Māori affordable rental development and significant staged developments such as Freedom Village The recent fast-track consenting of a new Summerset lifestyle village in Fairy Springs provided additional future certainty of 260 housing units within the short/medium-term Other projects included the first 16 homes in the Ōwhata Kōhanga Rākau iwi-led housing development on the east side of Rotorua which opened in November and will eventually have 93 homes including 38 affordable rentals and kaumātua housing A council spokesperson said it knew of 262 among last year's 522 new builds that were social housing or affordable rentals Among these were 17 two-bedroom and three three-bedroom homes on Lake Rd A Te Tūāpapa Kura Kāinga — Ministry of Housing and Urban Development spokesman said 101 homes were built as part of MHUD housing programmes including 80 iwi-led Māori affordable rentals Kāinga Ora added 104 new social housing places to its stock in Rotorua The spokesman said Rotorua's housing shortage resulted from a rapid increase in the resident population from 2013 and too few houses being built to meet the demand The rental market tightened and rents rose relative to incomes leading to more households on the Housing Register and large numbers in temporary or emergency accommodation This peaked at 699 households in December 2021 The ministry partnered with others including iwi and the council to make a plan for Rotorua including short-term and more permanent housing solutions The number of households in temporary and emergency housing had dropped to 96 as of March "This is a result of the Government's significant investment in Rotorua." The city remained a priority for the Ministry with a "strong pipeline" of additional housing places to be delivered — 170 state homes by mid-2025 and another 72 by July 2026 The Government was criticised for using Rotorua's motels as a "dumping ground" for the country's homeless during peak pandemic years but consistently denied actively bringing in out-of-towners The last Housing and Business Development Capacity Assessment in 2021 projected the city was heading for a 10,000-home shortage in the long-term An updated assessment from 2024 presented to a council meeting on Wednesday found an overall surplus of 300 — 1600 dwellings short-term This turnaround was broadly credited to work identifying and preparing new greenfield (undeveloped) land for housing "This puts the district in a good position to respond to what the community needs as it grows and to make adjustments if needed," Gaston said in a statement LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air The country's most valuable state house sits on a large plot of land that cannot be subdivided because it is in one of Auckland's sought-after heritage areas The state house is a 1900s villa on a leafy street in the inner city suburb of Ponsonby and is worth close to $4 million It is a neighbourhood associated with celebrities from sailors to pop stars — last year Lorde sold her luxury villa next door for $4.3m Auckland Council records show the state house is on 619sq metres of land and is subject to hefty development restrictions because it is in both a special character area and historic heritage area That means the land could not be subdivided and any changes to the villa would need council permission Data from Corelogic shows the five most valuable single dwelling homes in Kāinga Ora's portfolio are all worth more than $3.5m Building projects that would create more than 1000 state homes are on hold while Kāinga Ora reviews its portfolio The agency also intends to sell about 900 homes nationally over the next 12-18 months — currently 49 state homes are on the market — of which 32 are in Auckland The money generated by selling off those properties would then be reinvested in more affordable areas The woman living in the country's most valuable state house last week told RNZ it should be sold in part because she feels increasingly out of place in the upmarket suburb finance and policy Gareth Stiven said none of the five most valuable state homes were for sale or had development plans "Like other high value properties in our portfolio these five homes could be sold further down the track Our current national divestment programme has just begun so assessing homes that will be sold is an ongoing process." All five of the most valuable state homes are in Auckland and all but one could be subdivided according to council planning rules is worth $3.7m and the 4626 square metre land has no significant development constraints is worth $3.5m and is on 2904 square metres of land that could be developed into up to 20 homes could potentially be subdivided into four units Corelogic head of research Nick Goodall earlier said the properties' values were tied up in large plots of land "It shows that you could probably build multiple units on that block of land to get better use and more people living in that area which would be well in demand from people wanting to live there to be closer to town." Goodall believed Kāinga Ora should be considering the future of all five of its most valuable properties "There's probably lots of potential development all across Auckland You would expect that these would be ones that would be on the list to look at." rnz.co.nz A Lake Tarawera residents’ group says lowering sewerage scheme costs for homeowners at the lake is non-negotiable and unaffordability is "not a trivial matter" A member suggested homeowners not sign off on allowing connection works on their properties until they have funding certainty Rotorua Lakes Council is considering three funding options for the Tarawera Sewerage Scheme in its Annual Plan consultation The scheme connects lake properties to Rotorua’s reticulated sewerage replacing septic tanks blamed for declining lake water quality The most recent cost estimate is $32.2 million The council has said protests and court action added expense Tarawera ratepayers would need to fund $20.9m The council would borrow the money and households would pay it back over time Under the first funding option — the status quo — the lump-sum cost was $50,315 each it would be $3899 a year — including covering the cost of the council holding the debt one for the main pipeline and the other for connecting to the scheme with the latter only charged to households that connect About 446 existing properties and 104 more to be built in the future could be connected The figures reflected a $5286 discount if households agreed by June 1 to having installation work on their properties 65 properties have given approval for this Households that missed the deadline would need to pay for the connection themselves Any who refused to connect may have few options with the council previously saying septic tanks alone would be non-compliant and upgrades to be compliant were unlikely to get consent with reticulation available nearby The two other funding options reduced Tarawera households’ costs by increasing rates paid by all other Rotorua ratepayers Option two added $2.80 a year to all ratepayers’ bills for 25 years raising $1m and reducing Tarawera households’ contribution to $47,737 Option three raised $4m by increasing rates $11.20 per year the Lake Tarawera Sewerage Working Group recommended attendees support option three Group member Duncan Evans told the meeting option three did not "go far enough" He said the group had told council staff many could not afford the scheme and proposed three non-negotiable conditions These were to set the maximum cost for Tarawera ratepayers at $36,600; exclude all cost escalations from their bills; and ask Bay of Plenty Regional Council to increase its funding to $1.485m to match Rotorua Lakes Council’s contribution He advised attendees not to sign off on installation plans until they had certainty and a capped charge was agreed Evans suggested that if the group’s maximum was agreed then homeowners would agree to sign plans within two weeks of that decision In a statement to Local Democracy Reporting group chairman Sir Henry van der Heyden said the council must negotiate with the Tarawera community before the rates are struck Many community members simply cannot afford to pay for the options council is proposing." Submissions on the Annual Plan are open until May 5 The council’s infrastructure and assets group manager encouraged people to make submissions for elected members to consider "We continue to have discussions with Tarawera property owners and have continued to explore additional funding options to reduce the cost to ratepayers as much as possible." The council hosted a webinar on the scheme options last week Council chief executive Andrew Moraes answered questions including what happened when someone could not afford the 25-year rate "The council has a range of policies that address hardship for people who struggle to make rates payments." He encouraged people to reach out before making "significant life decisions" about their property Moraes said the council intended to seek more funding from the regional council and suggested people write to it for the same The woman living in the country's most valuable state house says it should be sold as Kāinga Ora plans to put hundreds of homes on the market The state house is on a leafy street in Auckland's inner-city suburb of Ponsonby and is worth close to $4 million Shortly after Anita Jones moved into the four-bedroom state house in 2016 she learned Lorde had bought the house next door - the pop star sold the luxury villa for $4.3m last year Jones said the neighbourhood has been a good place to bring up her four children Data from Corelogic shows the villa is the most valuable single dwelling in Kāinga Ora's portfolio - at $3.9m "It's actually quite a big property well I reckon it is and I'm actually looking at transferring so they can have the house for a bigger family because it's only the three of us and it's quite big for us," Jones said "My thoughts would be I reckon they should sell it." It also intends to sell about 900 homes nationally over the next 12-18 months - currently 49 state homes are on the market of which 32 are in Auckland A nearby neighbour of the most valuable state house said it does not make financial sense for the state agency to keep the Ponsonby house "I think it probably should be sold because it's worth three or four million so you could probably build a lot more for that." Kāinga Ora said it does not have plans to develop any of its five most valuable houses All are in Auckland and each are worth more than $3.5m Corelogic head of research Nick Goodall said the properties' values were tied up in large plots of land finance and policy Gareth Stiven said the planned sale of 900 state homes represented about 1% of its current portfolio "These homes will be in regions across the country Decisions to sell specific sites will be ongoing and at any one time there will be properties at various stages of the process." He said tenants would be offered another Kāinga Ora home "Money from the sale of existing Kāinga Ora properties will be reinvested into our housing portfolio fit-for-purpose homes that are the right size and in the right location."  the agency estimates $400-$500m of money from house sales would be redirected toward new replacement homes "It's also important to note we are not reducing the number of Kāinga Ora homes a newly built home is delivered elsewhere." while a flat or unit is about the $1m mark Jones said she was ready to move out of the area especially in the area Ponsonby it's not actually suited for low-income families It's nice to be close to the city but income She said she recently asked to transfer to another house in Auckland partly because her family felt increasingly out of place in the upmarket suburb "Because I'm actually ready to move along there's been a lot of stuff happening inside the house and my family and we've kind of caused a bit of riff-raff on the street so I think it's time for us to move." rnz.co.nz The final section of a new 15km watermain serving hundreds of thousands in Auckland has been installed today with the $115m project finished after six years Watercare completed the Huia 1 watermain this morning when crews lowered the final section of pipe into place in Blockhouse Bay It marked the end of the project traversing seven suburbs runs from Titirangi reservoirs to Gillies Ave in Epsom that was nearing the end of its operational life The water main was expected to accommodate population growth and more housing it will carry on average 30 million litres of water a day – water that originated in the western dams and we've treated at our Huia Water Treatment Plant But we've future-proofed the Huia 1 pipeline to accommodate population growth," Danks said Capital delivery general manager Suzanne Lucas said the project would cost approximately $115 million – nearly $30 million less than the approved budget “We found efficiencies by involving our contractor in the planning and design of the later stages of the project and by working closely with Auckland Transport to optimise our traffic management arrangements," she said The installation was conducted in stages throughout the suburbs with sections already in service before today's completion "We recognise this project was disruptive to communities and commuters along the route and we'd really like to thank everyone for their patience while we built this critical watermain," Lucas said The Huia 1 project is part of Watercare's recently announced 10-year plan which allocates about half of the $13.8 billion investment planned for the next decade on projects that replace or upgrade existing infrastructure Buller Mayor Jamie Cleine is calling for civility after a councillor saw red and stomped out of a council meeting last week told a staff member he was "not putting up with that shit" packed his bag and walked out — after what he said was a disrespectful answer to question on council debt Cleine said the councillor’s behaviour was unacceptable and he was hoping for an explanation or apology from Reidy at a council meeting this afternoon No-one else had seemed to take offence at the staffer’s response to a question on debt levels by veteran Councillor Rosalie Sampson And other councillors with strong views on debt and council spending had all stayed in the room and argued their case “Losing your rag regardless of the reason … the challenge for elected members is to convince your peers why you’re right and they’re wrong and that’s the bit he doesn’t seem to get.” Reidy’s walkout followed an exchange between Corporate Services manager Paul Numan and Sampson who wanted to know when the council had agreed to raise its debt cap and why its debt had risen by $11 million in eight months Numan outlined the debt in percentage terms the reason why that debt figure’s increased is because you’ve been spending money on capital projects so ...” describing Numan’s response as “totally disrespectful" the councillor said Sampson who had asked a fair question and wanted clarity and it’s happening a lot recently – the staff speak to us like this if we question or challenge them.” "The chair or the CEO should have intervened but they let it escalate so I don’t think I have anything to apologise for." Rosalie Sampson told LDR she had not felt disrespected at the time of the incident and just wanted the meeting to continue peacefully the councillor said she felt she had been patronised "I was asking why the debt had risen so much in the last eight months and they should have been able to explain quickly and simply," she said She understood why Reidy had reacted as he did and would defend his actions if needed The mayor said he would hope councillors and staff and the community in general would keep calm and carry on in the lead up to the council elections in September "People are under a lot of stress at the moment for various reasons; there’s the cost of living there’s the flood protection scheme that’s happening slowly and there’s the elections looming." Behaving civilly towards colleagues and staff was more important than ever at such times Local Democracy Reporting is local-body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air A search and rescue operation is underway for a Masterton man in his 70s missing since Sunday John Rafferty was last seen at Masterton Railway Station about midday on May 4 The 74-year-old did not board a train and left on foot about 20 minutes later Matheson said it was possible Rafferty was staying with a friend but police and loved ones "want to know he’s safe" and John doesn’t have his cell phone or wallet," he said A search team and a helicopter has been out looking for the missing man "We are really keen to know that he’s safe." Police have released an image from CCTV showing Rafferty on a station platform on the day of his disappearance He was wearing a blue jacket with 'NASA' written on the back Anyone who saw him was asked to contact police on 111 or online at 105 if there was Information after the fact The next top cop of the troubled Victoria police force embraces his "outsider" status to curb its leadership malaise and has a stern warning for crooks Former New Zealand Police commissioner Mike Bush won the race to become Victoria's chief commissioner after months of top-level staffing woes The 40-year police veteran steps into the role on June 27 with a five-year contract The Kiwi conceded the job will be no picnic with Victoria's crime rate hitting an almost decade-high in 2024 everyone knows that," he told reporters today "These crime issues are actually global they are quite similar wherever you go but it's not good enough just to turn up after the act Rising youth crime and high-profile cases of alleged offenders committing crimes while on bail spurred the Victorian government to strengthen laws in March Bush said he was familiar with the crackdown but bail laws were just one part of the solution to tackling youth crime along with a "prevention mindset" He retired from the NZ police force in 2020 after joining in 1978 and spending his final six years in the top job Whakaari/White Island volcano eruption and Covid-19 pandemic were among the biggest crises Bush confronted during his tenure Bush also made headlines in 2022 after it emerged he had a past drink-driving conviction when unsuccessfully applying to become head of the UK's Metropolitan Police Former New Zealand police minister Stuart Nash describedr Bush as hard but fair He said Bush regularly met with police forces across the Tasman in his previous role and recalled travelling with him to every district across New Zealand once a year to chew the fat with communities and then we all had biscuits and a cup of tea," Nash told AAP "Mike is someone who had deep credibility in policing." The state government has not handed the reins of Victoria Police to an outsider since former NSW Police assistant commissioner Christine Nixon in 2001 The Kiwi was happy to wear the "outsider" tag and is already hatching plans to hit the