A critically injured man who was struck by a train in Levin has woken up and acknowledged his name is Alan.

A person is dead in a crash at the intersection of State Highway 57 and Kingston Road, about 2km north of the Horowhenua town of Shannon.

Police have released photographs of the injured man as a "last resort" in an effort to identify him.

The name Alan was muttered by the man hit by a train in Levin on Friday night and may offer a clue to his identity.

A man who abandoned his baby outside a Wellington strip club changed his plea when he appeared in court yesterday.

A plane has successfully landed despite problems with its landing gear that forced it to abort several landing attempts.

An aspiring councillor has taken legal advice over an alleged smear campaign involving photos taken from her Facebook site and emailed to a number of residents.

Police looking for Marice McGregor have found a body down a ravine in dense bush but are unable to confirm it is the missing Whanganui woman.

The discovery of a lanyard belonging to missing Whanganui woman Marice McGregor indicates she had got into a vehicle, police say.

James Mills has pleaded guilty to the 2009 murder of Jamie Faulkner. The 29-year-old victim was killed by a single gunshot wound, suffered during an altercation between the two.