Tropical storm batters North Island as man missing in swollen river
Police have since announced they have stood down from the Mahurangi River area, leaving the man outstanding. A month’s worth of rain was expected in two to three days for parts of the Northland region. Auckland, the rest of Tairāwhiti, Gisborne and Hawke’s Bay were under orange heavy rain warnings on Wednesday. MetService meteorologist Lewis Ferris said heavy rain was expected on Thursday morning for the eastern parts of the North Island, but conditions should be easing throughout the day. The worst of the heavy rain would be behind the country on Thursday, although showery conditions were still expected on Friday, he said.
Source:New Zealand Herald
January 21, 2026 05:47 UTC
Dunedin snubbed by groundbreaking international rugby tour
The tour includes three tests against the Black ferns. Photo: Getty ImagesDunedin has suffered another blow with the announcement it will play no part in a groundbreaking women’s rugby tour next year. Still, there is no reason the city could not host both, and missing out on being part of a history-making Lions tour is a negative, no matter how it is spun. New Zealand Rugby acting chief executive Steve Lancaster said the visit of the Lions promised to be ‘‘something truly special’’. Lions women 2027 scheduleSeptember 4: v Black Ferns XV, WhangāreiSeptember 11: v Black Ferns, AucklandSeptember 14: v Invitational XV, HamiltonSeptember 18: v Black Ferns, WellingtonSeptember 25: v Black Ferns, Christchurch
Source:Otago Daily Times
January 21, 2026 05:37 UTC
Crowdy with a chance of meatballs
Ikea said the Sylvia Park shop was the top-performing in the Ingka Group anywhere in the world for food sales. Ikea sold almost 50,000 of its Frakta blue bag, 40,000 white Oftast plates and 29,480 white Oftast bowls. New Zealand shoppers also bought more than 54,000 hot dogs and more than 21,000 cinnamon buns as well as 28,000 servings of meatballs and mashed potatoes. University of Auckland marketing expert Shahper Richter said some of the activity was due to the novelty of a new shopping option. Retail consultant Chris Wilkinson, from First Retail Group, said it had been the country's most anticipated retail opening.
Source:Otago Daily Times
January 21, 2026 05:19 UTC
Projects to deliver upgrades to college
The school has several construction projects on the go, including combining the junior and senior campuses on one site. Principal Mel Hamilton said she was very excited to see the improvements and the impacts they had on students’ learning and culture. "These projects show our commitment to providing the best possible environment for teaching and learning," she said. The combined cost of the projects will be around $4 million, including the demolition work, with a mix of the schools property funding cost allocation and Ministry of Education funding. The projects include the demolition of D Block, which is under way, to be replaced by a specialist block for food and science laboratories.
Source:Otago Daily Times
January 21, 2026 05:12 UTC
General Debate 21 January 2026
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Source:New Zealand Herald
January 21, 2026 04:36 UTC
The whole world just watched Brooklyn Peltz Beckham go nuclear on his A-list parents. Here’s the back story
Last month, Brooklyn Peltz Beckham’s younger brother, Cruz Beckham, posted on Instagram that Peltz Beckham had blocked his family on social media. But then Peltz Beckham, 26, dropped the bombshell when he confirmed that he is estranged from his parents and accused them of manipulation and trying to sabotage his relationship with his wife, Nicola Peltz Beckham. “Brand Beckham comes first,” Brooklyn Peltz Beckham wrote, claiming that his family prizes “public promotion and endorsements above all else”. Nicola Peltz Beckham, 31, is the daughter of former model Claudia Heffner Peltz and billionaire investor Nelson Peltz. After the wedding, the couple combined their last names, and Brooklyn Beckham became Brooklyn Peltz Beckham.
Source:New Zealand Herald
January 21, 2026 04:28 UTC
Man forced to swim from sinking truck in Coromandel floodwaters
The local man, who owns a farm in nearby Whenuakite, described the flooding as “worse than Bola” and “bigger than Gabrielle”. “He evacuated them successfully and they’ve gone to a neighbour’s but he’s gone back to stay in his home with his animals. “We’re going to be in a lot worse trouble the next high tide later this evening, it’s going to be even higher. and it’s still raining here.”A state of emergency is currently in place across several regions including the Coromandel, Bay of Plenty and the Whangārei District. Locals were advised not to swim or drive in floodwater and warned to avoid all non-essential travel.
Source:New Zealand Herald
January 21, 2026 04:16 UTC
Intimate photo poster sentenced
A woman who had intimate images of her posted on social media by a former lover told the Greymouth District Court it had ruined her life. A 32-year-old Greymouth man was last week sentenced to six months’ community detention for the offending, under the Harmful Digital Communications Act. Their relationship revolved around the mutual sending of intimate images and messages to one another. The abuse of trust that should exist between people who had been in an intimate relationship was an aggravating factor. An end sentence of eight months was reached, which was converted to six months’ community detention.
