Midday Report Essentials for Friday 4 July 2025
In today's episode, Nominations have officially opened today for local elections, and with it, the Far North mayor has started a campaign for his district to keep the Maori wards, Fresh rain has been falling today in Taranaki after a torrential downpour struck last night, a new study has found there is "no safe amount" of processed meat to eat, Two female tourists in their 60s - one who was a New Zealander - have been killed while walking on a safari in Zambia.
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RNZ News
7 hours ago
- RNZ News
'Can still get to the pub': Whangamomona president shrugs off floods
President of the self-declared Republic of Whangamomona John Herlihy. Photo: RNZ / Robin Martin The president of the self-declared Republic of Whangamomona in East Taranaki says the area has been hit pretty hard by this week's torrential rain , but he can still make it down to the pub, so things can't be too bad. The Forgotten World Highway was closed between Whangamomona and Taumaranui, and all non-essential travel along the entire SH43 route was discouraged. Forgotten World Highway, SH43. File photo. Photo: 123RF John Herlihy said tourists were turned back at Douglas on the Stratford side, but locals were still allowed through. "We had a pretty bad day on Thursday and yesterday [Friday], but SH43 is closed and the road is closed at Mōkau [SH3] down the bottom, and [Okau Road to] Mount Damper and the Tangarakau Gorge [on SH43] is closed. "Apparently, there's been no traffic come through there [Tangarakau], so I presume it's still closed. There's plenty of important roads at the moment by the sound of it and the Awakino Gorge [SH3] is closed as well, so there's no traffic on the road. It's quiet as, which is unusual for us." The mudslide that has closed SH3 at Awakino in Waitomo. Photo: Supplied / NZTA Herlihy said the area had about 150mm of rain, but a local contractor was able to keep the roads around Whangamomona clear, so people could get into the village. "The water's been pretty high in places across the road, so unless you want to go out, you just stay at home really. I can still get to the pub and have a beer - that's the main thing, because rugby's on tonight. Herlihy, who was picking an All Blacks win by 20 points, said it was a pretty quiet time of year and no guests appeared stranded at the Whangamomona Hotel. "Last night was pretty quiet. There were no outsiders, but they had a group coming in tonight, apparently to stay, but from Stratford to Whangamomona is okay - after that, it's closed. "Some of the locals came back from town [Stratford] last night, and they were stopped at Douglas and told the road was closed. "They were turning around all the tourists trying to get through, because people were trying to get out of Taranaki to go north and they can't come this way either, so they got to go down to Whanganui, if they want to get out of Taranaki at the moment." Meanwhile, he said locals were just getting on with life. "It doesn't really worry us, you know. There's not many people travelling through this way at this time of the year anyway, so it's just what it is. "It's happened before, it will happen again." NZTA said its crews would reassess SH43 on Saturday. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
9 hours ago
- RNZ News
Civil defence meeting held after biggest flood in Ngātīmoti since 1877
More than 60 residents turned up to a Nelson Tasman Civil Defence meeting at the Ngātīmoti Memorial Hall on Saturday afternoon. The Ngātīmoti Memorial Hall. Photo: RNZ / Marika Khabazi They had questions for officials about where they could dump waste, silt and sand, who they could to talk to about getting their driveways cleared to reinstate access, the risk of drinking water contamination and whether rates relief was possible. More than 60 residents turned up to the Civil Defence meeting at the Ngātīmoti Memorial Hall. Photo: RNZ / Marika Khabazi Patrick Shortley has lived in the vallley for 35 years and said the recent flooding saw water reach "extraordinarily high" levels, with several homes flooded and many properties damaged. "The loss of infrastructure obviously is significant, but I feel for the people whose homes have been inundated. "It's the things that have no monetary value, the family photo album that got soaked, or the pet dog or cat or horse or whatever that didn't make it through." He said the extent of the damage across the district had not yet been fully assessed. Ngātīmoti resident and Motueka Valley Association member Patrick Shortley. Photo: RNZ / Marika Khabazi Shortley facilitates the Motueka Valley Association, a community group that covers the area between the the Baton Bridge to the south and the Alexander Bluff Bridge to the north, including the east and west banks of the Motueka River and its tributaries. He said many people were affected by the flood and, for a few, it was "bordering on catastrophic". "There's a bit of grieving to be done and a lot of recovery work that's going to take some time to complete, both the physical recovery, I think, and also the emotional recovery." An area affected by the Motueka Valley flood. Photo: RNZ / Marika Khabazi He was