Samantha Gee

Civil Defence has ordered an evacuation of low-lying parts of Westport, before the already heavy rainfall becomes more intense tonight.

A red weather warning is still in place.

Emergency personnel… Audio

Rain continues to fall in Buller, and Westport is on high alert for severe flooding, similar to that which devastated hundreds of homes in July.

Civil Defence is monitoring the situation closely and… Video, Audio

With harvest season set to kick off in the top of the South Island, orchardists, growers and hop farmers are facing staff shortages due to closed borders.

It's estimated the region needs 1500 more… Audio

The Kaikōura community is concerned its pāua fishery is being stripped by huge demand from the public.

The fishery reopened in December for a three-month period for the first time since an earthquake… Audio

It has some of the lowest immunisation rates in the South Island, but the West Coast is now only 1500 shots shy of achieving ninety percent fully vaccinated against Covid-19.

In mid October, just… Audio

Residents in Kenepuru Sound can finally get in and out by road, more than four months after the damaging July storm.

Full repairs so that visitors can also use the road again are expected to take up… Audio

The Covid outbreak in Nelson seems to have given people the nudge they needed to get their first vaccination.

There are 14 cases of the virus in the region - made up of two separate clusters - with… Audio

The Nelson-Marlborough District Health Board's Chief Medical Officer says it's too early to say how large the latest Covid-19 outbreak in the region will end up.

Currently, there are 14 cases, made… Audio

The government has announced all of the South Island will move orange in the new Covid protection framework.

That means no gathering limits for hospitality, weddings, funerals, close contact… Video, Audio

Police and the NZ Defence Force will now have to be vaccinated, or be out of a job.

The government has announced they will have to have their first dose by mid-January and be fully vaccinated by the… Audio

People on the West Coast are coming to terms with the discovery of human remains deep in the Pike River Mine, almost eleven years after the deadly explosion.

Tomorrow's the anniversary of the deadly… Video, Audio

The Auckland City Mission - Te Tāpui Atawhai - is worried about not meeting demand at Christmas, as its team faces the ever-growing demand for support created by Covid restrictions.

The Mission's… Audio

A health expert wants Air New Zealand to go a step further and implement a no jab, no fly rule domestically.

The airline's announced travellers who are 12 and over will need to show proof of… Audio

More than three months after severe flooding in Westport damaged hundreds of homes, many residents are left wondering when and if they will be able to return.

It exposed a town grappling with poverty… Video, Audio

Māori health services in Te Tauihu - the top of the South Island - are connecting with youth through social media in the drive to improve vaccination rates.

In Nelson Marlborough, 16 percent of Maori… Audio

Twenty-five thousand New Zealanders around the world entered the lobby today, desperately trying to get a space in MIQ in a bid to return home.

It was the third release of the MIQ virtual lobby… Audio

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced today the South Island will remain in alert level two but there has been some reprieve, with a slight easing of restrictions for hospitality… Audio

The government wants to introduce tougher safety rules for adventure activity operators, in response to the deadly 2019 Whakaari eruption.

Forty-seven people - most of them tourists - were on the… Audio