Author: Press Room

A pedestrian out walking their dog in Levin yesterday afternoon has been seriously injured after being hit by a vehicle which left the scene. Police said the dog is yet to be found. In a statement, police said the crash involving a vehicle and pedestrian occurred on Heatherlea East Rd shortly before 5.30pm yesterday. The pedestrian was taken to hospital in a serious condition. “The vehicle left the scene prior to police arrival. Inquiries are ongoing to locate those involved and determine the circumstances of the crash,” a police spokesperson said. Anyone who witnessed the incident, or has information that…

A constitutional amendment more than two centuries old determines the choice of winner in case of a draw. ADVERTISEMENTKamala Harris and Donald Trump are fighting down to the last vote to gain the upper hand in tomorrow’s election. There’s a remote possibility that the US poll could end in a draw, however. This concerns the machinery of the US Electoral College, the winner-takes-all system that determines which presidential candidate will win the White House.The Electoral College comprises 538 votes, distributed in varying proportions among the fifty states plus the District of Columbia. A tie between two presidential candidates is therefore…

The newest section of the Mountains to Sea Ngā Ara Tūhono Great Ride is “a ray of hope” for the Ruapehu district, its mayor says.Mayor Weston Kirton said the first stage of the hiking and cycling trail Te Ara Mangawhero, on Mt Ruapehu, would help transform the district’s embattled tourism industry.It would bring “much-needed resilience” to the local economy.The 11.4km loop would eventually become a 21.4km section of the Great Ride, connecting the town of Ohakune to the volcanic slopes at the top of the North Island’s highest mountain.It was opened on Friday by the locally born and raised Minister…

A 27-year-old woman has been arrested and charged after Customs seized 14 kilograms of methamphetamine at Auckland Airport.The drugs, with a potential street value of up to NZ$5.25 million, were allegedly found in the woman’s luggage.”The woman arrived in Auckland on a flight from Vancouver via Sydney last Wednesday and was referred to Customs for further questioning,” a statement said.”Customs officers conducted a search of her baggage and found two sealed packages with crystal substances wrapped inside two towels, which border testing indicated was methamphetamine.”The woman was travelling on a Canadian passport. She was charged with importing a Class A…

Chris Proctor, 17, and Bowen Steffert, 18, really like Rush Munro’s ice cream.So when a tirade of public opinion came at them and their fellow Hastings Youth Councillors for daring to be a part of the democratic process, they needed something to take the heat off.Even as everything started to snowball around them, a cold cone for each of the council members did the trick.A bouncy council was erected by the Taxpayers’ Union outside the Hastings District Council last month, as the union protested young people having voting rights on the council committees.Taxpayers’ Union spokesman — and former Hastings District…

Europeans still account for a significant portion of the immigrant population in the US, but the number of arrivals, particularly from western and southern Europe, is declining, as most Europeans prefer to migrate within their own continent. ADVERTISEMENTToday Europeans account for around 10% of the 46.2 million immigrants living in the US, according to data reported by the Migration Policy Institute.The European expat community in America has slightly shrunk since the 1980s, with a few fluctuations over the years: From over 5.1 million people to just over 4.7 million in 2022.After the fall of the Berlin Wall, the vast majority…

Over the years, Reece has had nine molars extracted from his mouth because it is cheaper than getting them fixed. When he opens his mouth, nearly every tooth on the bottom row up to his canines are gone.The 41-year-old, who didn’t want to include his last name in this story, said he didn’t look after his teeth when he was young and now is unable to afford getting them fixed properly.Losing his teeth has become his biggest worry, he said.In New Zealand, routine dental care is free for under 18-year-olds. There is also some emergency dental care available through the…

Last week’s massive floods in the southern European country killed over 200 people, with many still missing. Search efforts continue amid anger at authorities. ADVERTISEMENTIn Valencia, where massive flooding last week killed more than 200 people, the search continued for bodies inside houses and thousands of wrecked cars strewn in the streets, on highways, and in canals that channelled last week’s floods into populated areas.Spain’s Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska said that authorities can still not give a reliable estimate of the missing. Spanish national television RTVE, however, has broadcast pleas for help by several desperate people whose loved ones are…

The vet owner of a Wellington cattery that caught fire has confirmed two cats that remain unaccounted for escaped the building.Emergency services were called to a blaze at the two-storey building which includes the CareVets cattery on Mahora St in Kilbirnie before midnight on Saturday.The building is red stickered and investigations are ongoing into the cause of the fire.Owner Nick Cooper said humane cat traps have been set up around the clinic to catch the other missing felines.”It’s confirmed four have escaped on the night, very pleased to say we have two of them, caught one yesterday, caught another one…

The Deputy Health and Disability Commissioner has found Te Whatu Ora Southern and a registrar breached a man’s rights under the Code of Health and Disability Services Consumers’ Rights after he died of a brain haemorrhage.The man had an unwitnessed fall at his care home and was taken to Southland Hospital emergency department.A yellow envelope containing patient information was misplaced, which meant that hospital staff who were treating the man were not aware that he was on anticoagulants, commonly known as blood thinners.The man had his initial observations taken by a registered nurse about six hours after his arrival at…