Slips and surface flooding are causing havoc for motorists in the lower North Island as heavy rain and gale force winds sweep the region.

A wide cross-section of the Feilding community turned out for a candlelit service tonight in response to recent tragic deaths, and to celebrate the town's strength of spirit.

A farmhouse in Feilding has been cordoned off and a scene examination would be carried out over the coming days.

Police are continuing to investigate the deaths of two men and a woman whose bodies were found in a house on the outskirts of Feilding today.

For a wee boy, there are few places as perfect as dad's lap - but Hunter Guy, 2, lost that six weeks ago.

A car rocketed through a barrier like a "scud missile", plunging 30m into the Manawatu Gorge yesterday, killing the driver.

A police dive squad has recovered the body of a man from the Manawatu River following a crash earlier this morning.

Brazen but brainless thieves have risked their lives by breaking into a Manawatu wind farm switch yard in an apparent attempt to steal copper wire.

Thirty-four soldiers from just one army base have faced drinking-related court charges in the first six months of this year.

An international flying student did an "exceptional job" landing unhurt with a dead engine and missing a wheel after a fatal mid-air collision.

The parents of murdered Manawatu dairy farmer Scott Guy say they are at a loss to understand why their son was killed, and have appealed to the public to come forward with any information they might have about the shooting.

Police are treating the death of a man in Feilding as suspicious after his body was found in the Manawatu town this morning.