Stories by Robin Martin

A New Plymouth couple whose home is teetering on the edge of a massive slip on council-owned land is seeking legal advice after councillors voted not to pay to help fix the problem.

Among the hundreds of contractors and residents on Cyclone Gabrielle clean-up duties in the Esk Valley is a small team of Fijian firefighters.

Faced with never-ending piles of silt and slash, their homes badly damaged and families traumatised, some property owners in the Esk Valley are wondering if they will ever return.

Hawke's Bay residents are struggling with the mental impact of relentless rains and flooding.

Hawke's Bay hospitality businesses are pinning their hopes on the reopening of the state highway network to return trade to some semblance of normality after Cyclone Gabrielle.

Te Kotahitanga o Te Atiawa said the project was close to its heart and was an opportunity to "reconnect our people with our tipuna".

A Hastings helicopter pilot has described the mad dash to rescue people trapped on roofs across the Hawke's Bay as Cyclone Gabrielle caused rivers to burst, completely submerging some homes.

About 20 young people with a range of physical and cognitive disabilities will be chasing the 'stoke' at a special surfing event at Fitzroy Beach in New Plymouth today.

The Department of Conservation is worried the voracious forager's reappearance could threaten recovering ecosystems in the province.

Iwi are insisting they be involved every step of the way in the clean-up of a controversial chemical plant in New Plymouth.

Some residents locals in the northern Auckland town of Warkworth say they were caught completely unprepared by last Friday's floods and communication was insufficient from local government.

St Mary's Bay residents are blaming the council for massive slips that left some homes hanging precariously over the northern motorway approach to the Auckland Harbour Bridge.

Several inundated homes were evacuated after an intense burst of rain on Saturday.

Signs re-instating the name - Pākaraka - at a settlement on the outskirts of Whanganui have been ripped out of the ground just hours after being installed.

An octogenarian Taranaki surfer isn't about to let his advancing years get between him and the "stoke" of riding waves.

A 100-metre-long bridge across Manganui Gorge will protect trampers and skiers from potential rockfalls and avalanches, DOC says.

In a case of look what the cat dragged in, a rare native skink has been discovered in Taranaki for the first time and may even be a completely new species.

The Ministry for Primary Industries is warning visitors to Taranaki this summer they could face hefty fines if they collect kaimoana - except crayfish - along the New Plymouth to Ōpunakē coastline.

The large stocky herons - one of the rarest wetland birds in the world - are notoriously secretive and deemed nationally critical in New Zealand.

A West Auckland resident who went 'through hell' for months has received an early Christmas present.

Ratepayers are to pay a hefty price for a planned thermal dryer project that's price has more than doubled.

About 1000 rangatahi have descended on Taranaki and Whanganui for Te Wiki Hākinakina o Ngā Kura Kaupapa Māori, a celebration of sport and te reo Māori.

Champion boxer Sam Rapira has revealed for the first time publicly he is living with dementia pugilistica - a variant of chronic traumatic encephalopathy brought on by repeated concussions.

There was a festive vibe at the New Plymouth Community Foodbank's Christmas Drive, despite the struggles of many to make ends meet.

It has emerged that Beach Energy Resources is the subject of an ongoing investigation into its operation at the Kupe gas field off the coast of Taranaki.