ground running "I've got a lot to do to come up to speed," Bush said "Culture is a consequence of leadership." establishing relationships with community groups amid rising tensions and increasing police visibility on the beat were among his other top initial priorities Victoria Police was thrust into leadership turmoil in February with a no-confidence vote from officers costing chief commissioner Shane Patton his job Emergency Management Commissioner Rick Nugent became acting chief and expressed an interest in making the move permanent before throwing in the towel in April Deputy Commissioner Robert Hill will serve in an acting capacity until Bush takes over Bush intends to speak with Patton before starting and said he wouldn't shy away from pushing back if he disagreed with the government Premier Jacinta Allan said a recruitment agency was hired and instructed to find a leader capable of addressing the "challenges" plaguing the force "Mike Bush is the best person for the job," she said whose union led the no-confidence vote against Patton following a bitter pay dispute admitted there was a disconnect between members and leaders The state police union secretary welcomed Mr Bush's appointment and pledge to listen to the mounting workforce concerns "We have a police force that is currently under-resourced that needs fresh officers," he said The Commerce Commission has filed criminal charges against Woolworths NZ for alleged inaccurate pricing and misleading specials that may have breached the Fair Trading Act The commission filed the charges against Woolworths in the Auckland District Court It indicated in December last year that it would be filing separate criminal charges against Woolworths and two Pak'nSave supermarkets the commission said there were ongoing issues with pricing in the supermarket sector and the operators may have breached the Fair Trading Act deputy chair Anne Callinan said operators should know what the expectations were "Supermarkets have long been on notice about the importance of accurate and clear pricing and specials and we're not satisfied with the continuing issues we're seeing across the industry "Pricing accuracy is a consumer right and an expectation of a competitive market well-resourced businesses that should invest the time and effort to get pricing and promotions right." She said the charges were filed to remind all supermarkets that they are expected to fix the pricing accuracy issues and implement better processes In a statement when the charges were announced Woolworths managing director Spencer Sonn said it was important customers could trust prices advertised at their supermarkets Woolworths said it has cooperated with the Commerce Commission's pricing investigation for some time rnz.co.nz Former prime minister Sir John Key says he remains optimistic about Donald Trump's domestic economic policy despite opposing the tariff strategy that has sent global markets into turmoil in recent months who served as prime minister for eight years was the keynote speaker at an Auckland business summit earlier today Sir John told 1News he believed Trump would ultimately take a more moderate approach to tariffs than initially proposed "I'm not a fan of tariff policies I don't think they really work," he said as I think the stock market is telling you at the moment that actually there will be a more sensible landing place for the tariffs that he's wanting to impose." Sir John said he "wasn't entirely surprised" at Trump's call to go ahead with the policy "They're just a negotiating point I think he simply put on widespread and high rates of tariffs on every country to give himself a leverage point and a negotiating point "What I think he actually grossly underestimated was the stock market reaction You can actually make the case that his own strategy hasn't worked The reason the markets have recovered is because he's taken those tariffs off the most part 'I'm going to negotiate case by case'." Sir John suggested Trump's economic policies could still generally be positive for the US but the tariffs could be trickier for the global economy Asked whether he stood by his October comments that Trump would be good for the economy he said: "Do I think he's going to reduce regulatory burden in the United States It depends on where things shake down in terms of tariffs." Sir John acknowledged that for certain industries Trump's policies could be "a really negative thing" particularly if the president's proposed 100% tariff on the film industry were to be implemented "I can't see how it would be cost-competitive to make a movie in New Zealand with a 100% tariff on it," he said noting that films such as The Hobbit would not have been made in New Zealand without government subsidies who now served as a director of US tech company Palo Alto Networks said he had "always been opposed" to Trump's tariff policies but believes they won't be the "dominant part of his economic solutions" "I don't think it's perfect from New Zealand's point of view but I don't think we should panic either and America will still be a very big market for us to sell things to," he said "There are growing markets around the world It's not a great thing from New Zealand's point of view We've got a very sound economy with lots of options in front of us." Sir John suggested a belief that the Republican Trump was was better "on balance" for the US economy than Democratic opponent Kamala Harris he expressed concerns about Trump's tariff approach: "China doesn't pay those tariffs middle-income consumers or consumers in America do because when a tariff goes on a good that you bring into a country He added: "I don't agree with the massive tariffs and I don't think you'll follow through with all of that and I certainly don't agree with this view on trade." Shane William Pritchard has been charged with crimes he didn’t commit and chased for debts he doesn’t owe That’s because the Dunedin man is not the only Shane William Pritchard in town While the duo’s shared name and age has sometimes been a handy loophole for one Shane for the other it has caused problems for 36 years It’s been years of fearing every knock on the door Years of wondering if he’ll be hand-cuffed and taken to jail to be honest,” says Shane William Pritchard a scout and a member of the Air Training Corp remembers getting quite a shock when her friend called one evening She'd been acting as a referee for a gun licence for Shane whose friend informed her that the police had a long list of offences against Shane’s name Not long after that the police turned up to where Shane was working at the local tannery to arrest him “You're scrambling in your head to think of ways that you can prove it's not you.” Another Shane William Pritchard had been born in Otago They were separated by just two weeks and about 50 miles – one growing up in Mosgiel the other in Milton – but also by the lives they’d been leading To watch the full video story go to TVNZ+ Shane from Milton had huge problems focusing at school He was raised in foster care and then boys’ homes I just wanted to look cool and get in trouble,” he tells Fair Go Milton Shane was used to run-ins with police he got pulled over in his car and asked about his driving licence one’s got a licence and the other hasn’t.’ And I’m like ‘obviously it must be the one with a licence’.” he went to his bank to draw out an ACC payment and was asked which bank account was his He says that at that point he was trying to figure out what was going on “I thought it was just an error.” But he took advantage of the situation and withdrew a large sum of cash Mosgiel Shane became aware of the withdrawal when a scheduled car payment was declined and when Milton Shane turned up at the bank to withdraw more money Identity fraud was considered but Milton Shane was legitimately expecting an ACC payment so the withdrawal appeared to be a genuine mistake and the police couldn’t take any action 'Anything I could get away with Mosgiel Shane thought the bank incident would have alerted police to the problem But his nemesis had cottoned on to the advantages of having a second identity to use Milton Shane acquired a suite of furniture on hire-purchase Milton-Shane clocked up more driving offences Mosgiel Shane thought about changing his name but realised he’d have to provide his previous name in the process the courts and debt collectors such as Baycorp should be able to distinguish between himself and Milton Shane The police first addressed the issue in the 1990s after Mosgiel Shane went to the media He was given a letter to carry with him should he be apprehended He and his parents felt his situation wasn’t being taken seriously Mosgiel Shane went to the media a second time in the mid-2000s the police gave their word that a record in their system would stop the misidentification from happening again This does appear to have worked as far as police action goes But while Mosgiel Shane was given the same reassurance by the Ministry of Justice he continued to receive demands from the courts for unpaid fines He’d also get stopped and questioned whenever he left the country for work trips or holidays It took a huge toll on Mosgiel Shane’s mental health not realising the constant stress it placed on his life John Pritchard says that at times his son felt his life wasn’t worth living worrying about what he was going to do to himself and that really ate me up.” he and his son were in tears as Shane admitted he was at breaking point He described going for days at a time unable to eat or sleep wondering what might happen next "Am I going to be in a position where they've got me in handcuffs or I've got debt collectors coming to the door?" ...You're spiralling into this black hole." He started taking anti-anxiety medication which helped And events regarding Milton Shane seemed to settle Milton Shane was charged for fishing without a licence in Twizel and failing to comply with fisheries officers But a court registrar incorrectly entered the birth date of Mosgiel Shane in the system both Shanes were being chased to pay the $1530 fine It was Mosgiel Shane who spotted the error and rang the court He also sent a statement from his manager saying he’d not been fishing in Twizel that day The reply he got was to say he’d been given the wrong form and that they wouldn’t accept his proof They just wanted to know how I was going to pay the fine.” The first Milton Shane knew about this was when Fair Go told him Mosgiel Shane had been chased for the fine He was told to pay up or face the consequences feeling he shouldn’t have to pay good money to correct someone else’s mistake But it cost Mosgiel Shane over $5000 in legal fees and took months of back and forth between him “Why should anybody have to pay their own money to right somebody else's wrongs and prove who they are I’m sick and tired of proving who I am all the time.” He wanted the Ministry of Justice to take responsibility and reimburse him for his legal costs saying court staff such as the registrar in this case have immunity if they make mistakes such as the one made here and if I make a mistake and it's affecting my client that it's going to cost them money to rectify a mistake that I've made.” he deserves a million apologies from those guys,” she says Milton Shane told Fair Go he still gets in trouble but wants the other Shane to know he doesn’t use his birth date anymore And he had a message for him: “We’ve got to get it sorted for you so you can have a good life with you and your family because I’m trying to get my life together with my son and my grandson” He offers to meet to see if they can sort it out together but I’m not interested in meeting him,.” says Mosgiel Shane He says he doesn’t hold any grudges and accepts Milton Shane’s apology And he believes the only way for that to happen is for the courts and the Ministry of Justice to give him a guarantee that mix-ups won’t occur in the future Fair Go asked the Ministry of Justice to appear in person to apologise and provide reassurance to Shane of its plans to guard against these mistakes The Ministry declined our request to be on camera saying any comment on an individual case would compromise the independence of the courts as the Ministry operates separately But it did send a written apology directly to Mosgiel Shane It also admitted mistakes can occur in clerical records but said instructions were clear and the importance of getting things right had been emphasised to staff Mosgiel Shane isn’t totally convinced that’s the end of it “All I want is for the Ministry of Justice and the courts to do their job I'd like to live without this hanging over me all the time his criminal check has come back showing a clean slate Audrey Backeberg disappeared from a small city in south-central Wisconsin after reportedly hitchhiking with her family’s babysitter and catching a bus to Indianapolis Nobody ever knew where she went or what happened to her All that changed last week when she was found alive and safe in another state thanks to the fresh eyes from a deputy who took over the case in February Detective Isaac Hanson discovered an out-of-state arrest record that matched Backeberg which triggered a series of investigative moves that led to finding her alive and safe in another state Turns out Backeberg chose to leave the town of Reedsburg on her own accord – likely due to an abusive husband safe and secure; And just kind of lived under the radar for that long,” he said Hanson was assigned the case in late February and he and other officials met with Backeberg’s family to see if they had a connection with that region They also started digging through Backeberg's sister's Ancestry.com account obituaries and marriage licenses from that region they found an address where a woman was living that Hanson said shared a lot of similarities with Backeberg including date of birth and social security number Hanson was able to get a deputy from that jurisdiction to go to the address "I was expecting the deputy to call me back and say ‘Oh nobody answered the door.’ And I thought it was the deputy calling me I could sense that she obviously had her reasons for leaving.” Most of the information he learned during that call he declined to share saying that it was still important to Backeberg that she not be found “I think it overwhelmed her of course with the emotions that she had having a deputy show up at her house and then kind of call her out and talk with her about what happened and kind of relive 62 years in 45 minutes,” he said Hanson described discovering her safe after more than six decades practically unheard of And while he doesn't know what will happen next in terms of her family reconnecting he said he was happy that she can reach out if she wants to so she has my contact number if she ever wants to reach out or needs anything any phone numbers of family members back here," he said "Ultimately she kind of holds the cards for that.” A person has died following a crash on Auckland's south-western motorway this morning The single vehicle crash was reported to police shortly before 5am the sole occupant of this vehicle died at the scene," a police spokesperson said "Earlier closures of northbound lanes have now lifted and police advise motorists to continue to expect delays as earlier backlogs clear "We appreciate motorists' understanding this morning while emergency services carried out their work." Police said the serious crash unit examined the scene this morning and an investigation was underway into this morning's crash on behalf of the Coroner This is in addition to an earlier crash on Auckland's northern motorway near the Auckland Harbour Bridge Emergency services responded to a two-truck collision on the northern motorway near the Auckland Harbour Bridge shortly after 5am New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) said all lanes south on State Highway 1 were open again following this earlier crash with five lanes available on the Harbour Bridge "Allow extra time for delays on the Northern Motorway to slowly ease this morning three lanes going south were now open again between Onewa Rd and the Harbour Bridge," NZTA said The government is making it harder to make a claim for pay equity that will cut costs There have been massive pay equity claims in recent years for nurses and resthome workers Workplace Minister Brooke van Velden announced the moves to raise the threshold for proving work has been historically undervalued to support a claim on Tuesday saying changes back in 2020 had created problems "Claims have been able to progress without strong evidence of undervaluation and there have been very broad claims where it is difficult to tell whether differences in pay are due to sex-based discrimination or other factors." Claims were concentrated in the public sector with costs to the Crown of all settlements so far totalling $1.78 billion a year "The changes I am proposing will significantly reduce costs to the Crown," she said "The changes will discontinue current pay equity claims." Van Velden told Midday Report she believes in pay equity but the current thresholds were "a bit too loose" Asked how she ensure women were not hurt by this the minister said "I'm a woman and I support women who work" "I also support removing gender based discriminations from our workforces but what I don't support are muddied laws and unclear laws," she said "So these changes are better for all women who are working where we can genuinely say hand on heart that what they are finding with their claims is genuine gender based discrimination." Van Velden told reporters at Parliament any current claims would be stopped and need to restart under the new threshold to show "genuine" gender discrimination and make sure the comparators were right She gave a figure of 33 current claims that would be stopped as the legislation was put through under urgency "You have librarians who've been comparing themselves to transport engineers We have admin and clerical staff at Health New Zealand comparing themselves to mechanical engineers." Social workers had compared themselves to air traffic controllers "We don't believe we have that setting right." Any comparison would now be between female employees and male employees at the same employer "But you cannot go fishing for discrimination across the New Zealand workforce." All current settled claims would continue but the government was drawing "a line in the sand" "We're not stopping claims." The nurse's union has this year had at least 10 pay equity claims in play The PSA union has said pay equity claims and settlements had resulted in significant improvements in pay and working conditions for many workers The union said the changes would make it "impossible for people in female-dominated professions to be paid fairly" "Women across the country will pay the price for this," PSA national secretary Fleur Fitzsimons said "The government's changes today are a dark day for New Zealand women as the government says it will repeal the pay