Latest from Otago

Vehicle crashes into Central Otago lake

Room check: Kinloch Lodge, Glenorchy

Shandelle Battersby checks into a remote Central Otago lodge that's worth the journey.

Dead puppy in suitcase 'suspicious'

The death of a puppy found inside a suitcase in a Milton cemetery is being treated as suspicious, a SPCA Otago inspector says.

Trouble-plagued ship's new woes

Trouble has again hit the Melilla 201. It's been tied up at a Dunedin wharf for two years, and nearly ran aground as it tried to leave yesterday.

21 days to get rid of 22 cats

'The time has come for reality to sink in,' said a judge as he ordered an Invercargill woman to dispose of 22 of cats.

'Explosive' fire risk for South Island

Department of Conservation gives warning as ground crews launch another onslaught against a large scrub fire ripping through more than 300ha at Arthurs Pass.

Tourist who had keys confiscated fined

An Australian tourist driver who had his car keys taken from him by a member of the public while driving on the Lindis Pass earlier this month has been fined.

Hot time down on the farm

A teenage farmhand became an accidental hero after keeping a potentially disastrous scrub fire at bay.

'Severe' thunderstorm warning for Otago

Severe thunderstorms may hit Dunedin, North Otago and Clutha this afternoon bringing heavy rain and hail as large as 20mm to some areas, MetService warns.

Driver confiscated tourist's keys

A member of the public stopped a tourist driving a rental car on the Lindis Pass and took the vehicle's keys, after narrowly avoiding a head-on collision.

Gust blows boy 1km across lake

"He had the wind up him, so to speak." A 5-year-old was found clutching on to reeds after being blown across Lake Waihola on an inflatable toy this afternoon.

'Always in my heart. Love, Mum. xx'

She still thinks of them every day. Katharine Webb has penned a touching memoriam for her two children, killed at the hands of their father.

Driver's speeding excuse after pursuit

A driver who stole a car and drove it 28km at speeds of up to 160kmh told police he didn't stop, because he had no licence and had been drinking.

Overpaid caretakers to cough up

Two men employed by a high school in Otago have been ordered to repay the school's board following a Novopay error.

Barbed wire laid across beach access

''It's pretty disappointing and done by a sick mind," says a man who discovered dozens of pieces of barbed wire across an accessway to a Dunedin beach.

Otago: Say hello to Clutha and its surrounds

Sarah Lang gets on her bike for her health – and a slice of history.