Author: Press Room
One of Auckland’s busiest fire stations has been closed after dust samples tested positive for asbestos.Fire and Emergency New Zealand Deputy National Commander Megan Stiffler said the result was a consequence of testing at the Pitt St station, which took place in July. “This is a result we were not expecting,” Stiffler said, saying the organisation was “disappointed”. “The safety and well-being of our firefighters is of the utmost importance to us, and the station has been closed.”We have arranged precautionary air monitoring and swab testing around the station.” Stiffler said this testing would take place today.A Fire and Emergency…
A 150-year-old train has been recovered from a beach near Whanganui Port after sitting in the sand for about 75 years.At the coastal city’s port, work has been underway in recent months to improve flood protection and safe navigation of the area through infrastructure upgrades.Last month, during work on the beachfront at the harbour’s south mole, contractors hit something hard in the sand.It was identified as a train called Skunk, one of the first locomotives to run a scheduled service between Palmerston North and Foxton from 1876.It was lifted out of the sand on Thursday and taken to Steam Rail…
Credit agencies will be told about companies with problem tax debt, which one expert says could help other creditors identify “zombie companies” before they collapse.Inland Revenue will remove internal restrictions that prevented it from providing information to credit-reporting agencies about company tax debts.It has also announced a wider project aimed at chasing overdue GST and PAYE that is less than a year old.”The continued growth in the tax debt has been a growing problem, and the evidence of many zombie companies – with large tax debts when they are liquidated – has been growing from numerous mentions of the large…
More heavy rain is set to fall on the West Coast of the South Island after flooding and slips shut key routes in Grey District and Buller.However, Grey District’s mayor Tania Gibson says they’ve come out of the downpour quite lightly.The rain drenched the Grey District and Buller on Friday, causing flooding and slips.Emergency operations centres were activated in the Grey and Buller districts, with the Grey District Council advising people in flood-prone areas that they might need to evacuate if they feel uncertain.An orange heavy rain warning remains in place in Buller until Sunday morning.MetService says Buller can expect…
Published on 11/10/2025 – 8:50 GMT+2 •Updated 8:51 ADVERTISEMENT Geert Wilders, the Dutch leader of the far-right Party for Freedom (PVV) said he is suspending campaigning activities for the upcoming national election, following reports that he was a possible target of a suspected plot in Belgium to kill politicians. Three young men were arrested in Belgium on Thursday after investigators discovered a homemade explosive which the suspects were reportedly planning to attach to a drone to carry out the attack. Prosecutors said the police raids were part of an investigation into “attempted terrorist murder and participation in the activities of…
Secondary school teachers across the country will strike later this month after strongly endorsing action over stalled collective agreement negotiations. Post Primary Teachers Association (PPTA) president Chris Abercrombie said the decision followed a vote of members and a last-minute offer from the Government which was “worse than the previous one”. “Ten minutes before we were due to meet, the Government presented us with another offer for settlement of the Secondary Teachers’ Collective Agreement, with a condition it would lapse if strike action was notified,” Abercrombie said. “As we have not had any bargaining since early September, to present an offer…
The cost of repair and maintenance of the Auckland Harbour Bridge nearly doubled to $22.4 million in the year to June, as the bridge’s original paint coating reaches the end of its designed life, requiring a full re-paint.The bridge officially opened in May 1959, with ‘clip-on’ lanes added and completed in 1969. Currently, more than 160,000 vehicles cross the bridge daily and 62 full-time staff are employed for work related to the maintenance of the bridge.New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) figures released under the Official Information Act showed that the amount spent on the bridge increased from $12.2m in the…
In this week’s Newsmakers Revisited, we look back on a game show host who slid onto New Zealand screens and into our hearts in the late 1980s.Steve Parr hosted ratings juggernaut Sale of the Century alongside Jude Kirk.”We had 1.3 million people watching every night, which for a country of three million was absolutely stunning,” he told 1News presenter Melissa Stokes. “Starting with Wheel of Fortune, followed by the news, followed by Paul Holmes, followed by Sale of the Century – that blockbuster two hours was – you could not compete against it.”The show had contestants answer trivia questions to…
An electric scooter rider has been critically injured following a collision with a car in central Auckland this afternoon.Police said they were called to the intersection of Mount St and Symonds St at 4.05pm today.Officers could be seen inspecting the e-scooter, which was broken in half between the handlebars and riding deck, according to a 1News reporter at the scene.”Motorists and pedestrians are asked to follow the directions of emergency services staff at the scene,” a police spokesperson said.The road is closed in both directions from Wellesley St to Mount St.Detours are in place for bus routes 70, 22N, 22R,…
A Fiji Airways flight that sparked an emergency callout has landed after circling in the air for two hours above Canterbury.The airline confirmed the Nadi-bound plane hit a bird during take-off around 2pm and had to return to Christchurch Airport.RNZ understands the Boeing 737-800 had more than 170 passengers on board and was forced to enter a holding pattern to burn fuel before attempting to land.The plane landing back at Christchurch Airport. (Source: Tom Heslop @tomhaviation)In a statement, Fiji Airways said all guests and crew on board flight FJ450 were safe and their flight and engineering teams were closely monitoring…