The family of Tauranga man who died after alleged medical misadventure is calling for better communication between Tauranga Hospital departments.

A message in a Powerade bottle sent by two young friends sought love from exotic shores.

An island hapu off the coast of Tauranga has come out as "not against the possibility" of leaving part of the wrecked container ship Rena on nearby Astrolabe Reef - and has distanced itself from an another island group which wants it gone.

A crash involving a logging truck and car has shut down the northbound lane of Tauranga's Takitimu Drive this morning.

Traffic is backed up after a crash involving a school bus and car this morning at Welcome Bay in the Bay of Plenty.

A Tauranga man has admitted causing the fatal head-on crash which killed Tauranga father Greg Woledge after his work van plunged off Maungatapu Bridge and into the river.

A waterfront dispute has broken out between two of New Zealand's biggest ports, arguing about who is the best.

A 14-year-old girl led police on a 19km pursuit through Tauranga last night, police say.

A man who was found drunk in open water after clinging to an overturned dinghy near Tauranga harbour for six hours risked his life and the lives of others, police say.

A woman reportedly received abrasions to her limbs after exiting a moving vehicle in Tauranga yesterday afternoon.

A Tauranga man found guilty at trial of robbing two French hitchhikers in 2012 has been jailed for four years nine months - but maintains he's innocent.

A 9-year-old Papamoa girl who dragged a young boy from the surf has shrugged off her hero status and says she was just doing what she has been trained to do.

A tornado has blown through a popular beach resort outside Tauranga this morning, causing damage to house roofs.

Tauranga Police have raided the Filthy Few Motorcycle Club's property in Birch Ave, Tauranga, following ahome invasion in Whakamarama in which two people received serious injuries.

A mum is demanding answers after her 3-year-old son escaped from his kindergarten unnoticed by staff and walked alone across a busy Tauranga road.

Community social housing projects in Wellington, Tauranga and Hamilton have been announced by Housing Minister Nick Smith.

Egg sandwiches, a thermos of Milo and slightly soggy carrot cake.

A Tauranga Intermediate teacher found guilty of stealing 11 tablets of a young student's ADHD medication has been sentenced to nine months supervision.

The body of a man has been found in shallow water at Pilot Bay, Mount Maunganui.

"It was a shock", said 89-year-old Edna Harrison, but it didn't stop her walking into her neighbour's burning home to try to help him put out the blaze with a garden hose.

Sitting next to his dead colleague as their work van started filling with water after plunging off a bridge, Ashley Donkersley thought he was going to die.

A Tauranga doctor caught driving drunk after fleeing police and crashing into a building has been sentenced to supervision and community work.

The pregnant partner of a man killed when his van plunged off a highway bridge in Tauranga will remember him as the "best kind of dad".