equity law and extinguish 33 existing claims in a constitutional overreach "The PSA is exploring all possible avenues to oppose these unconstitutional amendments and stop this attack on women We will not be deterred in our fight to achieve pay equity for all." "This is a blatant and shameful attack on women," New Zealand Nurses organisation chief executive Paul Goulter said "Women in workforces predominantly performed by female employees have been underpaid and undervalued for generations That is what pay equity claims seek to rectify," he said "This move by the government will widen the pay gap between men and women." The union had at least 10 pay current pay claims across Aged Care These cover many nurses and support workers The E tū union also called the changes an attack on women and a green light to pay them less for work of equal value The government was pulling the rug out from under a 13-year-long fight in aged care "These changes are not about evidence — they are about saving money by keeping women underpaid," national secretary Rachel Mackintosh said in a statement A number of unions have called a snap rally at Parliament at 1pm today in light of the announcement the Council of Trade Unions and representatives of other unions say they will be "protesting the government's attack on women and the destruction of progress on pay equity..." rnz.co.nz Lady Gaga gave a free concert Saturday night in front of 2 million fans who poured onto Copacabana Beach for the biggest show of her career (...) Thank you for making history with me,” Lady Gaga told a screaming crowd kicked off the show at around 22.10pm local time with her 2011 song Bloody Mary Cries of joy rose from the tightly-packed fans who sang and danced shoulder-to-shoulder on the vast stretch of sand Concert organisers said 2.1 million people attended the show switching between an array of dresses including one with the colours of the Brazilian flag Some fans – many of them young – arrived on the beach at the crack of dawn to secure a good spot “Today is the best day of my life,” said Manoela Dobes a 27-year-old designer who was wearing a dress plastered with a photograph from when she met Lady Gaga in the United States in 2019 Madonna also turned Copacabana Beach into a massive dance floor last year The large-scale performances are part of an effort led by City Hall to boost economic activity after Carnival and New Years’ Eve festivities and the upcoming month-long Saint John’s Day celebrations in June “It brings activity to the city during what was previously considered the low season – filling hotels and increasing spending in bars generating jobs and income for the population,” said Osmar Lima the city’s secretary of economic development in a statement released by Rio City Hall’s tourism department last month Rio’s City Hall said in a recent report that around 1.6 million people were expected to attend Lady Gaga's concert and that the show should inject at least 600 million reais (NZ$178.3 million) into Rio’s economy Similar concerts are scheduled to take place every year in May at least until 2028 Lady Gaga arrived in Rio in the early hours of Tuesday The city has been alive with Gaga-mania since as it geared up to welcome the pop star for her first show in the country since 2012 Rio’s metro employees danced to Lady Gaga’s 2008 hit song LoveGame and gave instructions for today in a video A free exhibition celebrating her career sold out While the vast majority of attendees were from Rio the event also attracted Brazilians from across the country and international visitors More than 500,000 tourists poured into the city in the days leading up to the show according to data from the local bus station and Tom Jobim airport Rio’s City Hall said in a statement yesterday made a cross-continent trip from Colombia to Brazil to attend the show “I’ve been a 100% fan of Lady Gaga my whole life,” said Serrano who was wearing a T-shirt featuring Lady Gaga’s outlandish costumes over the years the mega-star represents “total freedom of expression – being who one wants without shame” Rio officials have a history of organising huge concerts on Copacabana Beach Madonna’s show drew an estimated 1.6 million fans last year while 4 million people flooded onto the beach for a 1994 New Year’s Eve show by Rod Stewart in 1994 that was the biggest free rock concert in history sixteen sound towers were spread along the beach Rio state’s security plan included the presence of 3300 military and 1500 police officers Among those present were Lady Gaga admirers who remember their disappointment in 2017 when the artist cancelled a performance scheduled in Rio at the last minute due to health issues “She's the best artist in the world,” the 25-year-old said I love you” in Portuguese rose from the crowd behind him whose real name is Ella Yelich O'Connor which also displayed what appears to be the album cover art — an X-ray of a pelvis "100% written in blood," the website read The new album's announcement came a week after she released her latest single What Was That The song's music video was filmed at a mysterious pop-up event in New York City's Washington Square Park that was initially shut down by police. The event ended up going ahead after all, and fans who stayed got to hear the new song for the first time. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Lorde (@lorde) It was the first sign of a follow-up to Lorde's previous album Her other albums were 2013's Pure Heroine and 2017's Melodrama she collaborated with British singer Charli XCX on a remix of Girl so confusing — on a re-release of the Grammy award-winning Brat Kim Kardashian thought she was going to be raped and killed when criminals broke into her bedroom in central Paris tied her up and stole more than US$6 million in jewellery 10 people will go on trial in Paris over the robbery abduction and kidnapping of the media personality and the concierge of the residence where she was staying during Paris Fashion Week the night of October 2 Kardashian’s lawyers said she will testify in person at the trial starting Monday and scheduled to run through May 23 "Ms Kardashian is reserving her testimony for the court and jury and does not wish to elaborate further at this time," they said "She has great respect and admiration for the French justice system and has been treated with great respect by the French authorities "She wishes the trial to proceed in an orderly fashion in accordance with French law and with respect for all parties to the case." In interviews and on her family’s reality TV show Kardashian has described being terrified as robbers pointed a gun at her In a 2020 appearance on David Letterman’s Netflix show she tearfully recalled thinking: "This is the time I’m going to get raped Twelve people were originally expected in the defendants’ box and another is seriously ill and can't be tried five of the 10 defendants were present at the scene of the robbery The French press has dubbed them The Granddad Robbers because the main defendants are elderly and have careers as bank robbers with long criminal records Kardashian told investigators she was taken to a bathroom next to her bedroom and placed in the bathtub Her attackers fled on bicycles or on foot and she managed to free herself by removing the tape from her hands and mouth She had also removed the tape from her feet and rushed to her stylist’s room She called her sister Kourtney to tell her about the theft Kardashian told investigators that she had not been injured adding that she wanted to leave France as soon as possible to be reunited with her children According to her testimony and that of the concierge at least one of the suspects had a handgun The gangsters stole many pieces of jewellery estimated to be worth more than US$6 million (NZ$10 million) Only one piece of jewellery — a diamond cross on platinum that was lost during the suspects' escape — has been recovered Two of the accused have partially confessed to the crime is one of two suspected robbers who allegedly entered the apartment his genetic profile was found on the tape used to gag Kardashian who was waiting for him in a parked car at a nearby train station The second robber said he tied up the concierge with cables but did not go up to Kardashian’s apartment said he acted as a lookout in the ground-floor reception area He said he was unarmed and did not personally threaten Kardashian but admitted he shared responsibility for the crime Abbas was arrested in January 2017 and spent 21 months in prison before being released under judicial supervision he co-authored a French-language book titled I Sequestered Kim Kardashian is the second alleged robber suspected of entering the flat although he was filmed by CCTV cameras and numerous telephone contacts with the other co-defendants show his involvement The other defendants are suspected of providing information about Kardashian’s presence in the apartment Others are accused of playing a role in the resale of the jewellery in Antwerp Joe Cocker and Bad Company will be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame — in a class that also includes pop star Cyndi Lauper the rock duo the White Stripes and grunge masters Soundgarden the first female rap act to achieve gold and platinum status and the late singer-songwriter Warren Zevon will get the Musical Influence Award pianist Nicky Hopkins and bassist Carol Kaye will each get the Musical Excellence Award who sang at Woodstock and was best known for his cover of The Beatles’ With a Little Help From My Friends a member of Elvis Costello & The Attractions who argued that Cocker is "about as rock and roll as it gets" Soundgarden — with the late Chris Cornell as singer — get into the Hall on their third nomination They follow two other grunge acts in the Hall — Nirvana and Pearl Jam Bad Company get in having become radio fixtures with such arena-rock staples as Feel Like Makin’ Love Can’t Get Enough and Rock ‘n’ Roll Fantasy The Ahmet Ertegun Award — given to nonperforming industry professionals who had a major influence on music — will go to Lenny Waronker Some nominees that didn't get in this year included Mariah Carey and subsequent Let’s Twist Again are considered among the most popular songs in the history of rock 'n' roll The 83-year-old has expressed frustration that he hadn't been granted entry before including telling the AP in 2014: "I don’t want to get in there when I’m 85 years old so you better do it quick while I’m still smiling." Lauper rose to fame in the 1980s with hits such as Time After Time and Girls Just Want To Have Fun and went on to win a Tony Award for Kinky Boots have six Grammys and a reputation for pushing the boundaries of hip-hop The White Stripes — made up of Jack White and Meg White — were indie darlings in the early 2000s with such songs as Seven Nation Army Artists must have released their first commercial recording at least 25 years before they’re eligible for induction The induction ceremony will take place in Los Angeles this fall Nominees were voted on by more than 1200 artists historians and music industry professionals The selection criteria include "an artist’s impact on other musicians the scope and longevity of their career and body of work as well as their innovation and excellence in style and technique" Dave Matthews Band and singer-guitarist Peter Frampton were inducted Members of Gloriavale have produced artworks which have gone on exhibition in Greymouth Righteous says the artwork was created by a group of young Gloriavale members in their spare time this is a way to continue sharing our culture,” he said so it was a good location to share theirs in a gallery setting Righteous says they have sold art alongside other products at local markets such as the MS Crafts and Gift Fair where they donated the funds to Multiple Sclerosis West Coast Righteous says they are “happy to have it (the art) on display” at the gallery and some art has already been sold He says any leftover work will be displayed at future markets Chairwoman of the gallery Cassandra Struve says the exhibition has been popular “There have been many people coming in specifically to see this work and everyone has been very impressed with the level of skill and attention to detail.” She says that when Righteous approached them they were very interested to see the art produced by the community we are keen to know all the all the ways in which art and creativity are expressed across Te Tai o Poutini and we are delighted to support creative expression where we can .. it’s been really lovely getting to know the creatives in the Gloriavale community.” Righteous says they would love to do an annual gallery showing to which Struve says “We would love to be a part of encouraging more creative expression in Gloriavale.” Glorious Artworks will be shown beside another local artist The only high-reach ladder truck in Auckland broke down last night A boil water notice remains in place for the greater Greymouth area as the council continues work to identify the source of bacterial contamination in the water supply The notice was first put in place for the district close to two weeks ago The Grey District Council said it was holding discussions with water regulator Taumata Arowai after receiving additional direction on what had to be done before the boil water notice could be lifted It needed to satisfy the regulator's direction in addition to the three clear days of testing Samples have been clear since last Thursday and there has been no reported sickness Grey District Council chief executive Joanne Soderlund said the council understood the magnitude of the Boil Water Notice on businesses "We sincerely apologise for the disruption this has caused for all We are working tirelessly to ensure the water supply is safe and to resolve this issue as quickly and thoroughly as possible," she said The NZ Food Network has been donating bottled water to the district which would be distributed this week to communities around greater Greymouth The council said the problem could be linked to a broken pipe Greymouth and the wider district remains under a boil water notice Major update on NZ's environment is a mixed bag because if you have a secret…everyone knows about it.” Greymouth locals tell us what’s hot (and what’s not so hot) in their small town The Regions is a docuseries that gives a snapshot of the lives of regional rangatahi in Aotearoa and what matters to them most Watch the series now on TVNZ+ and YouTube This marae is three hours’ drive from the nearest town ‘There's a lot of people that feel lonely growing up here.’ ‘Sometimes being on the grounds feels mamae.’ Rangatahi at a gym in the Hokianga tell us what’s hot or not about their region “You actually have a sense of knowing who you are when you get that diagnosis.” ‘There's a lot of people that feel lonely growing up here.’ “I feel like there’s not a lot to do if you’re not drinking.” ‘There’s a saying that Stewart Island is 10 years behind everyone else.’ but it’s my life - I’m going to do what I want.’ “I imagined life outside Gloriavale would look sad…but that’s not true at all.” “Hunting is the one thing that got me out of dark space.” these rangatahi are at the beach learning how to fish It's a place that teenagers have organically chosen to make their own You are not permitted to download, save or email this image. Visit image gallery to purchase the image The boil water notice was brought in on 9 April after Coliform bacteria and low levels of E Coli were detected in test results The Grey District Council says it received a revised direction from the water regulator It said checks of the water treatment facility yesterday and this morning determined the council now complies with the requirements The source of the contamination is still not known Council group manager operations Kurtin Perrin-Smith said the council is considering all potential areas of concern in its overall investigation Mayor Tania Gibson said it had been stressful for the community and council She said looking for the source of the contamination had been like looking for a needle in a haystack Gibson said their water had tested clear for five days She said there had also been no reports of sickness as a result of the water contamination Greymouth residents will "hopefully" get an update about the E Coli water contamination situation on Thursday Coliform bacteria and low levels of E Coli were detected from test results on Wednesday with a boil notice issued until further notice Grey District Mayor Tania Gibson said an investigation was underway but there were no early indications as to the source of the contamination we normally have very good drinking water in the district we do have a seperate water supply that's not affected from one of our smaller areas Gibson told Morning Report that an investigation to identify the source of the contamination has narrowed the search down to "a couple of isolated zones" working through the process of trying to isolate what this problem is." She said more information could "hopefully" be provided after the results of further testing were completed this afternoon "Hopefully we get good results this afternoon boil water notices in place for three days." Although she could confirm there's no contamination link to the Greymouth Wastewater Treatment Plant or the district's water bore system despite "lots of speculation" from the public "We're making sure we are onto it and doing everything we can to find the problem some remaining open but if people boil their water put it in the fridge and follow all the guidelines and updates around food safety we should get through this," said the mayor While some schools would close because of the water contamination situation Development West Coast chief executive Heath Milne said he did not anticipate businesses needing to close He said most Greymouth businesses had adapted to the boil water notice and were well prepared for a situation like this one "I don't see it hitting businesses too hard financially as long as it's resolved quickly "Most hospitality business would have a contingency supply of water and most business can adapt for a short period I know there's been a bit of rush for bottled water in the town but that will be replenished The boil notice affects more than a dozen areas and cannot be lifted until there are three straight days of clear test results Milne said he would start to be concerned if the boil notice continued into next week it could start to impact businesses but they have time to prepare and there is alternative supplies of potable water "The impact on businesses should be minimal but the length of time will have an impact on that Greymouth business owner Allan Monk said for the time being he was having to get fresh water supplies from Hokitika for his Paroa hotel and Sevenpenny restaurant "I've had to disassemble the coffee machine and plumb it into some water that's in a drum "We need water so we can actually sell alcohol because it's a legal requirement