Convicted killer Colin Bouwer's bid to block his deportation from New Zealand has been quashed.

Despite tragedy at the weekend, it is one of the "safest" lakes around, the harbourmaster says, because of the clearly-defined areas for passive recreation, such as swimming.

The girlfriend of a 19-year-old man who drowned in an Otago lake on Saturday has criticised the lack of signage on the shore.

A man who saved a young girl from drowning yesterday then went home to get his dive gear to recover the body of a young man.

Police have confirmed a 19-year-old man has died while swimming in Kawarau River on Saturday.

A mentally unwell prisoner was restrained with his hands behind his back for 21 hours a day for 10 weeks, a report has revealed.

Parts of the North Island are expected to hit 30 degrees today, with Hawke's Bay getting the biggest dose of the sun's rays.

One person has died and another has been airlifted to hospital with critical injuries.

In the aftermath of the crash that killed a young farmer, the sentencing judge said ''this is not a North Otago issue in isolation'' but rather an issue for all of NZ.

The third stage of a subdivision next to Jack's Point golf course sold for between $250,000 and $300,000.

People across New Zealand have been basking in today's sunshine as the first weekend of summer did not disappoint.

A photo of two "hot" Southern District police officers posing with puppies has garnered hundreds of likes on Facebook.

A man who put a 3-year-old into a scalding bath, causing the boy's skin to "flake off", has been jailed for nearly four years.

The more porn a man watches, the less sexually intimate he is with his female partner, a new study suggests.

A 40-year-old man had been charged with arson after three fires in Dunedin overnight.

Missing Dunedin woman Alice Tocher has been found and is in a Brisbane hospital, her father has confirmed.

An historic four-storey building near Dunedin's Octagon has been damaged in a suspicious blaze.

Police have released the last name of a Chinese National killed in a three car crash on State Highway 1 near Moeraki last week.

A Dunedin mother-of-three missing since Thursday last week is in Australia, police have confirmed.

As border seizures of drugs go up, a Dunedin man reveals the depths to which he sank after being caught in the dark web.

A man has been charged for using a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol after a passenger on a quad bike he was driving

Dunedin's 'arty' suburb is worthy of a film, writes Elisabeth Easther.

Santa is not coming to Dunedin-based lines company Delta this year after chief executive Grady Cameron cancelled end-of-year function.

Motorists should think twice before parking on a roadside near Dunedin Airport.

It may be time to put away the togs - scorching temperatures on Wednesday aren't likely to be repeated today, the MetService says. While

Three young children have been treated in hospital for potentially-deadly meningococcal disease.

A Dunedin caregiver who imported methamphetamine and LSD for his birthday party has avoided a jail term.

One person is dead after a four-car crash on State Highway 1 near Moeraki this afternoon.

Stephanie Holmes has a hard time tearing herself away from her suite's stunning views.

A Dunedin man who burned down his family home days after his marriage fell apart can now be named.