Two of Dunedin's biggest student bars have shut suddenly, and their owner has pointed to Dunedin's ''utterly conservative'' councillors as the cause.

University of Otago PhD researcher Hazem Zohny has warned about myths and "hype" involving so-called "smart" drugs.

Emergency services assess the scene of a Delta truck, which came off McMeeking Rd, on the Otago Peninsula, and rolled yesterday.

An Octagon bar owner insists his late-night venue will not become the latest to close, despite police opposition to a renewed on-licence after a string of assaults linked to the premises.

One-hundred and sixty-five students; 165 nicknames - Alec Campbell, Maniototo Area School's Deputy Principal, remembers them all.

South Islanders will have some reprieve from the cold winds, rain and snow that lashed regions yesterday but are warned to expect more days like that this winter.

Police have called off the search for a vessel believed to be missing on Lake Wakatipu, in the Otago region.

A 16-year-old boy was seriously injured in what police have described as a “cowardly unprovoked group attack” outside a party in Dunedin.

A big scrub fire broke out in the Scroggs Hill near Mosgiel, Otago, this afternoon.

Fergus Blakiston finds time between lattes for snowboarding on a trip to Queenstown.

A woman who was supplying an underground cannabis culture was a valued member of the community who gave any proceeds of her drug-dealing to charity.

Pirates' senior rugby team is facing the prospect of a nude alternative strip after its playing kit was stolen at the weekend.

A 19-year-old woman driving a ute which skidded off the road and rolled into a paddock has told of the panicked minutes before she was rescued.

The investigation into missing boy Mike Zhao-Beckenridge and his stepfather John Beckenridge will not be closed, despite police referring the case to the coroner.

Ski fields around the country are experiencing their first rounds of snowfall for the year and some could be in for a snowier season than last year.

A driver was allegedly almost five times the new drink-drive limit when stopped by Queenstown police on Sunday.

Queenstown Airport has topped a list of the world's most stunning airport approaches.

More than a quarter of ear, nose and throat patients who need surgery are being turned away from the overloaded Dunedin Hospital department, a letter released under the Official Information Act shows.

Three schoolboys ''playing chicken'' with a train in Oamaru have traumatised its driver and horrified KiwiRail.

A prominent conservationist is reflecting on his good fortune he was chasing a possum and not sitting in his ute when it was hit and shunted off the road and over a 100m bluff.

Two promising rugby players are fighting for their lives last night after they were thrown from a vehicle that crashed on a remote road after a party.

From wildlife to heritage to chocolate, Peter Feeney finds plenty of reasons to extend your visit to Dunedin.

Dunedin 12-year-old Charlotte Cogger has learned she has two things in common with the newest member of the Royal Family - the same first and second names.

A part of Oamaru's industrial area has been cordoned off and part of the main southern main trunk line, after an explosive substance was found in a bucket at a scrapyard this morning.

US student Allison Willen was making her way, alone, through flood water covering a section of the Young Valley walking track when she was swept to her death.

An American tourist found dead in a river near Wanaka yesterday had previously described her first tramping trip in a column published by Otago University’s student magazine Critic.

Allison "Ally" Willen was last seen on the Gillespie Pass track on April 25, Senior Sergeant Ben Butterfield said.

A fugitive who went on the run in Dunedin has been found after eluding police for much of the day.