so it was a mad rush trying to get all those things in place." He said the the water contamination issue impacts a range of services his businesses provide post-mix so the soft drink that comes out the gun for things like coke and lemonade but the big thing is ice and making sure you've got drinking water it's just going to be niggly going to Hokitika each time "I don't see why businesses or schools would need to close we've lived through harder times than this." Mr Monk said he was grateful for the swift notice from council but was eager to have more clarity around how long they were expecting to take "We're heading into the weekend and we just don't know how long we're expecting for it to come back on "It would be good to get some clarity around how long they're expecting to take so we can start making some plans around how it's going to work," he said Damaged homes still dot the streets in one suburb marked for demolition after being inundated in January 2023 Kāinga Ora says stormwater upgrades will reduce the risk of repeat flooding Mangawhai residents are still cleaning up the damage caused by the tornado that ripped through the coastal community north of Auckland in the early hours of 26 January It's been described as the most underappreciated and spectacular feature of the West Coast town of Greymouth And it gets its nickname because it's said to be so cold it could cut you in half like a barber's razor It is the "Barber" - a unique cloud formation usually only seen in sunny cold conditions See terms of use for easy access to all your favourite programmes One of the country's biggest oil and gas producers says it has had a significant gas find in Taranaki Privately owned Greymouth Petroleum said the find was in the northern Taranaki onshore field "This is significant with virgin pressures encountered and flow rates exceeding comparable gas and hydrocarbon flow rates achieved in the early years of the concession It bodes well for ongoing regional drilling activity," the company said in a statement Greymouth can make increased gas volumes available to the market It said it planned to drill wells through 2025 with a number of "high impact" prospects planned Greymouth supplies about 20 percent of the gas market and has the biggest gas reserves The Turangi field find was the second made public in a week, after the NZ Energy Corp announced a find in the Tariki field last week Greymouth Petroleum also sent a warning to the government to get rules for the sector correct and to ensure consultation A last minute proposed amendment to legislation to reduce the risk of a government having to pick up the cost of cleaning and winding up a depleted oil and gas field has rattled the industry Greymouth said it wanted consultation before any changes and did not want the rush to pass fast-track legislation to get in the way "Amendments must not be compromised by the Government's 90-day legislative plan - rather amendments must be well considered and determined following a consultative process." it wanted to know how liability would be determined and did not want any backdating of liability either "The petroleum mining sector has had enough to deal with given the law changes made by the last two Labour Government regimes which brought Sovereign Risk to the sector and sent international petroleum companies packing," it said The Crown has been stuck with a $443 million potential bill to decommission the Tui Oil Field after the company supposed to do it collapsed Greymouth Petroleum said the country needed gas as a bridging fuel to new technologies and without it industries would "wither on the vine" "New Zealand has abundant indigenous petroleum resources and these must be fully harnessed." The company also made a passing reference for the need for the big four banks to support what it called the nation's backbone farming and processing industries and the extractive sector The major banks have been emphasising their commitment to green finance and backing sustainable and environmentally sound projects Greymouth said it was also ready to use its own drilling rig and partner with the government in drilling for supercritical geothermal resources which are hotter and deeper than conventional geothermal resources Only a single onshore petroleum exploration permit has been granted through the Block Offer 2020 competitive tender process The government has granted an offshore oil and gas exploration permit after being forced to reconsider its earlier decision to decline it An environmentalist says a decision to allow an oil and gas company to search off the coast of Taranaki shows the 2018 exploration ban is not genuine Business RSS coli was detected in the Kaiata water supply zone Grey District Council received a revised direction from their water regulator Taumata Arowai earlier this week and checked the facility yesterday it was determined the council now complied with the new requirements Mayor Tania Gibson said it had been stressful for the community and thanked everyone for their patience An investigation into the contamination was still ongoing “We have been saying it’s like looking for a needle in a haystack,” Gibson said Council group manager operations Kurtin Perrin-Smith said the council was "considering all areas of concern" in looking for the cause Greymouth's boil notice has now been lifted after more than two weeks of restrictions. The notice was issued on April 8 after E. coli was detected in the Kaiata water supply zone. Grey District Council received a revised direction from their water regulator Taumata Arowai earlier this week and checked the facility yesterday. This morning, it was determined the council now complied with the new requirements. Mayor Tania Gibson said it had been stressful for the community and thanked everyone for their patience. “We know it hasn’t been easy. We are very relieved.” An investigation into the contamination was still ongoing. “We have been saying it’s like looking for a needle in a haystack,” Gibson said. Council group manager operations Kurtin Perrin-Smith, said the council was "considering all areas of concern" in looking for the cause. Juliana Herrera's family tell inquest: 'Stop repeating avoidable mistakes' was murdered in January 2022 by her neighbour Health Good Sorts: The retired Feilding GP running a mobile medical service Dr Warren Nicholls has taken his skills on the road to increase access to healthcare Life-saving heart transplant technology a 'game changer' Doctors at Auckland City Hospital have been using a HOPE box for heart transplants – and they're showing promising results New air ambulance unveiled for Auckland and Northland The Leonardo AW169 swept into action as a welcome service for Auckland and Northland as one of nine new or near-new choppers to replace the ageing fleet More than 5000 senior doctors strike over pay dispute The strike followed months of unsuccessful negotiations with Health New Zealand Greymouth's boil notice has now been lifted after more than two weeks of restrictions Tonight's Good Sort is Dr Warren Nicholls a retired GP from Feilding who never quite stopped being a doctor Dr Nicholls took his skills on the road as part of a mobile medical service aimed at increasing access to healthcare There are no appointments needed – people just show up the team checks basic information like weight "There's a huge need for it," Dr Nicholls said The service began with local farmer Dean Williamson who wanted farmers to get more than their tractor checked up "To be able to book a health check in with the doctor you're looking at four or five weeks in advance and goodness knows what the weather's going to be like or what they're going to be doing on farming," Williamson said "I've signed a thousand death certificates but I've also delivered a thousand babies so the ledger of life is balanced," he said One caravan has now turned into a three and they've seen over a thousand patients He said one in four patients need further help "We've got a person who's probably a diabetic with a sugar of 12 and they don't know it." A mental health survey always finishes the visit it's their first doctor's visit in years "I haven't retired yet," Dr Nicholls said he wants to expand his operation into Northland "It's become my glorious obsession now." Taylor Keepa was like every other teenager full of plans for the future beyond the walls of Rototuna Senior High School But undergoing a heart transplantation was never one of them Taylor was in his final year of school in 2023 working a real estate internship and a part-time job at McDonald's when he began experiencing symptoms like shortness of breath and fatigue "I would have to take a break on my walk to school and even just doing nothing I would struggle to breathe," he told 1News What followed was a frustrating series of visits to the doctors and Waikato Hospital where he was initially diagnosed with pneumonia Taylor and his mother Michelle were given a devastating diagnosis – left and right ventricular non-compaction cardiomyopathy a rare condition which was causing his heart to fail that's when we were getting a chopper from Waikato Hospital to Auckland Hospital and then the very next day he was put on life support; he was put on an ECMO machine that took over the function of his heart," Michelle said And I just had to watch it all happen." Taylor was now facing the biggest battle of his life What followed was a series of surgeries to keep the teenager's heart beating as he awaited transplantation Just days after being rushed to Auckland Hospital doctors inserted a Ventricular Assist Device (VAD) – a mechanical pump that helps circulate blood from his heart to the rest of his body "It's kind of like having two satchels and they both cross over you and you kind of wear them like bags There are two wires that attach to your heart and sort of come out of your stomach area and funnel into these batteries," he said including a portable mode which has a 12-hour battery life Taylor would have to plug the batteries – still attached to him – into a power outlet while he slept "They definitely did not make it easy You would constantly be thinking about them Did I charge them correctly?" he said Taylor was eventually put on the urgent donor list "When you're put on the urgent list that's basically saying there isn't much longer we need this now" But seven months later on New Years Day 2024 during an intense card game in the hospital cafeteria with his dad 'I don't want to get your hopes up "It was kind of like a 'finally' type moment a heart was transported from Australia using a Hypothermic Oxygenated Perfusion box A Hypothermic Oxygenated Perfusion box – also known as a HOPE box by staff at Auckland City Hospital – is a specialised device used in organ transplantations The technology helps preserve oxygen and blood flow to a heart keeping the donor organ viable for longer than other traditional methods "It's basically like a really fancy version of a chilly bin It has a cooling device that keeps the heart at 8C and then it is perfused with blood and nutrients to provide exactly what the heart needs," said Dr Jamie O'Loughlin clinical lead for the Auckland Heart and Lung Transplant programme "The cool temperature keeps the metabolic demands low but providing oxygen and blood keeps the heart in the best condition that we can prior to transplant." The device was part of a clinical trial at Auckland City Hospital from March 2021 to December 2022 and has been used for 18 transplantations in New Zealand – five of those involving donor hearts flown in from Australia Dr O'Loughlin described the HOPE box as a "game changer" "We're not up against a time frame knowing that the donor heart is deteriorating over time so it gives us a lot of leeway in terms of how fast we're progressing the operation and the surgeons can take their time and do it really carefully," she said But this type of technology doesn't come cheap The technology is currently funded through donations given to the Auckland Hospital Foundation which means patients must meet strict criteria to qualify Advocates hope the Government will one day help fund the device so more people can access it "It's enabling the teams to build the capacity enabling the teams to build the care pathways and then for it to be adopted in government budgets," said Candy Schroder the director of the Auckland Hospital Foundation The last thing Taylor remembers before his heart transplantation was fist-bumping the surgeons and anaesthesiologists "He'd become quite popular in there," his mum said Taylor had received what he calls "the gift of life" "I remember waking up a couple of days later and I was really high," he laughed "People were coming in and saying hi to me and I was like After surgery he was transferred to Greenlane Hospital's Hearty Towers for recovery and rehabilitation and to connect with other New Zealanders who had also received heart transplants "I'm doing pretty awesome," he said "I'm studying again and I'm working now" When asked about the donor who gave him his heart "I like to think their life continues on in me" His gratitude is echoed by his mother and his wider whānau I wake up and I'm just like 'I still have my son' I'm thankful for everything I have," Michelle said I don't think there are enough words to describe how grateful I am," Taylor added "It's really hard to describe this feeling." Auckland and Northland's emergency medical response capabilities have been boosted with a new air ambulance helicopter Associate Health Minister Hon Casey Costello and ACC Minister Scott Simpson unveiled the new helicopter as part of a national fleet upgrade designed to improve aeromedical services across the country Speaking at Northern Rescue's Ardmore base where the aircraft was now stationed Costello said the helicopter represented a "major advancement" in aeromedical service delivery "We are pleased to see it become operational in this part of the country." the first of its kind to enter service under this initiative important for missions in remote or challenging weather conditions The Auckland/Northland chopper is the third aircraft to be rolled out under the national Emergency Air Ambulance Helicopter Service renewal programme would deliver nine new or near-new helicopters across the country in 2024/25 Ageing helicopters were to be replaced in Auckland "It's great news that this helicopter will support people living in these regions as part of the Government’s investment to upgrade some of New Zealand’s air ambulance fleet." Simpson said the service played a "critical role" in time-sensitive care for people in urgent need particularly in regional and rural communities this is the first helicopter purchased using ACC Investment debt financing which has enabled the ageing helicopter replacement programme to progress at a faster pace "This financing arrangement has contributed to savings of around $500,000 per year." The next helicopter would enter into service in Auckland/Northland in July 2025 More than 5000 senior doctors have gone on strike following months of unsuccessful negotiations with Health New Zealand Health NZ put forward an updated offer last week but that was rejected by The Association of Senior Medical Specialists the rejected agreement would have meant senior doctors received increases to base pay ranging from $8093 to $29,911 Those on steps 4 to 15 would have received a $8000 lump sum payment a 1.5% cap on total salary increases over the two-year term The union said its proposed increase was crucial for attracting more doctors to fill understaffed roles in public health departments and keeping experienced doctors from moving overseas to places like Australia where pay was much higher and departments are less strained Health NZ said today’s strike would lead to 4300 planned procedures being postponed Hospitals and emergency departments would remain open would still be available to deliver services to those who needed them transplant nephrologist Dr Helen Pilmore said "we don’t want to strike" “We’ve never wanted to strike in the 35 years I’ve been a doctor and the 26 years I’ve been a senior doctor She said the health system was in "dire crisis" "It makes me sad every day when I see what’s going on And what I think people need to understand is that the public healthcare system is crucial for the well-being of all Kiwis." She said “people will die” if doctors didn’t have sustainable conditions to work in "This is an unsustainable system at the moment Obstetrician and gynaecologist Dr Deralie Flower said those on strike today were actually fighting to save the public health system The ones who are on strike are actually the ones who are still here,” Flower said “They are the ones who actually believe our health system is worth fighting for.” said the biggest challenge with negotiations was the “financial gap” the system was experiencing “We know these are pretty tough economic times and we’ve been pretty public about our financial constraints we’ve been working hard with the union to try and come to an agreement and I guess we’ve just not managed to get there yet.“ He said the organisation had been struggling up and down the country Recruitment and retention were issues in places like Tairāwhiti the region experienced a 44% vacancy rate for senior doctors Nelson was also experiencing staffing difficulties. 