A man who was arrested for shooting fireworks at people in Castle St has avoided a conviction. Jack Hume, 20, was charged with causing criminal nuisance, but the charge was dismissed last month. Hume was in Castle St on November 8 when he allegedly aimed a lit firework towards a group outside a flat. There were multiple instances of people in Castle St causing trouble with fireworks last year. Weeks earlier, police and fire crews had fireworks shot at them in Castle St after responding to reports of a fireworks fight involving about 50 people.

A French Navy helicopter operates along a seized fishing vessel at a location in the South Pacific. France's Navy has seized 4.87 tonnes of cocaine, believed to be bound for Australia, from a fishing vessel in the South Pacific, French officials said. Photo / Handout, Marine Nationale, AFPFrench Navy seizes five tonnes of cocaine believed headed to Australia from ship in South PacificA French Navy helicopter operates along a seized fishing vessel at a location in the South Pacific. France's Navy has seized 4.87 tonnes of cocaine, believed to be bound for Australia, from a fishing vessel in the South Pacific, French officials said. Photo / Handout, Marine Nationale, AFPFrance’s Navy has seized 4.87 tonnes of cocaine, believed to be bound for Australia, from a fishing vessel in the South Pacific, French officials said.

Eden had been on kidney dialysis three times a week at Middlemore Hospital. It is a claim that Middlemore Hospital denies. “We will share the review findings with the whānau in the coming weeks.”Eden Rapana-Campbell recovering in Middlemore Hospital after suffering a cardiac arrest in February 2025. Kiri CampbellBut she questioned whether the same processes had been followed on August 12 when her daughter was rushed to Middlemore Hospital. Eden Rapana-Campbell was known to staff at Middlemore Hospital via her regular visits for dialysis treatment.

“This deal secures the operations of the joint US-UK base on Diego Garcia for generations,” the spokesperson added, referring to the largest of the Chagos islands. Mauritius said they had “taken note” of Trump’s comments criticising the deal, but said the issue was no longer up for debate. ‘Significant contributions’The UK kept control of the Chagos Islands after Mauritius gained independence from Britain in the 1960s. Challenges in international and domestic courts had left the status of the military base “under threat”, according to the UK Government. The UK Government spokesperson insisted the base was “one of the most significant contributions to the UK and US intelligence and security relationship”.

Ellen DeGeneres supports protesters in Minneapolis after Renee Good's shooting by Ice officers. Photo / @ellendegeneresEllen DeGeneres has expressed her support for anti-Immigration Customs Enforcement protesters in Minneapolis. The 67-year-old star took to Instagram to describe her sadness at what’s happening in “the happiest city in America” following the fatal shooting of Renee Good by Immigration Customs Enforcement (Ice) officers this month. “I shot it there because they say it’s the happiest city in America. And I found that to be true.

The couple had hired an arborist to advise them on the damage to tree and for its subsequent removal. But the arborist told them the branch had provided “notable visual appeal” of an archway at the entrance of their property. “BE does not say whether the loss of the branch has reduced the value of the property or place any value on that loss. Please email shayne.currie@nzme.co.nzTrevelyan said she had asked CS at the tribunal hearing whether he could put a value on the loss of the tree branch; he said he could not. According to the consultant, this was too low to result in any loss in property value using internationally accepted valuation principles.

One person was transported to hospital after a "multiple motorbike crash" near the Devils Staircase south of Queenstown. A Hato Hone St John spokesperson said they were called to the crash in Kingston Rd about 4pm yesterday. One patient, in a moderate condition, was transported to Lakes District Hospital. Another patient, in a minor condition, was assessed and treated at the scene. — Allied Media

One person was airlifted to Dunedin Hospital with serious injuries after a ute rolled down a farm track near Omakau. A police spokesman said they received reports of the single-vehicle crash near Moa Creek Rd about 9.20am yesterday. Reports indicated the vehicle "rolled down a farm track", the spokesman said. A Fire and Emergency New Zealand spokesperson said appliances from Alexandra and Omakau responded. No-one was trapped in the ute.

Two wild deer have been removed from Anchor Island in Fiordland. Photo: Leon EverettTwo Fiordland islands — home to endangered species including the kākāpō — have been returned to deer-free status after a Department of Conservation operation. During annual checks of islands in Dusky Sound and Preservation Inlet, three deer were removed: one from Indian Island and two from Anchor Island. Anchor Island’s lush forests support rare species, including the critically endangered kākāpō and kākāriki karaka. "Maintaining a wild deer-free status doesn’t just safeguard wildlife — it demonstrates how targeted, science-led action can contribute to biodiversity protection worldwide."