fortunate to live far enough away from the river that he wasn't directly affected. "I've met with most of my immediate neighbours. We all sat around and had a beer the other night, and we talked about the flood and whether it was the biggest one. "People were talking about whether it was a 40-year flood or a 100-year flood. I don't think it makes much difference, they're just numbers. "It's a pretty major significant event here." Photo: RNZ / Marika Khabazi He was confident those in the Motueka Valley could support each other through the recovery. "We've got a long job ahead of us to support those people... but we're a resilient community, we can do it." Nelson Tasman Civil Defence controller Rob Smith. Photo: RNZ / Marika Khabazi Nelson Tasman Civil Defence controller Rob Smith said the flood was the biggest since 1877, when a hole was put in a rock up near Ngātīmoti after the floods. This week's deluge was up to a plaque placed there. He said said full recovery costs would take time to work out, but government support would be needed to help with the years-long clean-up. "A lot of the landowners in the Motueka particularly went through the 1983 flood, so they know the time that that took to recover from," he said. "That was a big valley-floor flood. "This was half a metre to a metre higher. This was a much bigger flood." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
10 hours ago
- RNZ News
New CT scanners bring mixed blessings for Palmerston North Hospital
Palmerston North Hospital currently relies on a single loaned CT scanner with limited capability. Photo: RNZ / Jimmy Ellingham An announcement that Palmerston North Hospital will get two new CT scanners comes as medical unions warn the government of a dire shortage in radiographers nationwide. Radiographers are the medical-imaging technologists who, together with radiologists, read CT and MRI (whole-body) scans to diagnose and treat patients with injuries and serious diseases, like cancer. On Saturday afternoon, Health Minister Simeon Brown announced the $12.7 million investment for Palmerston North hospital, saying it would "double scanning capacity and significantly improve access to diagnostic services across the region". "This is a major step forward for Palmerston North and the surrounding communities," he said. "It means faster diagnoses, shorter wait times and earlier treatment for people with serious conditions like cancer." The two new scanners would replace one ageing machine and the second would expand the hospital's capacity by about 3000 extra scans per year. "Doubling CT capacity means more timely scans and less stress for patients, with workforce planning already underway to support the expanded diagnostic service," Brown said. The hospital currently relied on a single loaned CT scanner with limited capability, which contributed to delays in emergency, inpatient, and elective care. "In some cases, patients must be transferred to other hospitals or private providers for scans," Brown said. "With greater scanning capacity, we'll ease pressure across the system - reducing ED delays, supporting planned surgeries and enabling faster diagnoses for time-critical conditions. "It will also reduce the need to outsource scans, ensuring patients are seen sooner and closer to home." The modular CT unit would begin operation in February and provide care for up to eight years, while a permanent imaging hub was developed as part of the hospital's wider redevelopment. Allied Scientific and Technical Health Practitioners union (Apex) national secretary Dr Deborah Powell said the new machinery would be well-received. Health Minister Simeon Brown announced the new $12.7m investment on Saturday. Photo: RNZ / REECE BAKER "The current CT scanner in Palmerston [North] is very old and breaks down frequently," she said. "Quite frankly, they're holding it together with band aids, so we certainly needed the replacement. "A second one obviously will help us put patients through more quickly, that's including guys in ED, as well as cancer treatment and other acute presentations. "That's good news for the people of that region. The one questions we would have is where's the workforce to run it?" Powell said New Zealand was desperately short of radiographers to operate the scanners. "They don't grow on trees, so I'd be delighted to see the minister's plan. I'm not aware that Te Whatu Ora has a workforce plan for the radiology services. "They acknowledge we do have a workforce crisis, but a plan to fix it has been a bit elusive to this point in time." Association of Salaried Medical Specialists executive director Sarah Dalton said the senior doctors' union and Apex only asked about radiology planning nationally last week. "Particularly staffing, because there are significant gaps." She said there were "significant issues around radiology staffing at Palmerston North", and the unions had called for reporting of national workforce planning and regional situations, which they were still waiting for. "While resource being put into new machinery is really important and we would welcome that, without appropriate levels of staffing, it is not going to be a simple fix." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
