Amy Farrall's caring, loving nature and tendency to try to help people in need may have led to her violent death, her friends and family fear.

A suspect in the homicide probe into the death of Amy Farrall has been quizzed this afternoon in hospital while he undergoes surgery for dog bite injuries sustained during his arrest.

The man arrested over the attack of two hitchhikers and being spoken to in relation to a Christchurch homicide probe had been living with victim Amy Farrall, police have confirmed.

The public is being asked to report sightings of two vehicles as police investigate the death of Christchurch woman Amy Farrall.

The family of the woman whose body was found in the boot of her car at a supermarket yesterday morning say she was a kind and caring girl who loved animals.

A man has been arrested following a police pursuit and a five-hour armed stand-off after two foreign tourists were violently attacked on the West Coast yesterday.

Two female German tourists are in hospital after they were found near Franz Josef with serious injuries at around 4pm today.

It was every parent's worst nightmare; news their child has died while travelling on the other side of the world, their rented campervan swept off the road during a powerful storm.

A young Canadian couple were killed when their campervan was swept off the road by the second landslide to hit the road they were on, an inquest has ruled.

The spikes found driven into a highway near Greymouth last week have been described as "deadly" by a nearby tourist operator and "malicious" by Greymouth police.

A Greymouth family is in ruins following a road crash that claimed the lives of a mother and her teenage son.

The Wild Foods Festival attracts bold appetites to a great town, writes Anna Leask.

Elisabeth Easther discovers a small town in the heart of the West Coast.

Recognition just proves what Coasters have always known, says local mayor.

Some of the best spots to visit on the West Coast - named as one of the top 10 regions to visit in 2014 by Lonely Planet's Best in Travel.

A teenager is shrugging off the title of hero after he saved the life of an elderly whitebaiter who fell into a coma and slipped into the river last week.

A patient suffered three injuries as a result of surgery at Grey Base Hospital, the Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC) says.