Dunedin City Council lantern logistics manager Bex Rowe admires a New Zealand Haast’s eagle landing on the back of a giant moa as a collection of extraordinary lanterns from China are unpacked. PHOTO: SAM HENDERSONAn extinct duo are one of thirteen intricate lanterns that will will form an illuminated display at Toitū Otago Settlers Museum and Lan Yuan, Dunedin Chinese Gardens as part of the Dunedin Chinese Cultural Festival. Dunedin Chinese Cultural Advisory Committee chairman Malcolm Wong was impressed by the scale of the works. "I didn’t know what to expect but now to see them, they are amazing." Mr Wong was in particular struck by the scale of a dragon measuring about 6m in length planned to be installed at Lan Yuan.

Street furniture is part of the active travel in Dunedin’s Town Belt. Photo: suppliedAn attempt to make a car-free section of Dunedin’s Town Belt more attractive to pedestrians and cyclists has been labelled "damn ugly" and a waste of money by a city council falling behind on the basics. Cr Walker and Cr Hall said footpath maintenance and the Town Belt trial were not exclusive matters. "People are having an allergic reaction to the appearance of the tacky-looking furniture dumped in the Town Belt," Cr Lund said. A council spokesman said staff were implementing a council decision.

The driver of an Audi abandoned an unconscious woman after slamming into a power pole and through a fence in Dunedin early this morning, police say. A passing couple took the woman to Dunedin Hospital's emergency department and police are now hunting the driver who reportedly left the scene in a second vehicle. Snr Sgt Dinnissen said police were called to the crash in Stone St, Kenmure, about 2am this morning. Power lines were also down, Snr Sgt Dinnissen said. Witnesses also reportedly saw the driver being picked up from the scene in a second vehicle, Snr Sgt Dinnissen said.

Work affecting major highways in Southland and Central Otago is under way and travellers are advised to prepare for delays. Reduced speeds should be expected and parking would not be possible along the highway in front of the tunnel building during this time. Near Cromwell in Central Otago, resurfacing work is planned at the intersection of SH8 and 8B, alongside the Clutha River/Mata-Au, near Dead Mans Point next month. A spokesman for the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi said the work would take place from February 9 to 20. The work is scheduled to happen daily from 9pm to 6am, Sundays to Thursdays.

Photo: suppliedA man who repeatedly punched a Queenstown woman in the head during an early morning fracas in the CBD has avoided a conviction. The 29-year-old Canterbury man successfully applied for a discharge without conviction, and permanent name suppression, at his sentencing in the Queenstown District Court this week. When the victim went to help her friend, the man grabbed her and pushed her against a glass window in Skyline Mall, which runs between Queenstown Mall and Cow Lane. He also held a governance role and having to disclose a conviction to the organisation’s board would potentially put it at risk. Therefore she was satisfied the consequences of a conviction would outweigh the seriousness of his offending, and a discharge without conviction was an appropriate response.

But as they crossed the swollen Mahurangi River, north of Auckland, they were swept into the water. "I fight for the goal to find him, and the success, we thank God he brought him back to us." "I thank God, and I thank all the Kiribati communities in Rodney for their support to find him. "I'm really thankful for all the Kiribati community because they all came that time, and they did their best. She said the Kiribati community had helped her get back on her feet.

Amazon is cutting 16,000 jobs globally as it focuses on artificial intelligence investments. The cuts aim to reduce bureaucracy and affect nearly 10% of Amazon's 350,000 office jobs. Photo / Matthias Balk, AFPAmazon is cutting 16,000 jobs globally as it focuses on artificial intelligence investments. The cuts aim to reduce bureaucracy and affect nearly 10% of Amazon's 350,000 office jobs. Photo / Matthias Balk, AFPUS online retail and cloud computing giant Amazon has said it will cut 16,000 jobs worldwide as the company tries to streamline amid its major push into AI.

It’s estimated that the Red Bull and Mercedes engines will allow cars an advantage of up to 0.4s per lap on their rivals. Liam Lawson and teammate Arvid Lindblad at the unveiling of Racing Bulls' 2026 Formula One car, the VCARB03. Racing Bulls enter 2026 off the back of the team’s best season since entering the grid 20 years ago, when Red Bull purchased Minardi. Interestingly, Red Bull and Mercedes finished day one 2.030s and 1.493s faster than Alpine’s Franco Colapinto in third. However, if the Red Bull engine in particular will bring advantages this season, being at Racing Bulls could prove a masterstroke for Lawson.

Just 43% of New Zealand salespeople hit their targets and achieved bonuses last year. Marketing budgets, professional development and new technology investment were all down in 2025. Only 51% said their firms had increased investment in sales technology in 2025. Average investment in sales development plummeted by 50%, with the average spend per salesperson now $1500 in 2025, compared with $2979 in 2024. Fifty-nine per cent received some training, leaving a sizeable 41% without development, Stokes said.

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A draft design for a mural set to adorn a building on the corner of Prince Albert Rd and Bellona St celebrating the building and area’s past. Photo: suppliedA new piece of "democratic art" will mark South Dunedin as the coolest, most colourful part of town, an organiser hopes. Facing Bellona St, the mural will feature a surfer with a scene of the street in the 1960s. The mural is one of eight featured in Ebb and Flow — a street art festival organised by the trust opening next month, featuring large-scale, live mural painting and street art workshops. "But street art is free for everyone to do and get a little buzz out of — it gives back."

Langley Twigg Law in Napier was hit by a cyber attack affecting internal and client documents. Photo / 123rfLangley Twigg Law in Napier was hit by a cyber attack affecting internal and client documents. Photo / 123rfBy Ellen O’Dwyer of RNZA Napier-based law firm says it’s been hit by a cyber attack affecting internal information about the firm as well as client documents. Langley Twigg Law said it’s working with digital forensics and cyber specialists over the January 11 attack. The law firm said the “third-party extracted a portion of the data from our file server, which contained both internal information relating to Langley Twigg’s operations and some client documents”.

Photo: Google MapsA woman who restrained an Invercargill man while he was stabbed to death says she should never be forgiven. Georgia Rose Dickey, 24, appeared before the Parole Board yesterday but spoke sparingly when questioned by panel members. Dickey wrote that she held the "strong belief" she should never be forgiven for her role in the vigilante murder. The court at sentencing heard she said "enough is enough", but Mr McAllister was stabbed 14 times, later dying in hospital. Counsel Sarah Saunderson-Warner told the Parole Board yesterday her client accepted early release was currently unrealistic.

New Zealand has 147 living native gecko and skink species (lizards) and new species are still being discovered. Of the 147 lizard species, 59 (40%) are classed as threatened; 68 (46%) are at risk; 16 (11%) are too poorly known to assess; and just four species (3%) are not threatened. Mr Reardon said 17 lizard species had improved in status since the last report in 2021, mostly due to better knowledge about them and management efforts. "In recent years, through focused research, we’ve tested new tools such as fenced enclosures, which are improving outcomes for some of our most threatened lizard species. "Sadly, we’ve seen a decline in Sinbad skinks, which are found in a single alpine gully in Fiordland.

Transforming seaweed into an ocean-friendly packaging alternative to plastic is a business project being developed by University of Canterbury biochemistry student Olivia Cooper. The University of Canterbury second-year biochemistry student has developed a flexible seaweed film to replace petroleum-based packaging and already had two bakeries showing interest in a prototype. Her PacSea — formerly called GreenShift Packaging — business project was a last-minute entry in a venture accelerator programme at the university. Miss Cooper said the seaweed packaging project was still in its infancy, but had already got a good reception. Through trial and error, she has come up with a pliable packaging film that works.