1News spoke to multiple doctors at Nelson Hospital who had serious concerns that staff shortages were impacting patients Sullivan said Health NZ was still “really determined” to keep working with the union to try and reach an agreement He said the organisation had applied to the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) for facilitation in the hopes of finding an agreement “I guess it’s really about working with our teams to lift that environment and make sure we can deliver the best services and get to a place that is acceptable to both parties.” Nelson woman Alley Papadopoulos was supposed to be in the hospital today but her surgery was postponed by two weeks due to the strike she spent her day handing out ice blocks and cups of frozen fruit to union members at a rally in the city centre She told 1News she had been on the surgical waiting list for more than a year but was "pretty joyous" to be at the rally and I was supposed to have had my surgery yesterday but to be able to be here and then get my surgery She said it was a "pretty good feeling" “I would hope that people who have been put off can really understand the importance of [doctors] being heard "It’s all for the greater good of all of us." Taupō mother Anya Devlin said her 4-year-old son was supposed to have an appointment with his paediatrician for an autism assessment and genetic testing She told 1News this was the fourth appointment that had been cancelled since January Despite the frustration around her son's cancelled appointments "I completely understand the position they’re in and completely agree with the fact that they do need to strike "We want to be able to do everything we can to retain our healthcare professionals in the country so they don’t go off overseas” In a Facebook post last night, Health Minister Simeon Brown said today’s strike would disrupt hospitals and delay healthcare He urged the union to return to the negotiating table Brown said the Government’s updated offer reflected the desire to avoid any delays to healthcare “Instead of putting this offer to members to vote on it deciding to go ahead with pre-planned strike action which will impact thousands of patients “The updated offer addressed a number of the key issues raised by the union to attract and retain Senior Doctors including offering bonding of $25,000 for senior doctors who move to hard to staff regions for two years.” The Minister would not appear on Breakfast saying the strike was operational and that Health NZ would be best suited to discuss it Finance Minister Nicola Willis did appear and said New Zealand’s doctors were valued Willis said she was “disappointed” that patients were having their procedures cancelled due to the strike “We would really like to see doctors back at the negotiating table in particular because in this case they haven’t taken the offer that the Government has made to their members Willis thought the dispute could be negotiated and resolved Labour MP Ginny Andersen said the Government was “clearly” not doing enough “The problem we have is that in this initial couple of stages for doctors but there’s not enough in that offer to keep the doctors who are employed in New Zealand here now “This Government has consistently made the wrong choices they’ve prioritised tax cuts for landlords and tax breaks for the tobacco lobby over properly funding our health system.” Willis said the Government was investing significantly in health calling it the "biggest increases to its funding it's ever seen" but there was no "endless money." "We do need to balance everything up." Scam alerts: we’ve seen an increase in scam texts and emails claiming to be from us, asking for payments.Check our example scams or report a scam to us NZTA App: our mobile app provides a simple and secure way to access your driver licence and vehicle information.Learn more and download the NZTA app Grey District Council is undertaking emergency water main repairs so SH7 between Dobson and Stillwater will be closed 9 am to 3 pm Thursday A detour on the north side of the Grey River will be well signposted at each end (see map below) says NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA) West Coast roadworks (Journey Planner)(external link) NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi works to create transport solutions for all New Zealanders – from helping new drivers earn their licences to leading safety campaigns to investing in public transport Greymouth Petroleum said its new well has flowed at rates exceeding 7 terajoules of gas a day Greymouth Petroleum has confirmed “material” gas and condensate flows are coming from its new well near Stratford The well - TMO-C1 - was spudded on September 12 It went on to reach a depth of 5267 metres by November 12 TMO-C1 was drilled in Greymouth’s Turangi Mining Permit which was granted following the discovery of the Turangi gas condensate field in 2005 The well follows three earlier successful wells drilled by Greymouth in 2024 - Turangi-21 “All four wells are online and producing into the gas and oil liquids export transmission networks with TMO-C1 in test phase,” Greymouth said The company said its new well had flowed at rates exceeding 7 terajoules of gas a day “This is significant with virgin pressures encountered and flow rates exceeding comparable gas and hydrocarbon flow rates achieved in the early years of the concession enhancing security of supply,” the company said “It bodes well for ongoing regional drilling activity.” New Zealand-owned Greymouth supplies about 20% of the New Zealand gas market The casino operator has downgraded its earnings guidance for the second time Data from petrol price comparison app Gaspy has found that Timaru was the cheapest place for fuel while Greymouth was the priciest in recent weeks Gaspy's price comparison of 91 petrol prices in mid-February found consumers could face stark price differences depending where they were in the country Timaru conversely had the lowest fuel prices Gaspy Director Mike Newton said having the majority of the cheapest pricing in the South Island was a change from how pricing had been historically "It's driven a lot by the the discount retailers and in particular in recent years Richmond and Blenheim amongst the cheapest." Newton said the same trend was observed when Gull started to operate down South "For a while Gore was the cheapest place in the country because Gull opened their first station in the South Island in Gore," he said Newton said fuel prices appeared to be declining But he caveated global political or trade factors could alter that trajectory All tenants living in a Greymouth commercial accommodation block slammed as substandard have new homes to go to The Grey District Council and Fire and Emergency NZ (Fenz) were back on site at the Chapel St flats last week Tenants claim their Auckland-based landlord did not lodge their bonds their flats were filthy and some of them had been left thousands of dollars out of pocket are involved due to concerns the old building in Chapel St The Grey District Council says it does not have a building warrant of fitness Ministry of Social Development regional commissioner Craig Churchill said last Thursday they were concerned the tenants had been affected by substandard accommodation "We have been working with a number of affected households who are displaced as of today to support their search for alternative accommodation All now have housing to go to," Mr Churchill said "We do not place people in private accommodation such as boarding houses or hostels "People make their own decisions about whether accommodation is suitable." Mr Churchill said they expected accommodation providers to meet the standards set by the regulatory authorities and for those authorities to act where necessary Fenz said it was working closely with the council on the matter The Greymouth Star understands only a few units are still occupied Landlord Nick Hoogwerf told the Star last Wednesday he had only recently bought the Chapel St property He was "fully committed to doing what’s required" and was committed to renovating it The flats were located close to the CBD and he had been willing to take on Work and Income clients some of whom had been living in caravans previously He said he was providing "much needed affordable accommodation" Council teams are working to get road access to dozens of Greymouth homes cut off by a major slip Geotechnical engineers are working to stabilise a "precarious" area of the Arnott Heights hillside that has left 50 homes in the West Coast town isolated A major slip that came down at about midnight on Monday has left the area cut off to residents and motorists It also comes 14 months after a similar slip higher up the hill gave way There was further movement overnight on the shaky slope resulting in some small slips Mayor Tania Gibson hoped road access homes cut off could be restored on Tuesday afternoon "We are hoping that we might be able to get some one-way access through for a period of time," she said "We did have the slips come down in two places with an island in the middle that we would like to get down because it's still unstable "Risking people going through there with that being unstable is not ideal so we're just trying to get that disloged and down" Power to the area had been disconnected for three hours to allow diggers to get access and clear some of the mud and debris Contractors were hoping part of the road would be cleared by 3.30pm but it was likely access would be restricted to 4WD "We have vehicles and staff on hand to provide assistance as and when required Gibson said the recovery was likely to be expensive after recently securing emergency funding for a previous slip on the hillside "It's put a spanner in the works," she said Community leaders may need to seek clarity on what this latest event means with the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA) overhauling its Emergency Works Investment Policy The proposed change would mean NZTA's emergency funding only applied to one-in-20-year weather events "It's going to be costly fix," Gibson said cut off residents remained in "good spirits" "We just need to make sure the communication with the contractors is there "The contractors have done an excellent job as some of [the conditions] have been precarious." More of the country may be in for downpours heading into the last week of winter in a day that has seen parts of the lower North Island inundated with water A man has been found dead in the water off Greymouth on the West Coast Police said they were not treating the death as suspicious at this time The man’s death would be referred to the coroner His body was found in the water off Packers Quay in Blaketown Sign up to The Daily H a free newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday Residents impacted by a slip in Greymouth have been praised for being patient as contractors worked to clear and stabilise the ground A number of slips, including one that blocked Milton Road, occurred at the end of last month, following bad weather It left around 50 properties cut off, with residents being unable to get in and out of their homes for a few days The council on Wednesday begun sluicing material with the road closed until the operation is complete There would also be no pedestrian access during the operation A helicopter will fly clockwise around the Arnott Heights community and drop monsoon buckets of water onto the slip site and each flight would take around two to three minutes There was a technical glitch with the helicopter on Wednesday morning with it only being able to drop a few buckets before another helicopter replaced it just before midday Measures were in place at the bottom of the slip site to channel material away from houses on Milton Road access to the properties would also be cut off so residents who wanted to come and go were advised to vacate for the day Mayor Tania Gibson said locals had been listening to advice Again the fatigue is starting to set in within the community but I also think a bit of excitement has set in today as well with the action that is happening our thoughts are with the community and what we are doing is trying to get them a permanent solution but first we need to address this to get that underway "I think they've all been briefed today on safety in the area and we will be keeping them updated as to how the work goes depending on how much comes down and how long it takes for the contractors to be able to clean that up The council urged residents and traffic to stay away from the area while the operation was carried out It also asked locals to respect residential properties and park considerately The cordoned area will be expanded during the operation and pedestrians were not to enter the operational area Residents in four-wheel drives have been able to use the road as geotechnical engineers work to stabilise the hillside Geotechnical engineers working to stabilise a "precarious" area of the Arnott Heights hillside that has left 50 homes cut off The Cook Canyon was bringing the Jay Elaine into the Port of Greymouth under tow when the rope snapped The Jay Elaine had struck engine issues off Bruce Bay earlier in the week and was towed back to port by fellow Westfleet fishing vessel the Cook Canyon the tow coincided with the first autumn squalls of rain and wind which meant the vessels spent Tuesday night anchored off Greymouth waiting for the right tide and conditions two other fishing boats crossed the bar not long before the Cook Canyon-Jay Elaine made their move and police lined both tipheads with cameras and binoculars for the crossing While the outer bar was navigated with ease once between the Blaketown and Cobden breakwaters and the Jay Elaine was left bobbing in the swell The 27m Cook Canyon swung around in the river and returned to its charge Brown smoke billowed from the Jay Elaine exhaust as an engine was kicked into life While the Cook Canyon manoeuvred alongside re-hitching the Jay Elaine and towing her out further for the evening Another attempt was set to be made yesterday and ship tracking showed at 5.30pm Jay Elaine was over the bar and in the Grey River The incident highlighted a lack of protections for Greymouth seafarers It has been two years since the Ivan Talley II rescue vessel was written off after a disastrous bar crossing on the Grey River and the lack of a harbourmaster has been batted back and forth between the regional and district councils for a number of years Kotuku Surf Lifesaving has a presence and two rescue rings are positioned at the Blaketown tiphead in case of a maritime mishap the privately owned oil and gas company complains of pipeline access and decommissioning liabilities A flow test at Greymouth's TMO-B1 well Privately owned oil and gas company Greymouth Petroleum says it has confirmed commercial gas production from a new well drilled at its Turangi field in Taranaki The company said the field was the largest of New Zealand’s remaining gas reserves A boil water notice has been in place for the greater Greymouth area for the last two weeks as the council continues work to identify the source of bacterial contamination in the water supply It cannot be lifted until water regulator Taumata Arowai is satisfied the council has complied with directions Mayor Tania Gibson told RNZ's Morning Report programme today the council was still investigating the cause of the problem We know what it is but we still haven't really found the problem that's why it has really been hard to find." Gibson said the water had tested clear for five days and they hoped information they were providing today would be what is  required to lift the ban There had been no reports of sickness as a result of the water contamination and the ban had been incredibly frustrating for the district Affected areas include Greymouth and the suburbs of Cobden The notice was enacted at 10am today and remains in place until further notice "While the source of the contamination is still under investigation council is taking a proactive approach to safeguard public health," Grey District Council chief executive Joanne Soderlund said the water supply is tested regularly and in this instance sampling results have indicated a need for further investigation and temporary protective measures Council has immediately commenced a programme of daily sampling and monitoring to confirm water quality." John Paul II High School closed at 12.30pm due to the water situation Principal Renee Hutchinson said although that meant children were out of school before school buses were running they had access to clean drinking water in town The school would reopen tomorrow and Friday A post on the John Paul II High Facebook page that they had been advised of an E.coli outbreak were quickly quelled and the school was asked by the council to remove any reference to E.coli A council spokeswoman said it had not yet been confirmed what contaminant was found "Nothing will be confirmed until testing comes back We just want it out there as far and wide as we can." Greymouth High School and St Patrick's Primary School bought in bottled water and stayed open today Grey High principal Samantha Mortimer said the board of trustees would decide later today what to do for the next few days The 'boil water' notice affected things like hand washing too Schools were securing bottled water for the Grey District Athletics under way today at Anzac Park Some schools had asked parents to bring water down to the park Following national drinking water standards three consecutive days of clear test results are required before the notice can be lifted Residents in all areas connected to the town supply are advised to boil all water used for drinking and making infant formula until further notice the Grey District Council reinforced the warning with an automated alarm over cellphones The road up to Arnott Heights in Greymouth, where slips have left 50 homes isolated Geotechnical engineers had been working over the past few days to stabilise a "precarious" area of the Arnott Heights hillside A major slip that came down about midnight on Monday left the area cut off to residents and motorists There was further movement overnight on the shaky slope A Grey District Council spokesperson said teams were hoping to put concrete blocks in place to provide a safe passage for traffic Residents with four-wheel drives were being allowed go up and down the hill Transport was being provided for people without a suitable vehicle The wet weather is targeting Mount Taranaki with up to 80mm of rain expected early on Tuesday morning The highway will be resurfaced between 8 am and 6 pm Greymouth’s High St (SH6) will be closed between Shakespeare St and Morice St next Wednesday night The highway will be resurfaced between 8 pm and 6 am NZTA thanks everyone for taking it slowly on the local road detour along Shakespeare and Marlborough Sts overnight as this key piece of sealing is done before winter but people are asked not to park their cars on this section of High St on Wednesday after 8 pm work will switch to the next dry night eg Thursday “We are concerned at the apparent decline in monarch butterflies in NZ,” said Jacqui Knight founding trustee of the Moths and Butterflies of NZ Trust The New Zealand Plumbing Awards acknowledge the many positive achievements and success stories in the plumbing the national conference has been held for over 100 years "Insurers recognise that in the early stages of recovery many people may not be able to quickly lodge a claim," ICNZ chief executive Kris Faafoi said "While you should contact your insurer as soon as possible don’t wait to take steps to reduce further damage and begin recovery if it’s safe to do so." As most seasonal influenza vaccines are made using chicken eggs the SMC asked experts for background on seasonal flu vaccine manufacture and alternatives to the standard jab "ODF is much more than a technical specification: it is a symbol of freedom of choice support for interoperability and protection of users from the commercial strategies of Big Tech," said Eliane Domingos The Union says the loss of the rail-enabled Aratere a crucial link between the North and South Islands significantly weakens the resilience of New Zealand's national supply chain {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"/2024/08/26/roads-flooded-in-wellington-slip-affects-greymouth-residents/"},"datePublished":"2024-08-25T20:14:54.977Z","dateModified":"2024-08-26T06:52:23.058Z","headline":"Roads flooded in Wellington an "active" slip in Greymouth and closing the main road between Nelson and Blenheim for several hours MetService said it