Another injury hits Highlanders to follow Pledger blow
Highlanders halfback Dylan Pledger will miss the year with a ruptured ACL. Photo: HighlandersThe Highlanders have revealed a second significant injury following news rising halfback Dylan Pledger has been ruled out of the season. Rookie sensation Pledger has been ruled out of his debut Highlanders season with a serious knee injury. Highlanders utility back Finn Hurley has been ruled for the start of the Super Rugby season. Photo: Getty ImagesThat goal, and before that his goal of experiencing Super Rugby for the first time, will now have to wait.
Source:Otago Daily Times
January 11, 2026 21:15 UTC
More than 50 Air NZ flights cancelled by high winds in Wellington
Dozens of flights were cancelled due to high winds in the capital. Photo: Getty ImagesPassengers on more than 50 Air New Zealand flights cancelled by high winds in the capital on Sunday are now being rebooked. Gusts over 100kmh were recorded in Wellington on Sunday; however, winds have eased on Monday morning. He said due to the number of customers who need rebooking, seat availability into Wellington will be limited over the next couple of days. "We've got a couple of days of calmer weather.
Source:Otago Daily Times
January 11, 2026 20:39 UTC
It ain't easy being small
Yet we pretend that most New Zealand politicians are of some ability. This is not to argue that we have no world-class writers, politicians or business leaders (or economists for that matter), but we have far fewer than we pretend. The small size can mean we end up with monopolistic gatekeepers who control a key topic and allow no competition. We have to think small when we are designing New Zealand systems rather than imitating the big. It may be small, but thinking for ourselves is ambitious – and it is hard.
Source:Stuff
January 11, 2026 20:34 UTC
Samoan chief, Moeaia Tuai, convicted of slavery and human trafficking set to be sentenced
He kept their passports, bank cards and wages, assaulted them and threatened both with deportation if they spoke out. The young male victim dreamt of finishing school, before he was put to work for 50 to 60 hours a week. When the woman raised the alarm four years later that Tuai had raped her, police also discovered the slavery both had suffered at Tuai’s hands. Ownership, possession, control, threatsTuai did not allow the victims to talk to each other, even when they were eating at the same table. So too was Joseph Matamata, who in 2020 became the first New Zealander convicted of both slavery and human trafficking.
Source:New Zealand Herald
January 11, 2026 20:32 UTC
Summer sporting and recreational injuries often predictable and preventable – Editorial
Nationally, nearly half a million new sporting and recreational injury claims were lodged in 2024. ACC says nearly 70,000 people are injured through outdoor recreation activities, mainly enjoyed over the summer each year. It says most summer injuries happen during swimming, surfing, mountain biking, road and trail cycling, gym and fitness activities, as well as DIY and household slips or falls, farming and gardening. Surf Life Saving New Zealand eastern region lifesaving manager Chaz Gibbons-Campbell says the most serious injuries lifeguards deal with are spinal injuries. ACC injury prevention leader James Whitaker says most summer injuries are predictable and preventable.
Source:New Zealand Herald
January 11, 2026 20:32 UTC
US homeland chief accuses Democrats of inciting violence after woman killed
People hold signs outside the Trump tower in New York as they participate in a protest organised by Rise and Resist against US Immigration and Customs Enforcement activities and the US intervention in Venezuela. Photo / Timothy A. Clary, AFPPeople hold signs outside the Trump tower in New York as they participate in a protest organised by Rise and Resist against US Immigration and Customs Enforcement activities and the US intervention in Venezuela. Photo / Timothy A. Clary, AFPUnited States Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem today accused Democrats of encouraging violence against immigration officers, as anger festered over the killing of a woman by a federal agent in Minneapolis. “They’ve inflamed the public. They’ve encouraged the kind of destruction and violence that we’ve seen in Minneapolis the last several days.”
Source:New Zealand Herald
January 11, 2026 20:26 UTC
Music star Yeison Jimenez among six killed in plane crash after revealing fatal premonition
Jimenez, whose full name is Yeison Orlando Jimenez Galeano, was one of the most well-known pop stars in Colombia, producing eight albums in a 25-year career. The artist had recently revealed his chilling dreams about dying in a plane crash, The New York Post reported. “I dreamt three times that we were going to have a plane crash and that I had to tell the pilot to turn around. And in one of the dreams, I dreamt that we had died and that we were on the news. “The Civil Aeronautics Authority deeply regrets the accident that occurred in Paipa, Boyaca, in which six occupants of the N325FA aircraft died, including the artist Yeison Jimenez.
Source:New Zealand Herald
January 11, 2026 20:16 UTC
Sports courts bounce back to life; now community set to upgrade clubrooms
A seven-year community-led project to restore the Akaroa Recreation Ground courts is finally nearing completion. Banks Peninsula Sport and Recreation secretary Jan Whitehead said it was incredible to be standing on the first refurbished court last month. Photo: Banks Peninsula Sports & Recreation / EJCrew Photography / Facebook"You go down there and all three courts are fully booked, fully utilised at times. After years of wear and tear, the tennis courts had become dangerous and unusable for casual sports. Photo: SuppliedEstablished in about 1930, the Akaroa Recreation Ground had suffered decades of neglect.
