Latest fromOtago

Workers blame KiwiRail for lost hours
Sixty-four Dunedin manufacturing workers will have their working week reduced by a day, following KiwiRail's decision to award a manufacturing tender offshore.

Attack on horses sparks 'wonderful' response
Jude Nickolls was brought to tears again yesterday - this time by the kindness and generosity of strangers.

Otago: A glow from old golden days
Josie Dale visits Macetown to recapture the atmosphere of the goldrush days.

'It's not a joke to horsey people'
One of Queenstown's top horsewomen was reduced to tears yesterday after discovering her two horses had their tail hair hacked off.

Friends forced to duck for cover
Police say a drunk teen alleged to have shot a friend in the knee had earlier aimed the gun at friends who were forced to take cover behind a wheelie-bin.

Ketamine treatment not 'experimental'
A psychiatrist who treated patients with the drug ketamine for depression was not carrying out research or experimental treatment, it's been found.

Drunk's break-in scares students
A drunk man is alleged to have mistakenly smashed his way into a Dunedin flat causing 'thousands' in damage and scaring the student residents.

Judge convicts 'neighbour from hell'
A Clinton man whom a judge described as the "neighbour from hell" was lucky to avoid being held in contempt of court for his behaviour at a defended hearing.

Pet lamb stolen, set on fire and dumped
A beloved pet lamb was stolen and later dumped with a smashed head and set on fire outside its Dunedin home early yesterday, police say.

'End of an era' as tavern destroyed
A fire which gutted the historic Aparima Tavern at Riverton yesterday spread "unbelievably quickly", a customer says.

Queenstown: More, please...
Catherine Smith enjoys the high life with great views at Matakauri Lodge.

Kiwi faces Australian Kronic charges
An Auckland man has appeared in court in Brisbane today charged with trafficking synthetic cannabis into Australia.

Excessively smoking chimneys to be targeted
Homes with excessively smoking chimneys in Otago's high air pollution towns will be targeted in coming months and residents given a deadline to "clear the air" as the battle to improve air quality intensifies.

Dunedin: Anything could happen
Many of the landmarks of the fabled Dunedin Sound of the 1980s can be visited on a relatively short and intriguing walk.

Driver takes harbour dip
A van ended up in Otago Harbour after going off Portobello Rd at Edwards Bay yesterday.

River death: 'Everything went wrong'
An elderly woman's death in the Clutha River last year was due to ill-health and her being intoxicated, a coroner has ruled.

Fatal head-on crash kills woman
The main highway north of Balclutha remains closed this morning after a head-on crash in which a woman was killed and another seriously injured.

'You don't know whether to cry or laugh'
There was just one word to describe 82-year-old Central Otago farmer Rex George after the big snow: "buggered".

Slow return to normality expected for Otago
Following more than a week of heavy rain, floods and snow, Otago residents are being told to expect a slow return to normality.

Huge rescue operation underway
Volunteers are urgently needed to help farmers access and feed stock on about 40 stations above 500m throughout Otago.

Family lounge or drive-thru?
Five members of a Lake Hawea family were considered lucky to be alive last night after a runaway people mover crashed into their lounge.

North Otago dairy worker rescued from floodwaters
A North Otago dairy worker had to be rescued from his motorbike in chest-deep floodwaters in Kakanui Valley yesterday.