was a "wet start" to the week for parts of the country urging drivers to take care on the roads with the risk of surface flooding A number of roads were affected and people were encouraged to work from home if they could. a passenger train travelling from Waikanae to Wellington "clipped debris" beside the line at about 7.15am "The debris had overflown from catchment netting on slopes beside the track The area is well known for slips and the netting was cleared yesterday in anticipation of today's bad weather." KiwiRail staff were at the site clearing debris this morning the driver stopped the train and drove it back to Paekākāriki Station "Passengers disembarked at Paekākāriki and were advised to find alternative transport "There was limited availability of buses to replace trains during the morning peak as most were in service so we are grateful for our passengers' patience." but KiwiRail noted it will take longer for the normal timetable to resume KiwiRail’s track teams worked hard clearing debris and unblocking culverts "Given the forecast for ongoing bad weather tonight Temporary Speed Restrictions have been put in place at key sites on the rail network to ensure safety "Metlink will aim to run rail services to Waikanae as soon as possible now the line has reopened." a Judgeford Golf Club spokesperson confirmed to 1News that the course near Whitby suffered from flooding said one of the club's two bridges is completely underwater One of their staff members was onsite and couldn't get out other staff members couldn't get access to assess the damage Lower Hutt resident Robert Dawson told 1News he couldn't make a doctor's appointment this morning to get pain relief because Strand Crescent in Naenae was flooded He said surface flooding occurs on his street every year and said residents "all get used to it you shouldn't have to live like this." Dawson also said his grandson couldn't get to school today Ceri Burke said she hoped her car hadn't sustained water damage after it was parked in the flooded street overnight We're a bit worried about the engine cause it was in the water for She said she walked through surface flooding this morning to move her car up the road out of the water "First time it's ever been like this Burke said she was getting ready for work when she realised what had happened to her street and contacted her employer to say she wouldn't be able to make it "Not your normal Monday morning." MetService issued a number of severe weather warnings and watches for the region Orange heavy rain warnings are in place for the Tararua Range until 8pm today and for the Kapiti Coast also Wellington north of Ngauranga Gorge until 6pm today "Clear your drains and gutters to prepare for heavy rain Avoid low-lying areas and drive cautiously." A heavy rain watch is in place for Horowhenua until 6pm today NIWA Weather said on X: "It's been a wet start for the lower North Island "Our Upper Hutt climate station recorded 30mm of rain in just two hours (5-7am) "Rain is forecast to end by afternoon "Risk for more rain will emerge tonight and tomorrow for (mainly) western and northern parts of both islands." an "active" slip has blocked access to over 50 homes in Arnott Heights Mayor Tania Gibson says “It’s still raining here and it’s not looking likely it will be safe to open the road to the area of Arnott Heights today.” but the situation is being monitored closely by engineers Helicopters are on standby if there’s any need to evacuate people On Facebook Grey District Council said there have been no reports of personal injury or damage to nearby properties has been minimal they urge people to stay away from the site "The slip needs to settle before a full assessment can be carried out to confirm the extent of the damage and what will be required to restore the site "It is still a very active situation and for staff and public safety we need to wait until the hill stops moving before we can work to fully clear the area "Residents on Arnott Heights may experience a power outage later this afternoon but this should be restored quickly." An orange heavy rain warning is also in place for Mount Taranaki until 10am tomorrow "Expect 150 to 200mm of rain," MetService said "Peak rates of 15 to 25mm/h with possible thunderstorms." A heavy rain watch was in place for the rest of Taranaki from midday today to midday tomorrow And the South Island's Buller District was under a heavy rain watch from 4am tomorrow to midnight tomorrow Heavy downpours also hit the top and west of the South Island Heavy rain has impacted central and southwest New Zealand today It’s been a tricky morning for motorists north of Wellington after heavy rain caused some flooding A number of roads were affected and people were encouraged to work from home if they could. The Wellington train that was hit by rockfall during severe weather in Wellington Surface flooding on the corner of Strand Crescent in Naenae Naenae resident Ceri Burke at her home on Strand Crescent No homes are currently at risk but the situation is being monitored closely by engineers On Facebook, Grey District Council said there have been no reports of personal injury, or damage to nearby properties has been minimal. However, they urge people to stay away from the site. "The slip needs to settle before a full assessment can be carried out to confirm the extent of the damage, and what will be required to restore the site. "It is still a very active situation and for staff and public safety, we need to wait until the hill stops moving before we can work to fully clear the area. "Residents on Arnott Heights may experience a power outage later this afternoon, but this should be restored quickly." An orange heavy rain warning is also in place for Mount Taranaki until 10am tomorrow. "Expect 150 to 200mm of rain," MetService said. "Peak rates of 15 to 25mm/h with possible thunderstorms." A heavy rain watch was in place for the rest of Taranaki from midday today to midday tomorrow. And the South Island's Buller District was under a heavy rain watch from 4am tomorrow to midnight tomorrow. Search underway for Masterton man John Rafferty was last seen at Masterton Railway Station at about midday on May 4 Victoria Uni law students to sit handwritten exams due to AI fears Professor Geoff McLay said he had become "increasingly worried that the embedding of artificial intelligence in many students' laptops" Man charged after gun allegedly fired in Masterton MSD office Police said it was believed to be an isolated incident with no wider risk to the public Crime and Justice Man's cigarette smuggling attempt stubbed out Customs said the body-packing of the more than 1600 cigarettes was "an attempt to defraud Customs revenue" Wellington Airport's giant eagles to depart terminal "They have been a huge success and travellers from around the world have loved admiring them." Wellington residents 'left in limbo' as power outages continue Thousands of homes lost power during the storm which battered the region this week 📊 Rainfall totals overnight in Wellington til 7am (heaviest hour in brackets)Lower Hutt 59.0mm (20.4mm from 4-5am)Wainuiomata 48.6mm (17.4mm from 4-5am)Porirua 38.6mm (17.6mm from 5-6am)Upper Hutt 30.2mm (21.1mm from 6-7am)Kelburn 21.6mm (5.0mm from 3-4am)🟠 An… A law student at Victoria University of Wellington said students had been "left in the lurch" after an announcement on Monday that said next month's exams for two law subjects would have to be handwritten also said a timetable had still not been provided he said he had become "increasingly worried that the embedding of artificial intelligence (AI) in many students' laptops makes ensuring that students' work is their own very difficult" He had hoped the university would have a technical solution although he hoped one would be available at the end of the year "This means that we will not be able to allow students to use laptops for exams next month," McLay wrote "I want to make this announcement as soon as possible so students have time to prepare for handwritten examinations." McLay added that there would be an exception for students with a disability that required them to use a keyboard The situation affected the LAWS 312 Equity and LAWS 334 Ethics exams The student said the announcement was stressful during an already stressful time a representative of the Victoria University of Wellington Law Students' Society said the Council of Legal Education had to be certain that everyone who passed the exams in Equity and Ethics deserved a pass (and did not cheat) "Previously in person invigilation has been sufficient to manage these concerns due to the increasing ability and sophistication of AI the faculty were concerned about the reliability of the exams leading to their decision to make the Equity and Ethics exams handwritten." The representative said the law students' society had expressed that students' preference was for typed exams — "reflecting how our professional lives will look" once it became clear that the faculty felt they needed to proceed with handwritten exams we emphasised that students should be informed as early as possible accessibility options should be made clear and exam content and timing should reflect the fact that many students have not done handwritten exams since high school and are not used to writing for extended periods of time." The representative added it was separate from the delay to the exam timetable Victoria University Provost Professor Bryony James said students' handwriting their exams meant the university could be confident that the results truly reflected the students' own knowledge and effort — free of any suggestion of the influence of AI James said she would ensure that no student was disadvantaged and was committed to working with students — including those with disabilities — who might need further support to participate in exams and final assessments as a result "As part of this undertaking the Faculty of Law will review this Trimester's exam results to ensure this cohort's performance is in line with previous years and confirm that students are not significantly impacted by this decision." President of Victoria University's Students' Association Liban Ali told Morning Report he was aware that this could happen as early as last year "It has been on the card as of last year I feel like there was something that was going to happen." Ali said the announcement had come at the wrong time and that the Students' Association were very concerned for students He said the Students' Association had engaged the Law Society and the faculty to determine the best way to support students He added that he would make sure that any changes were communicated early in the future rnz.co.nz A 25-year-old man has appeared in court after he allegedly fired a gun at another person inside a Ministry of Social Development office in Masterton yesterday Police were called to the incident on Lincoln Rd at around 12.40pm on Monday Wairarapa Area Commander Inspector Nick Thom said there were no reports of injuries from the incident "Following police's initial enquiries one person was taken into custody a short time later nearby." Cordons were put in place around the area and some staff were armed as a precaution Thom said it was believed to be an isolated incident with no wider risk to the public "Police would like to commend Ministry of Social Development staff for their prompt actions in following their lockdown procedures as this enabled police to provide a swift response to resolve this incident quickly." A 25-year-old man appeared in Masterton District Court today charged with unlawful possession of a firearm and conducting a dangerous act with intent to cause grievous bodily harm Wellington's famous eagles will take flight from the airport this week after 12 years in the terminal They will be replaced by a new display that is currently being kept under wraps Wellington Airport chief executive Matt Clarke said that the departure of the birds (and their passenger Gandalf) will be emotional for staff "They have been a huge success and travellers from around the world have loved admiring them After 12 years it's the right time for them to fly the nest “We’re working with Wētā Workshop on some exciting plans for a unique locally themed replacement to take their place." The eagles were created by Wētā Workshop as a tie-in with the Hobbit movies and unveiled in December 2013 Each bird weighs 1.2 tonnes and has a 15-metre wingspan Wētā Workshop co-founder and chief creative officer Richard Taylor said it's a "bittersweet moment" saying goodbye to them "There are many more stories to be told and we're looking forward to working with Wellington Airport on bringing a new chapter to life."  The eagles will be taken down and disassembled on Friday May 9 and placed into storage with long-term plans for them still yet to be decided "We’ll unveil what’s next later this year so keep watching the skies," Clarke said Tolkien fans will be relieved to know that Smaug the Magnificent will remain in the check-in area Frustration is mounting among residents in Wellington who have been without power since early Thursday but Wellington Electricity says some repairs will continue until the middle of next week Natasha Eagle and her two children have been coping without electricity at their Island Bay home for four days She said communication had been muddled and sparse and it was difficult having no idea whether restoration was hours or days away That view was backed up by Brooklyn resident Sean Keaney He said he and his family of five had been without electricity since midnight Thursday He said they were the only house in the street affected and an electrician had confirmed the problem was at the pole Keaney said communication from Wellington Electricity had been appalling "However there is absolutely no information for us and others like us I've called multiple times to be told 'we have no ETA' we don't have any information on when someone will be there' and when I pushed and asked to talk to someone to escalate this was told they 'don't want to talk to you and you can make a complaint when it's all resolved' "This is appalling communication from Wellington Electricity - they will have a schedule of work and an idea of when they could be out to fix but refusing to share it as our family of five approach 60 hours without electricity not knowing how long it will be and unable to plan." venting frustration about the lack of communication and updates from Wellington Electricity Wellington Electricity said it was progressively restoring power to single-premise outages - with faults being prioritised by how long they had been out "After the strongest winds in a decade lashed the Wellington region on Thursday Wellington Electricity has restored power to the bulk of affected customers," it said in a statement to RNZ on Sunday afternoon adding that 8000 customers had been impacted "Crews have worked 14-hour days since Thursday managing safety with regular check-ins and roster rotations to manage fatigue." "Wellington Electricity anticipates restoring the bulk of its remaining customers without power by Monday evening however further repairs will be necessary including streetlight circuit restoration." Anyone without power who has not been contacted should call their electricity retailer directly so repair crews can be dispatched to restore supply "Wellington Electricity acknowledges the extended disruption these outages have caused and thanks customers for their continued patience while final restoration work is completed." rnz.co.nz Health New Zealand is playing down concerns it came very close to having to shut the West Coast's biggest hospital this weekend because of staff shortages Patient advocate Malcolm Mulholland said he understood a senior doctor shortage meant Te Nikau Grey Hospital may have had to close its doors A "domino effect" could have seen Buller Health's acute stabilisation unit The $21 million health centre has been closed for a total of a month since it opened in May 2023 "Often they have to do that because doctors are being transferred from servicing Buller Hospital to servicing Greymouth That could have resulted in severe logistical challenges "They would have had to transfer all of those patients or would there have been some sort of ambulance convoy We just don't know how they would have dealt with it but it wouldn't have been a good situation and it would have been one in which the health of patients was compromised "It shouldn't matter what where in the country you live West Coast residents were in situations where they could not access the region's sole ambulance because "more times than not it's transferring patients from Westport to Grey [Hospital]" and the helicopter service was weather-dependent "Coasters, frankly, have had a gutsful." Health New Zealand needed to be more upfront with the public about why that situation existed Health New Zealand West Coast chief medical officer Brendan Marshall acknowledged "some staffing challenges" but said Greymouth Hospital would be operating as usual Marshall said the safety of patients and staff is Health NZ's top priority Te Nikau Hospital's ED had some challenges covering this weekend's roster with the appropriate clinical resource This situation was unique to this weekend and was resolved this has never occurred at Te Nikau previously and we do not expect it to occur again." But Mulholland said rural health care was in a dire predicament "One of the things I've found in advocating for those back home on the Coast is that this is not a unique situation when it comes to rural health settings in Aotearoa "Since some of these horror stories have been getting out in terms of what's happening on the West Coast These are all places that have a rural hospital but due to staffing pressures they've had to compromise on the services they can provide." Some doctors say the government's re-allocation of $30 million towards more senior doctors and nurses is welcome but falls short of the systemic change that is needed Nurses and local managers have now agreed to keeping Dargaville Hospital open There are also "a number of gaps" in the roster for the rest of the month The code indicates a hospital is critically overcrowded and doctors say the change by Heath NZ is "applying wallpaper to a great hole" You are not permitted to download, save or email this image. Visit image gallery to purchase the image. The feral animals have become something of mascot for Greymouth and any mention of goat control raises hackles. The herd associated with Kells Hotel was moved to Waipuna earlier this year, but a burgeoning population remains at both ends of the Cobden bridge. Authorities said controlling numbers would require a multi-agency approach, as goats came from Department of Conservation (Doc) land and also strayed on to state highways controlled by Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency. Grey District Council regulatory manager Michael McEnaney said the council had recorded seven complaints from May 2023 to now, including three near misses and two of damage to gardens. Council staff had also spoken to residents who might have been encouraging the feral goats on to private property. Mr McEnaney said the council recognised the frustration of some residents . ‘‘We are looking to engage with other agencies that should rightfully be involved in mitigating any issues with the animals.’’ The provenance of the goats generated discussion at a recent council meeting. Cr Allan Gibson said they were ‘‘a tourist attraction’’. Cr Rex MacDonald said someone had approached the council with the idea to move the goats, but mayor Tania Gibson said the idea was considered ‘‘cost-prohibitive’’, although a local farmer believed they could help. The underlying issue was whose responsibility the goats were and how much control would cost, she said. ‘‘Is it Doc’s land, is it Mawhera’s land or our land, or NZTA ... It is still a cost and of high public interest because people do love them, and as a safety issue they’re there and then they are not — it’s awkward.’’ Taylorville Resource Park Ltd is inviting public comment on its plans, on its website and in newspaper advertisements. The company is applying to the West Coast Regional Council for a Class 2 landfill consent that would allow it to dump more contaminated material at its site overlooking the Grey River. The company says its current consents have 17 years to run, but their complexity make them unfit for purpose. It can lawfully dispose of clean fill, demolition and construction waste, asbestos, coal-tar and tyres. But it needs case-by-case approval from the Regional Council for other sorts of material. “This last part is quite unusual and cumbersome for everyone involved,” the company says in its website explanation. The Class 2 landfill consent would clearly specify everything that could be taken. The company also wants approval for more ‘cells’ at the Taylorville site and eventually, a new composting operation and blending area for green waste. It says it expects its application will be publicly notified so the public will have a formal say in the resource consent process. The Taylorville dump has been controversial since it was granted consent by the West Coast Regional Council in 2021 without public notification. Neighbours protested at the lack of consultation and complained of bad smells and dust. The Grey District Council said it should have been consulted as an affected party because the landfill sits above the river, not far from the bore intake for Greymouth’s public water supply. Grey mayor Tania Gibson called for it to be closed after contaminants were found leaching onto nearby land. And in August 2023, two workers told to dig a hole in one of the rubbish cells were overcome by toxic gases and seriously injured. The Environmental Protection Authority was called in as an independent arbitrator and eventually cleared the landfill last September after remedial work was carried out to stop leachate escaping. But a Regional Council prosecution of the company over the leaching is still making its way through the courts. Taylorville Resource Park LTD, along with subcontractor Paul Smith Earthmoving, are also facing potentially hefty fines after pleading guilty in the Greymouth District Court to charges of exposing the two workers to risk of death or injury. Within the next fortnight, Taylorville Resource Park plans to lodge new resource consent applications supported by "expert environmental and technical reports". It anticipates that this time the applications will be publicly notified, and the community will have a formal say in the resource consent process. Feedback via its website is welcome at any time, the company says. “In particular, feedback received prior to lodgement – before the end of March – will be considered when finalising the details of the application.” On its website, the company says the Taylorville landfill has a low seismic risk and could be an important strategic asset in the event of a significant earthquake or other disaster. “Especially if the West Coast became isolated for a period as a result. TRP could help enable recovery and clean up while preserving municipal waste options at the West Coast Regional Council’s McLean’s Pit landfill.” Adrian van Dorp, who owns a neighbouring property, says he will be submitting against the new consents. “I appreciate the chance to have a say but based on their record to date, I will not be supporting it,” he told LDR. Gibson says the council will also be making its concerns known. “It’s good to have the opportunity, but they have yet to show they’re a responsible operator and I‘ll be urging Greymouth people to have their say as well.” By Lois Williams, Local Democracy Reporter The company says its current consents are not fit for purpose. (Source: Local Democracy Reporting) A privately-owned Greymouth landfill that has been prosecuted for breaching its resource consents and health and safety rules wants to expand its operation. The Taylorville Resource Park is a few kilometres east of Greymouth. (Source: Local Democracy Reporting) Greymouth mayor calls for leaking landfill to be shutThe Grey District Council is calling for the Taylorville Resource Park consents to be revoked after it was slapped with an abatement on the site Environment Environmental watchdog visits controversial West Coast landfillThe site was given three months to comply with the appropriate environmental standards 'Rotten egg' smell at Greymouth landfill identifiedNeighbours have been raising concerns about a pungent smell and two workers were reportedly overcome by gas Severe weather to lash both islands 'unusually strong' winds for Wgtn A low pressure system deepening and moving across the country today and tomorrow has sparked a huge amount of weather warnings and watches 'Sadness gratitude': Cave Creek survivors reflect 30 years on Thirteen students and a Department of Conservation officer fell 40-metres to their deaths when the platform overlooking Cave Creek gave way on April 28 Investigation underway into blaze at vacant Wairoa house Emergency services were called to a house fire on Apatu St about 7pm on Friday Greymouth's boil notice restrictions lifted Greymouth under boil water notice for almost two weeks The notice for Greymouth and surrounding areas was put in place after possible contamination of the water supply was identified A privately-owned Greymouth landfill that has been prosecuted for breaching its resource consents and health and safety rules wants to expand its operation Taylorville Resource Park Ltd is inviting public comment on its plans on its website and in newspaper advertisements The company is applying to the West Coast Regional Council for a Class 2 landfill consent that would allow it to dump more contaminated material at its site overlooking the Grey River The company says its current consents have 17 years to run but their complexity make them unfit for purpose But it needs case-by-case approval from the Regional Council for other sorts of material “This last part is quite unusual and cumbersome for everyone involved,” the company says in its website explanation The Class 2 landfill consent would clearly specify everything that could be taken The company also wants approval for more ‘cells’ at the Taylorville site and eventually a new composting operation and blending area for green waste It says it expects its application will be publicly notified so the public will have a formal say in the resource consent process The Taylorville dump has been controversial since it was granted consent by the West Coast Regional Council in 2021 without public notification Neighbours protested at the lack of consultation and complained of bad smells and dust The Grey District Council said it should have been consulted as an affected party because the landfill sits above the river not far from the bore intake for Greymouth’s public water supply Grey mayor Tania Gibson called for it to be closed after contaminants were found leaching onto nearby land two workers told to dig a hole in one of the rubbish cells were overcome by toxic gases and seriously injured The Environmental Protection Authority was called in as an independent arbitrator and eventually cleared the landfill last September after remedial work was carried out to stop leachate escaping But a Regional Council prosecution of the company over the leaching is still making its way through the courts along with subcontractor Paul Smith Earthmoving are also facing potentially hefty fines after pleading guilty in the Greymouth District Court to charges of exposing the two workers to risk of death or injury Taylorville Resource Park plans to lodge new resource consent applications supported by "expert environmental and technical reports" It anticipates that this time the applications will be publicly notified and the community will have a formal say in the resource consent process Feedback via its website is welcome at any time feedback received prior to lodgement – before the end of March – will be considered when finalising the details of the application.” the company says the Taylorville landfill has a low seismic risk and could be an important strategic asset in the event of a significant earthquake or other disaster “Especially if the West Coast became isolated for a period as a result TRP could help enable recovery and clean up while preserving municipal waste options at the West Coast Regional Council’s McLean’s Pit landfill.” says he will be submitting against the new consents “I appreciate the chance to have a say but based on their record to date Gibson says the council will also be making its concerns known but they have yet to show they’re a responsible operator and I‘ll be urging Greymouth people to have their say as well.” Greymouth's mayor wants a controversial private landfill site to close after the site was hit with an abatement notice over water contamination The Grey District Council is calling for the Taylorville Resource Park consents to be revoked immediately in the wake of an Environmental Protection Authority abatement on the site Greymouth Mayor Tania Gibson said fears about the site have yet to be allayed "We remain very concerned about the risks posed by the presence of the landfill to our communities and our critical infrastructure," Gibson said "We welcome the EPA findings and strongly call on the regional council to revoke all consents and begin remediation work immediately." The water leaching abatement validated her council's belief the landfill should never have been approved Grey has been unhappy for the past three years over not being considered an affected party to the non-notified resource consents for the site granted by the West Coast Regional Council The landfill is about 30m away from the district council's Greymouth Water Treatment Plant The water bores for the water supply are about 300m away from the landfill in the Grey Riverbed Gibson said the EPA findings "don't go far enough" "The Taylorville landfill should never have been approved We have never had any assurance about the safety of the operation or how grave risks to our environment are being mitigated," she said The EPA has been approached for further comment by LDR Gibson said the EPA finding this week was consistent with her council's concerns "There are unanswered questions around the impact of the landfill on the long-term security of the district's water supply West Coast Regional Council chief executive Darryl Lew was unavailable but chairman Peter Haddock said the district council call to shut down the landfill immediately was probably not realistic there is an abatement notice that has three months to run," Haddock said he acknowledged the landfill mess as one the regional council needed to clear up "My comment is it's just another one of those legacy items the council had to pick up." the landfill operator had filed new consent applications for the site "and they will have to follow due process," Haddock said "It may be that they are publicly notified It's not quite as easy as the Grey District Council are saying "The [operator] has a consent in place at the moment but any new consents will have to go through a new process." He said he personally believed the speedy capping of the open landfill cell closest to Taylorville Road would help mitigate the water leakage issue Haddock happens to owns a semi-industrial site just west of the landfill He said he had not been approached by the EPA in the course of its recent investigation Gibson said the risk of leakage from landfill cell containment structures set in gravels "with high water movement present" presented grave risks "We've not had any reassurance around how the site will stand up to prolonged heavy rainfall or natural events "There are many unanswered questions around the impact of the landfill not only on the long-term security of the district's water supply but also on the impact the leachate will have on the local environment the Grey River and Greymouth as a whole," Gibson said "Council has not had any reassurance around how the site will stand up to prolonged heavy rainfall and natural events Grey council staff have been regularly monitoring the water supply to ensure residents are protected from any potential contamination "We are engaging with the Regional Council and will be increasing the monitoring of ground water between the landfill and water supply intakes." An assessment of environmental effects prepared for Taylorville Resource Park by EHS Support on March 6 found current water discharge from the site did not have "adverse effects" on human health or the environment that were more than minor EPA investigations manager Jackie Adams said the landfill proprietors had been fully co-operative Earlier matters raised by the district council with the EPA alongside the regional council's separate call for an investigation were not regulated under the RMA and therefore did not fall within the scope of the authority's investigation into the abatement incident "The EPA has taken enforcement action based on the findings of our investigation in respect of discharges from the site and compliance with the existing consents," Adams said "Any question as to the status of those consents should be referred to the council as the issuing authority." He said once TRP completed the abatement notice required work A failure to comply could result in further enforcement action The official environmental watchdog is on the ground today to check a controversial West Coast private landfill where contaminated water has leaked from the site The Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) issued Taylorville Resource Park with an abatement notice three months ago after its investigation found contaminated water leaching from the landfill the site was given three months to comply with the appropriate environmental standards It followed a request in February for the EPA to take over the West Coast Regional Council's ongoing investigation of the landfill site from 2023 after a raft of complaints The EPA moved quickly and announced on March 14 it had issued the abatement giving the site three months until June 14 to fix the leachate issue EPA investigations manager Jackie Adams said EPA compliance officers were now on the ground at Coal Creek inspecting the site "We will be reviewing the changes made by Taylorville Resource Park and taking further water samples from the site," Mr Adams said we will assess if all the conditions and requirements of the abatement notice have been met Adams said they were very conscious of the public interest in the site "We recognise this is an important issue for people in the region and are working with Taylorville Resource Park to ensure they have taken the appropriate steps to address the issues outlined in the abatement notice," he said the EPA has the power to assist and intervene in an enforcement action of a council Mr Adams said they would make a further announcement pending their inspection and confirmation of any next steps The EPA intervention followed a fraught 2023 for the regional council as it dealt with a raft of complaints The regional council had previously granted the site its initial non-notified consents in 2021 then a series of consent variations through 2022 and in early 2023 Those consent alterations saw the scope of the landfill site expand beyond a much needed demolition landfill to take other materials such as toxic coal tar and old tyres The allowing of variations was highlighted in a damning independent report for council of its own consenting process in mid-2023 The Enviser report also highlighted a tendency by council to rely on "a tickbox" exercise of information provided by applicants Taylorville Resource Park was approached for comment The Grey District Council has criticised how the landfill site was allowed to operate close to its Greymouth water treatment plant site Mayor Tania Gibson said said the council continued to keep a watch on the site Her council in early 2023 commissioned independent and ongoing water testing due to their unhappiness at the landfill being across the road from their water treatment plant The supply's water intakes are about 300m southeast from the landfill "I think it's a ticking time bomb," Gibson said today "We're assured at this stage our water supply is safe but into the future Gibson said their worry aligned with that of the landfill's neighbours: about the site's future effects Gibson said her council was working "in partnership" now with the regional council to find a resolution "but we need to do the right thing for the district" Former Grey District councillor Cliff Sandrey part a organised group of concerned neighbours At this stage it was "a wait and see" A 'rotten egg' smell at a private landfill on the West Coast could be caused by crushed and wet plasterboard The West Coast Regional Council has accepted fresh applications from Taylorville Resource Park It includes a new assessment for the applicant which details the cause of the pungent odour which has resulted in numerous complaints to the council in the past 15 months The air assessment says the saturation of plasterboard in anaerobic conditions significantly enhanced rotting causing the generation of a rotten egg smell at the site "The best way to address the production of sulphide gas is to prevent it at the source," the Davis Ogilvie report said It is not yet clear if the latest application from Taylorville Resource Park will result in a public resource consent hearing The controversial site was recently hit with an abatement notice from the Environmental Protection Authority after council called in the authority in January to take over its investigation of the site It followed a string of complaints and previous abatements in 2023 including neighbours raising concerns about a pungent smell The Environmental Protection Authority slapped down an abatement in mid-March after finding contaminated leachate