Source:Otago Daily Times
January 11, 2026 20:03 UTC
More than 500 dead in Iran protests
Protesters gather as vehicles burn, amid evolving anti-government unrest, in Tehran, Iran, in this screen grab obtained from a social media video. An Israeli military official said the protests were an internal Iranian matter, but Israel's military was monitoring developments and was ready to respond "with power if need be". Israel and Iran fought a 12-day war in June last year, which the United States briefly joined by attacking key nuclear installations. Alan Eyre, a former US diplomat and Iran expert, thought it unlikely the protests would topple the establishment. Iranian state TV broadcast funeral processions in western cities such as Gachsaran and Yasuj for security personnel killed in protests.
Source:Otago Daily Times
January 11, 2026 19:35 UTC
Man sentenced for child abuse images
A Canadian national caught with child abuse images and videos has been sentenced to 10 months' home detention before being deported. The judge said his then-partner found a deleted folder containing a video of child exploitation material on his laptop and questioned him about it last March. Kuyten was arrested and his devices were seized with a search uncovering 2680 images and 357 videos that were identified as objectionable. Kuyten previously admitted to buying and saving two separate packages of child exploitation material about a year prior, but denied looking at every video or image. She also ordered that the devices and child abuse material were destroyed.
Source:Otago Daily Times
January 11, 2026 19:31 UTC
‘Massacre’ feared as Iran tries to crush protests; US weighs military options
Iranians gather while blocking a street during a protest in Tehran, Iran on January 9, 2026. In the past, Iranian security forces have shot protesters in the eyes with metal pellets and rubber bullets. By Friday, other human rights groups said that security forces had already killed dozens. Radan also acknowledged deaths but implied that they were at the hands of coordinated agitators rather than security forces. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said at a government meeting that Israel is “closely monitoring” the events unfolding in Iran.
Source:New Zealand Herald
January 11, 2026 19:23 UTC
Firefighter flown to hospital after North Canterbury blaze, crews spend night at fire site
A firefighter was flown to hospital after a blaze in North Canterbury in searing temperatures. Crews from the Waiau, Culverden, Lyford, Hanmer VRFF, Hawarden, Wigram, Hurunui, Christchurch City, Canterbury High Country, and Pines Beach stations were called to the blaze. The sweltering temperatures and high winds kept emergency services on alert. Canterbury West Coast Air Rescue confirmed a firefighter was taken to Christchurch hospital from the scene of the fire. A Fire and Emergency (FENZ) spokesperson said 17 fire engines and several helicopters were sent to the scene.
Source:Otago Daily Times
January 11, 2026 19:19 UTC
Teen brothers in armed group that stormed Hamilton flat and robbed victims at knifepoint sent to prison
The court heard that the young pair had a positive, well-supported background, which included a Year 13 education. ‘Knives held to throats as threats made’It was unclear exactly how many people stormed the house that early morning. Two victims were sleeping, but three were awake and spotted the group outside. Judge Kim Saunders said it was “easy to forget the sheer terror that was inflicted on the victims” that night. “While you, Noble, agreed to pay reparation, I’m not going to make an order for it, and the reason I’m not going to is because you are going to be sent to prison.
Source:New Zealand Herald
January 11, 2026 19:16 UTC
Slavemaster to be sentenced
Moeaia Tuai will be sentenced next month for enslaving a young woman who he forced to work and sexually abused. Slavemaster Moeaia Tuai is a Samoan chief or matai, who took possession of his victims' lives and raped one victim, who had been forced to pay him her wages for four years. At the 63-year-old's trial, his own diaries were used to document the hours the young woman worked, her pay and when she was punished with beatings. The young male victim dreamt of finishing school, before he was put to work for 50 to 60 hours a week. She was sentenced to more than 10 years' imprisonment for dealing in slaves and dealing in a person under 18 for sexual exploitation, while Lata's partner Avneesh Sehgal sentenced to four years and eight months in prison for his part in the offending.
Source:Otago Daily Times
January 11, 2026 19:03 UTC
Cats pose threat to native wildlife in Queenstown wetland
Photo: Supplied/Whakatipu Wildlife TrustA restored wetland on the edge of Queenstown is drawing rare native wildlife back to an area once dry and barren, but conservationists say roaming pet cats could undo years of community-led work. Just after a rare and elusive bird species was spotted at the Shotover Wetland, the Whakatipu Wildlife Trust said trail cameras detected 44 cats over three weeks. "Fancy breeds, long hairs, ragdolls with collars - you could tell they were pet cats. However, pet cats roaming near towns could complicate trapping efforts, Harding-Shaw said. Whakatipu Wildlife Trust asked Queenstown Lakes District Council to make microchipping and desexing mandatory, partly because some feral cat traps switched off, if they detected a microchipped pet cat.
Source:Otago Daily Times
January 11, 2026 18:37 UTC