It used to be deeply naff, drunk only by teens and maybe your nana; so how did cider get its fizz back to be the drink of the summer, asks Nicky Pellegrino.

A 10-month old boy is in hospital after being attacked by a dog at a Gisborne house yesterday afternoon.

An exhausted swimmer and her boyfriend have narrowly escaped drowning after being rescued by the support crew of the six lifeguards circumnavigating the country in two small rescue boats.

A magnitude 3.1 earthquake, centred 30 kilometres south of Gisborne, struck just after 10pm last night.

Gisborne and Northern Hawke's Bay were rocked by a series of earthquakes on Monday between magnitude 4.2 and 3.3 at a relatively shallow depth, but no damage has been reported.

A fake NZ doctor hailed as a hero after London's 2005 bombing lied about her role in helping the victims, an inquest has been told.

Another weekend and meh, another cyclone.

The MetService's severe weather warning for most of the North Island remains in place today, and Bay of Plenty civil defence emergency workers are on standby after heavy rain pelted the region overnight.

Campers across the upper North Island are tonight preparing to cope with torrential rain.

New Zealand could face strong winds and rain from a tropical cyclone battering the Pacific Islands with winds of up to 225km/hr.

Nzherald.co.nz is celebrating the best things about New Zealand. Today surfer Daniel Kereopa shares his favourite NZ beaches. What do you think?

Roads and vehicles must be "more forgiving" to curb a road toll which averages more than one death a day, the AA says. Figures released by the Ministry of Transport today show 371 people died on the roads over the past year.