Northland

Downpours have hit Northland, Auckland and Coromandel overnight, with Kaikohe seeing 200 millimetres of rain in 24 hours and the Karangahake Gorge closed due to a slip. Audio

A fire that destroyed a family's home and left a woman and three children in hospital could have turned into an "absolute tragedy", a top firefighter says.

The O Mahurangi Penlink project is due to be completed in 2026.

MetService has issued gale warnings for the upper-North Island's coastline, with some Northland households without power overnight as heavy rain hits the region.

Northland has escaped any major problems from the weather so far, but Emergency Management is expecting further downpours this afternoon.

There have been some heavy rainfalls recorded overnight in Northland as a belt of wet and windy weather moves across the upper North Island.

Heavy rain and high winds are expected to reach Northland by 8pm before spreading to Auckland, Great Barrier Island and the Coromandel by early Sunday.

A hillside has been "reformed" and loose material removed so that the vital link in and out of Northland can be restored, Waka Kotahi says.

A sizeable chunk of state housing is on flood prone land, with more builds being put on land expected to flood in the future.

AgResearch is teaming up with regional councils and Rural Contractors New Zealand to collate information on alligator weed in a bid to better understand its spread.

Shayden Perkinson, 25, was the victim of what police said was a serious assault last weekend.

Submissions on changing the Bay of Islands town's name to its Māori original will be presented to the Geographic Board in June, and Land Information NZ says a decision is likely this year.

The victim of a Whangārei homicide has been named, as police warn about speculation on social media over the case.

An early childhood centre manager who roughly handled, racially insulted and force-fed children in her care has had her teacher's registration cancelled.

A series of pop up clinics are being organised for Māori businesses in Northland still feeling the impact of Cyclone Gabrielle.

A 25-year-old man was seriously assaulted before he died from his injuries in Whangārei on Saturday night, police say.

The wife of the ferry skipper hospitalised after a collision with a motorboat in the Bay of Islands says he is an experienced, vigilant skipper who has never been involved in an accident before. Audio

Climate and health experts warn storms like Cyclone Gabrielle will have increasingly devastating public health consequences as the world warms.