Emergency Services

Police have released the name of a woman who died after being hit by a car in central Wellington.

Two other people have also sustained minor injuries.

A nearby worker described seeing a man lying motionless on the ground after the collision

Police said there are no injuries but the car's battery will take some time to extinguish.

Emergency services were called to an address in Whangārei on Sunday.

"I helped pull the hoses out in my sandals," says a neighbour who saw black smoke spewing out of the garage next door.

Witnesses say the woman, in her 60s, was struck and carried 15 metres down the road before being thrown off.

A fire in the coastal Northland settlement of Ngunguru, which earlier threatened several homes, has now been contained.

Surf Lifesaving's manager for the Northern Region Chase Cahalane says people can't just assume dogs can swim out of a rip.

Hutt Valley and Wairarapa will enter "a restricted season", which means anyone who wants to light an outdoor fire will first need to apply for a permit.

Maritime New Zealand's Rescue Coordination Centre said specialist rescuers were sent whenever a beacon was used.

The single vehicle crash was discovered on Spur Road at about midday today, but is thought to have occurred overnight, police say.

A person was critically injured and died at the scene of a quad bike crash in Purangi on Saturday.

A funeral home was set on fire at 10am on Saturday morning and four churches set a light overnight - two other churches were targeted.

Police say a 25-year-old man has been taken into custody.

The firefighters' union has written to Fire and Emergency requesting a review into a serious multi-property fire in North Auckland.

Firefighters had to rescue two of the people from a tank.

The two volunteer firefighters injured by a falling veranda in Te Pohue Hawke's Bay on Thursday have been released from hospital. Five people, including two firefighters helping a neighbour in...