Checkpoint for Friday 9 July 2021

5:06 PM.Multiple investigations are underway after a hot air balloon crash landed at a farm near Arrowtown.

Eleven were injured, two of them seriously. The company involved - Sunrise Balloons - has… Read more Video, Audio

5:13 PM.The trans-Tasman travel bubble is deflating fast. New Zealanders wanting to escape New South Wales will now have to undergo 14 days in a managed isolation facility upon their arrival.

The Australian… Read more Audio

5:16 PM.There has been widespread condemnation of the Fiji government's move to force its entire civil service to get vaccinated against the coronavirus.

This comes amid daily record infections and deaths… Read more Audio

5:19 PM.Whanganui school students will be the first in the country to be vaccinated at school from the beginning of the next school term.

At least 1600 students aged over 16 along with around 700 teachers… Read more Audio

5:23 PM.So at what age can a child decide for themselves whether to have a Covid-19 vaccine, independent of their parents wishes.

It's a question that could come into sharp focus if the government decides to… Read more Video, Audio

5:29 PM.A who's who of New Zealand opera and the arts has written to the government asking for an independent review of the sector.

In May, Witi Ihimaera, Murray Shaw and Rachael Walkinton resigned from the… Read more Audio

5:34 PM.News from the business sector, including a market report. [embed] https://players.brightcove.net/6093072280001/default_default/index.html?videoId=6262968949001 Video, Audio

5:38 PM.The business owner who championed the four-day working week says New Zealand lags behind the rest of the world when it comes to leaving Monday-to-Friday behind.

Perpetual Guardian was the first… Read more Audio

5:43 PM.Renting clothes is often praised as the answer to fight the tide of fast fashion - but is it as green as we think?

An international study's found it's actually worse for the planet than throwing… Read more Video, Audio

5:48 PM.It's arguably the little train that couldn't. Couldn't quite get into the main commuter hub in Auckland CBD.

But it does appear to be edging closer.

The controversial Te Huia train from Hamilton to… Read more Video, Audio

5:53 PM.Are the country's public toilets up to scratch when it comes to helping wipe out the spread of Covid-19?

New research by Otago University suggests many aren't, with no soap, no touchless technology… Read more Video, Audio

6:07 PM.A red light has been put on green flights for kiwis stuck in Sydney as cases surged there again today.

The New South Wales government announced 44 new community cases, up from yesterday's 14-month… Read more Audio

6:12 PM.Eleven people have been injured in a hot air balloon crash near Arrowtown this morning.

The crash happened as the balloon was coming down to land.. and wind dragged it for more than 100 metres before… Read more Audio

6:16 PM.A Wellington College pupil has been forced to change bus service after feeling ridiculed by a bus driver, who has refused to stop and pick him up.

The boy's family made two complaints about the… Read more Audio

6:20 PM.Auckland Airport is having its busiest day since March last year, when the Covid-19 pandemic screeched travel to a stop.

At least 28,000 New Zealanders are expected to stream through the domestic… Read more Audio

6:24 PM.For some people with disabilities, getting a vaccine can be a confronting process especially if they're hyper sensitive to light, noise and crowds.

That's where a one-day community clinic in Dunedin… Read more Audio

6:27 PM.The All Blacks play Fiji for the first time in 10 years tomorrow night, with fans hoping for more of a contest in Dunedin than last week's 102-nil win over Tonga at Mt Smart.

Unlike Tonga, who had to… Read more Audio