Source:Otago Daily Times
January 21, 2026 04:01 UTC
Big budgets and political stamina will count in a ‘very, very long’ election campaign – Thomas Coughlan
Such a long campaign gives parties with more money extra opportunity to spend it, flooding the country with advertising before spending regulations kick in. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and National Party Deputy Leader Nicola Willis. Photo / Michael CraigHe’s been trying to neutralise this, saying he wants a higher party vote, more National MPs and more National ministers, but the polls say he’ll get the opposite. But barring a shock like, say, Greenland being invaded, the election feels likely to be an economics election. Forecasts suggest the economy may just have improved enough to propel a National coalition to victory, but it’ll be a close run thing.
Source:New Zealand Herald
January 21, 2026 03:56 UTC
Massive solar storm fires up aurora in New Zealand skies
Photo: Supplied / Elton McAleerRays from the biggest solar storm of the last couple of decades hit the Earth overnight, causing aurora visible in both the north and south extremes of the globe. The lights were caused by a storm that nearly hit the highest level on the scale used by space weather monitors to measure magnetic disturbance. Share them with us at: iwitness@rnz.co.nzPhoto: Rebecca Bull / RNZEarly Tuesday morning, NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Centre (SWPC) posted on X: "An S4 severe solar radiation storm is now in progress - this is the largest solar radiation storm in over 20 years. The solar storms of October 2003 caused power outages in Sweden and damages to power transformers in South Africa, CNN reported. The agency had activated its Space Weather Science Advisory Panel, which had considered international space weather monitoring and forecasting agencies, as well as current information from the NZ-based monitoring network.
Source:New Zealand Herald
January 21, 2026 03:38 UTC
Playing the percentages when it comes to mining
Someone comes along and offers you $350,000 for it — 35% of the value. Unless you are truly desperate for cash, you will of course decline this offer, politely or otherwise. Suppose now you have a share in an asset worth $3.5 billion, and an offer of just over $1.2b comes in — another 35%. Well, the actual asset at stake here is the gold projected to be under the surface of a quite large expanse of Central Otago by an Australian mining company called Santana. What its sponsors are calling the Bendigo-Ophir Gold Project would, over many years, yield an expected $6b of marketable gold, generating profits after mining costs of around $3.5b.
Source:Otago Daily Times
January 21, 2026 03:35 UTC
Dry spell prompts water monitoring in Southland
Southland's regional council is ramping up monitoring of water levels as the region dries out and river levels lower. Environment Southland is shifting to a water shortage watch, which means staff are doing more assessments of water levels, soil moisture and groundwater, and analysing weather forecasts after a spate of warm, dry weather. Currently the worst affected rivers were the Ōtapiri Stream and Makarewa River around the Hokonui Hills, she said. "There is no immediate concern for our main water supplies or rivers predicted in the next couple of weeks." But she said the council would keep the public informed as well as working with key groups to work out how to best conserve water.
Source:Otago Daily Times
January 21, 2026 02:53 UTC
Aurora lights up southern skies
Keen aurora watcher Taichi Nakamura, who shared images of a spectacular display in the sky near Invercargill, said the "huge display" lasted most of the night. "The aurora kept pulsing and covered the entire sky, making it an exciting night being with the dancing light." Dunedin astronomer Dr Ian Griffin said the aurora were caused by a severe G4 geomagnetic storm. Photo: Taichi NakamuraDr Griffin said the storm meant more aurora may be visible across southern skies for the next few days. Sometimes, it will remove South Island electricity transmission lines from service to prevent damage to critical equipment.
Source:Otago Daily Times
January 21, 2026 02:46 UTC
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon confirms 2026 election date
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon. Photo: RNZThe 2026 election will be held on November 7, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced today. The prime minister says National has done a lot in the last two years, but more hard work was ahead of them. Luxon said people could expect further affordable housing, infrastructure and community growth with National in power. He said National inherited a mess after a Labour-led government, but a lot of signs were pointing to a recovery.
Source:Otago Daily Times
January 21, 2026 00:27 UTC
New Zealand universities global standing: What the latest rankings show
Kiwi universities have been sliding in recent Times Higher Education rankings. Photo / John WeekesThe Times Higher Education study is one of the leading global rankings, with the latest report rating 11 subject areas according to 18 performance metrics. Baty said the subject rankings revealed an emerging shift in global higher education. Globally, the United States dominated the subject rankings, taking first place in eight of the 11 fields. China continued its rapid rise, claiming seven top-10 places across the subject rankings, up from four last year.
Source:New Zealand Herald
January 21, 2026 00:21 UTC