water collected in a landfill cell at the site was being released from a sediment pond Taylorville Resource Park has three months to meet the "required environmental standards" the Environmental Protection Authority said on March 18 Local Democracy Reporting approached Taylorville Resource Park on April 18 for comment on its latest applications A WorkSafe investigation into an incident at the site last August in which two workers were overcome with gas The landfill has now applied to bring the operation in line with the Class 3 Managed Fill guidelines under the Waste Management Institute New Zealand Technical Guidelines for Disposal to Land It is also seeks to vary its discharge consent for water containing "landfill leachate" and a separate consent to discharge landfill gas to air A bundle of documents lodged with council include a discharge to air assessment by Davis Ogilvie for Taylorville Resource Park in February this year It says the potential for gas generation at the site was originally assessed to be "less than minor" in 2021 and possible adverse effects beyond the site were thought to be unlikely at the time What had subsequently emerged could be attributed to: Davis Ogilvie also said gas generation at the site could increase when demolition plasterboard material was crushed Repair of a sump to limit water ponding in a dump cell sealing of the leachate discharge system to minimise emissions and installation of a gas treatment system to absorb gas had all been undertaken to try and fix the issue The documents also include an asbestos management plan and an assessment of environmental effects from May 2023 The assessment notes planning and hazard information held by the Grey District Council did not consider the site "prone to landslides" Another memorandum backgrounds Taylorville Resource Park's desire to simplify the acceptance of contaminated soil at the site to move beyond the current case by case basis requiring council approval It noted existing lined cells and the collection and treatment of leachate at the site exceeded current monitoring and engineering requirements Further severe weather is forecast to impact both islands tomorrow unusually strong winds for the capital and more disruption to transport A low-pressure system is deepening and moving across the country over the next 48 hours sparking a large number of weather warnings MetService has issued orange heavy rain warnings for Bay of Plenty east of Ōpōtiki Canterbury between Amberley and Timaru including Christchurch and Banks Peninsula An orange strong wind warning is in place from tomorrow for both sides of Cook Strait coastal areas of Wairarapa and coastal Marlborough south of Blenheim Gusts of up to 130km/h could hit the capital and further disruption was expected to Cook Strait ferry services NZTA has warned motorists of possible lane closures on the Auckland Harbour Bridge tomorrow SH1 would be blocked in Northland at the Mangamuka Gorge overnight into Thursday morning Damaging wind is a real concern for parts of the lower North Island, including Wellington, later today & Thursday.Gusts may reach 120+ km/h.Likely impacts include:🌬️ Damage to trees🌬️ Risk of power cuts🌬️ Difficult travelStay on top of weather warnings from @MetService. pic.twitter.com/E4OPApFHoQ Orange heavy snow warnings were in force overnight for the Canterbury High Country with 12 to 20cm of snow expected to fall above 800 metres including heavy rain watches for the eastern Bay of Plenty Strong wind watches were also forecast for Auckland MetService's Heather Keats said the storm was "very widespread" "It's covering almost the entire country," she said "Most of us will get at least a little taste of this system." There was a "large amount of impactful rain" forecast for the east coast of the South Island including a high chance of a red warning for Canterbury north and about Amberley which was "not to be ignored" but she said it was at "unusual levels even for them" with southerly gusts approaching 130km/h alongside high sustained wind speeds possible "When the wind is combined with the swell there will be elevated impacts from this weather coastal inundation and erosion just to name a couple," Keats said It’s about to get properly windy for parts of the country over the next day and a half💨In the capital, this looks like more than just a typical Windy Welly day - unusually strong southerlies could bring gusts of 130 km/h, making trees and structures more vulnerable to damage pic.twitter.com/KotAHrhoFa She said it had been a "really wet and warm April" "We did have a relatively quiet start to 2025 so it does feel like all the rough weather is now pushing over us but we are well into autumn now and we can expect the weather to become unstable at times." Forecast swells of up to seven metres have forced a large number of cancellations on both the Interislander and Bluebridge over the coming days SH1 through the Mangamuka Gorge has been closed since yesterday due to a slip NZTA said the road would remain closed overnight "Contractors will be on-site with specialist machinery tomorrow morning to remove loose material above the slip site in a safe and controlled manner," a spokesperson said the agency said contractors were monitoring the movement of the hillside following recent heavy rain and another slip was expected "The geology and varying terrain through the Mangamuka Gorge mean it will always be susceptible to some movement during severe weather like what we’ve seen over the past two to three weeks." NZTA has warned drivers to prepare for the possibility of short-notice lane closures or reduced speeds on the Auckland Harbour Bridge "Wind gusts of 75-89 km/h are forecast for the bridge between 4am and 9am tomorrow potentially triggering a red alert," a spokesperson said "Wind gusts of 75-85km/h are forecast for between midday and 7pm The bridge will remain in a four-by-four configuration during peak traffic tomorrow speed limits may be reduced and some lanes on the bridge may close we close all lanes because it’s unsafe for any vehicle to be on the bridge and the bridge structure is vulnerable to vehicle impacts." Drivers of high-sided vehicles and motorcyclists were urged to travel around the harbour using the Western Ring Route via State Highway 18 Bay of Plenty east of Ōpōtiki – 29 hours from 10am Wednesday to 3pm Thursday Canterbury about and north of Amberley – 35 hours from 10am Wednesday to 9pm Thursday including Christchurch and Banks Peninsula – 32 hours from 10am Wednesday to 6pm Thursday Kaikōura coast and ranges – 44 hours from 10am Wednesday to 6am Friday Wellington – 21 hours from 3am Thursday to midnight Coastal areas of Wairarapa – 15 hours from 9am Thursday to midnight including the Kaikōura Coast – 21 hours from 1am Thursday to 10pm Canterbury High Country south of the Rangitata River – 12 hours from 9pm Wednesday to 9am Thursday Bay of Plenty about and west of Ōpōtiki – 11 hours from 10am to 9pm Wednesday Wairarapa – 8 hours from 1pm to 9pm Wednesday Wellington – 45 hours from 6pm Wednesday to 3pm Friday and Waikato north of Hamilton – 5 hours from 7am Thursday to noon and Hawke's Bay south of Hastings – 12 hours from 1pm Thursday to 1am Friday Horowhenua and Kapiti Coast – 13 hours from 9am Thursday to 10pm Marlborough Sounds – 18 hours from 6pm Wednesday to noon Thursday also the Nelson Lakes – 27 hours from noon Wednesday to 3pm Thursday Nearly 100 people have gathered today to remember the 14 people killed when a viewing platform collapsed on the South Island's West Coast 30 years ago Four other students survived with serious injuries An inquiry into the disaster highlighted 12 major problems with the platform which had been poorly designed and constructed by the Department of Conservation and "highly unsafe" with large numbers of people on it Failures included qualified engineers not being involved in the design being used to secure the platform as no drill was brought to the site; and a sign ordering a maximum limit of five people being ordered but not installed Legislation was eventually amended to bring government departments under the Building Act following the tragedy meaning they could be held criminally liable in similar cases of any future negligence a private ceremony was held at the beginning of a new track in Paparoa National Park to memorialise the disaster told those gathered she appreciated the changes DOC had made following the incident and a sense of peace that it hasn't meant nothing we can feel safe in the facilities we're using we'll always have that and that's their gift to us." Sam Lucas and Stephen Hannen both fell and survived but could not remember the incident "It's really blown me away just how raw some of this still is who has lived in the United Kingdom for more than a decade you're reminded of how it is with you everyday." Hannen was paralysed from his injuries and now uses a wheelchair He told 1News it was "surreal" to be back at Cave Creek "It's amazing to see so many people here today but you build your life around what you can do." said he tended to come back to Cave Creek every five years to remember his son it's so incredibly beautiful and yet it's so full of tragedy The process of the inquiry had forged a strong bond between survivors and families of those killed "It's the fact that you're dealing with a whole a government department — everyone was running for cover which makes it really hard from a victim's point of view." one of the students who did not fall and helped with rescue told those gathered that she viewed her life through the lens of Cave Creek we were just amongst broken bodies and broken lives and none of you guys knew about it at that point." the incident had shaped her entire outlook on life She said it had taught her "grief and joy co-exist" "There is such beauty in holding grief and hardship and suffering and joy together in the same hand." Department of Conservation director-general Penny Nelson also attended the memorial and said she was "incredibly humbled" to have walked alongside survivors and families to hear the reflections and stories on what happened 30 years ago and just beginning an adventure out in nature It was supposed to be a low-risk field trip and DOC let you down," she told the crowd or control our visitor assets properly and it will always be a sad chapter in our history which we have learned so much from." Nelson said she sent her aroha to the whānau and friends of those who lost their lives at Cave Creek "It's a really difficult time and losing a child in this way is something no parent should ever have to endure." An investigation is underway into a fire at a vacant house which damaged a neighbouring property in Wairoa last night "The house had been vacant for several years and no injuries were reported," Detective Inspector Marty James said "The house suffered substantial damage and a neighbouring property was also damaged by the fire." Police and Fire and Emergency New Zealand services carried out a scene examination today The cause of the fire is being treated as unexplained but at this stage we are satisfied the fire is not connected to any gang-related incidents that occurred in Wairoa earlier this month," James said Eastern District Police were issued a Gang Conflict Warrant following several incidents stemming from ongoing tensions between the Mongrel Mob and Black Power "While we do not believe the Apatu Street fire is related to those tensions police will continue to have a highly visible presence in the Wairoa community and in communities around the Eastern District." A boil water notice remains in place for the greater Greymouth area The notice was first put in place for the district close to two weeks ago It needed to satisfy the regulator's direction "We sincerely apologise for the disruption this has caused for all We are working tirelessly to ensure the water supply is safe and to resolve this issue as quickly and thoroughly as possible," she said rnz.co.nz the West Coast’s biggest town of Greymouth is so much more than just a gateway to the region Explorer Thomas Brunner named the river in honour Governor George Edward Grey The town centre is built on the site of the former Māori pa called Māwhera which translates as 'wide spread river mouth’ The latest attraction in town that is the worth the trip alone is Pounamu Pathway – Māwhera Wētā Workshop has partnered with Poutini Ngāi Tahu to create four Pounamu Pathway experience centres the Greymouth centre has been open less than a year and it’s a stirring story-telling experience with plenty of technological wizardry If you’ve marvelled over those enormous sculptures in the Gallipoli exhibition in Te Papa you’ll be equally awestruck by Māwhera’s staggering centrepiece My heart skipped a beat as I gazed up-close in awe of this hyper-realistic representation of the region’s renowned warrior chief This super-sized sculpture is more than double the size of a human Tūhuru has been magnificently adorned with woven accessories and the world’s largest known pounamu hei tiki Tūhuru is a revered Ngāi Tahu historic figure but because he was a warrior chief who successfully led the conquest of the region by Ngāi Tahu Ngāti Wairangi first settled here from the Taranaki in the 1500s But Ngai Tahu were eager to seize control of their priceless pounamu trade Tūhuru and his fellow warriors first destroyed Ngāti Wairangi’s pā at Māwhera before ultimately waging a wider campaign and claiming the West Coast for Ngāi Tahu Poutini Ngāi Tahu became their West Coast branch Tūhuru and his people established a new pā at Māwhera and settled there The flourishing pounamu trade made Kaiapoi their commercial hub Tūhuru died in the 1850s and was buried in a hillside cave behind the pā site which is where the beautiful Pounamu Pathway centre is located today (It previously housed Revingtons Hotel.) That’s another special feature about this centre it’s located on Poutini Ngāi Tahu’s ancestral homeland The backstory is all vividly showcased with an immersive multi-media experience at the centre I also learnt about a fateful encounter for Ngāti Wairangi travelling north and even across the strait discovered a route across the Southern Alps from the Arahura Valley one of the money-shot lookout points on the Great Coast Road is the roadside stop by the Strongman Mine Memorial where the sprawling coastal vista is operatic I’ve often marvelled over a tucked away property Breakers Boutique Accommodation began life as Dr He was a Greymouth doctor and also served as Mayor The story goes that this was Harbour Board land and should not have been built on Fast forward to today and after many renovations Jan and Stephen Roberts are the owners of this dreamy property with dress-circle views over the pounding ocean and the stirring canvas of 9 Mile Beach There’s a variety of accommodation offerings on-site in the adjacent building to the main house My Nikau Sunset Room boasted a supremely cosy super-king bed luxurious bedding and linens and comfortable sitting area perfectly positioned to soak up the viewing splendour The guestroom is decorated in warm neutral colourings using native recycled timbers and beach stones Jan and Stephen are the most exceptional hosts and environmental guardians somehow managing to distil the essence of gold-standard West Coast hospitality with a glorified art gallery of local works including Stephen’s magnificent photography; a profusion of first-hand tips on the best walking trails to explore; and on-site dining Jan whipped me up the most divine homemade pizza for dinner and laid-on a generous breakfast offering Jan’s whakapapa includes Ngāi Tahu and she’s particularly proud of the native bush that she’s nurtured at the front of the property It has a covenant placed on it by Ngāi Tahu because it’s believed the land was a traditional Māori burial site There’s kiwi in this bush and Jan’s Nikau Palm plantings have flourished A private track leads down from the Breakers property to Nine Mile Beach Nine Mile Creek flows down by the bottom of the track There’s also a little blue penguin colony on this beach which Breakers actively supports through the West Coast Penguin Trust In-the-know advanced surfers also adore this beach because it has a powerful left break feasting on the ocean panorama as a fireball sunset torched the Tasman Sea Mike Yardley is our resident traveller on Jack Tame Saturday Mornings Environmental Protection Authority investigators have removed an abatement notice on the Taylorville Resource Park landfill after an issue with leaching contaminated water was fixed The Environmental Protection Authority has lifted the abatement notice it served on the owners of a private dump near Greymouth saying it now meets national standards for a landfill But Grey District Mayor Tania Gibson said the Taylorville Resource Park – sited directly above the intake for Greymouth’s water supply – is still a disaster waiting to happen and should be closed it doesn’t bear thinking about what would happen,” she said “The enormity of this keeps being played down.” EPA investigators issued an abatement notice on the dump’s owners after they found it was leaching contaminated water from an unlined sediment pond The authority was asked by the West Coast Regional Council to step in as an independent investigator after the Grey District Council challenged the WCRC’s handling of resource consents for hazardous waste at the site The EPA’s investigations manager Jackie Adams said the extensive work needed to bring the landfill up to national standards has now been done “[Taylorville Resource Park] had to empty the existing pond and build a new “This has now been completed and recent water samples taken from the area show that contaminated water is no longer being discharged from the site.” The EPA’s investigation was now concluded and its intervention was at an end “Ongoing regulation and monitoring of the site remain the responsibility of the regional council.” But Gibson said her council was a long way from being convinced the Taylorville site was safe Although the Grey District Council had issued the original subdivision consents for the landfill it had not been informed when the regional council had consented it for hazardous waste “We were not considered an affected party – unbelievable “We’ve got tonnes of toxic material – building materials paint – sitting directly above our public water intake that supplies 10,500 people The Grey District Council would continue paying for additional independent tests of its water from a bore at the Taylorville site above the Grey River So far tests had not found unsafe levels of any potentially harmful substances in the town’s water “But we will keep paying for tests – if anything happens we want to be able to say as a council that we did everything we could to prevent it.” Taylorville Resource Park has been approached for comment - LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air Ballance Agri-Nutrients worker says there a lot of anxiety over potential loss of jobs.