International hockey captains (from left) United States’ Emma DeBerdine, New Zealand A’s Anna Willocks, Vantage Black Sticks’ Olivia Shannon and Japan’s Yu Kudo, outside Knox College ahead of this week’s Women’s Summer of Hockey tri-nation tournament in Dunedin. PHOTO: CRAIG BAXTERAfter 20 years of no international women’s hockey in Dunedin, the city is once again playing host to teams from across the globe. Yesterday marked the opening of the women’s tri-nation tournament, where the United States, Japan, New Zealand and a New Zealand development team will compete over four days. He said international teams usually flew into Auckland or Christchurch, so it was nice to show them other parts of New Zealand. Yesterday’s opening ceremony featured a powhiri where the New Zealand teams sung Tūtira mai ngā iwi and the United States and Japan teams also sung.

An aurora australis lights up the sky above the Clyde Dam in Central Otago. Photo: ODT filesA fast-moving coronal mass ejection (CME) from the sun hit Earth yesterday, causing a severe G4 geomagnetic storm and a spectacular aurora australis was expected across southern skies last night. While the forecast for Dunedin was quite cloudy, he was confident the skies would be clearer inland. Dr Griffin said it meant more aurora might be visible in southern skies for the next few days. While rain was forecast for most of Otago, the skies above Southland were expected to be clear for most of the night.

Freshwater gold clams, which represent an enormous threat to New Zealand freshwater. Photo: Earth Sciences New ZealandThe gold clam, a southeast Asian freshwater mollusc bivalve shell, has been found in the Waikato River and elsewhere nearby. The gold clam, Corbicula fluminea, is a hermaphrodite and can self-fertilise, helping it to multiply extraordinarily rapidly. Gold clams could be imported in small boats. Gold clams were recently found in Lake Rotomanu, New Plymouth, forcing authorities to drain the entire lake out to sea.

Decisions on the new Gore District Plan are right around the corner, and the updated document is to be released at the end of the month. The current Gore District Plan has been in place since 2006, and decisions on the full-scale review are due to be released on January 31. The plan covers a wide area, providing a framework for land use management and development, resource consent, and a path forward for residents in the district. The Gore District Council successfully sought an extension for the release from August of last year, citing a high volume of complex submissions. General manager operations David Bainbridge-Zafar said, in a statement, further information on the District plan would be available soon.

Wheat crops took a beating and in some cases were stripped bare of their grain after a trio of hail storms ravaged Canterbury arable farms. Photo: suppliedArable growers are reeling from up to $10 million in crop losses after a trio of widespread hail storms whipped through Canterbury farms. A disaster relief insurance scheme, compulsory for wheat growers, run by the United Wheatgrowers New Zealand (UWG), covers only feed and milling wheat crops. "We have had three back-to-back hail storms coming through Christmas and we are up to 73 claims. He said losses varied from 5% of wheat crops to a few of them being completely written off — unseen before.

Photo: Getty ImagesThe Deep South has had a dry start to 2026, the MetService says. Meteorologist Lewis Ferris said while it had been dry, there had been some rain earlier in the month. "So [last] week could prove very important for getting rain to to those dry places, as people shouldn’t count on average rain through the second half of January and the month of February — especially with temperatures being on the warmer side than average." "Current models have February looking pretty typical La Nina — low-pressure systems in the north and Tasman Sea, high pressure draped across the South Island. StatisticsInvercargillRainfall2025 1039.4mm2024 1359.3mmaverage 986.1mmTemperature2025 max 29.9°C (Feb 16) min -3.2°C (4 Aug)2024 max 28.1°C (Jan 19) min -4.7°C (13 Jul)Wind2025 max gust 137kmh (Oct 23)2024 max gust 122kmh (Oct 20)GoreRainfall2025 937.2mm2024 1117.4mmaverage 921.7mmTemperature2025 max 30.2°C (Feb 16) min -3.2°C (Aug 4)2024 max 29.3°C (Jan 19) min -4.2°C (Jul 15)Wind2025 max gust 124kmh (Oct 23)2024 max gust 107kmh (Feb 19)roni.mcdonald@alliedmedia.co.nz