Kurt Bayer

A teenager told to tidy his room snapped and stabbed his father with a 14cm kitchen knife, a court has heard.

The design firm boss behind Christchurch's CTV building knew its design was flawed in 1990 but chose not to launch a detailed inspection, a hearing was told today.

The principal of the design firm responsible for the CTV building, which collapsed and killed 115 people on February 22 last year, today apologised to bereaved families for a building that did not meet his own standards.

The bodies of three soldiers killed by a roadside bomb in Afghanistan have touched down in their homeland,  and have been greeted  by waiting family in a heartwrenching ramp ceremony in Christchurch.

A 20-year jail term for a former teacher who raped runaway teenage boys has been welcomed by police today.

The Canterbury earthquakes disaster has given Christchurch an opportunity to rise as "the best small city in the world", earthquake recovery minister Gerry Brownlee said this morning.

An Invercargill woman accused of 123 fraud charges worth $120,000, racked up over just a few months, appeared in court in Christchurch today.

Torrential rain has continued to wreak havoc across Canterbury this afternoon, and forecasters have warned more is on its way.

A military commemorative service for the two New Zealand soldiers killed during an ambush in Afghanistan will be held at Burnham Military Camp tomorrow afternoon.

A covered sports stadium is included in the rebuild blueprint for earthquake-damaged Christchurch city centre announced today.

Christchurch City Council is an isolated "fortress" which is "culturally reluctant" to communicate openly with its city's inhabitants, a new report concludes.

A man has been taken to hospital with serious leg injuries after being trapped by a 700kg hydraulic ramp.