Debbie Porteous

It's Mardi Gras time in New Orleans. People get dressed up and dance and catch beads. They also eat. They might also travel to the other southern states, where they will also eat. Debbie Porteous finds they will encounter a mixed bag - but they won't go hungry.

Land Information New Zealand is to consider putting up signs warning people off shooting around the Bannockburn Inlet after a stray bullet struck a caravan in the area.

A Bannockburn woman who reported rabbit shooters to police after a caravan at a camping ground was struck by a stray bullet says spotlighting in the area must stop.

Two people are being treated for moderate injuries after a collision between two utes in the Manuka Gorge between Milton and Lawrence.

Construction of six-storey buildings in Gorge Rd, Queenstown, could be possible within a year, if a request to accelerate land-use rules is approved by the Environment Court.

Piers either side of the Tekapo River are prepared on Tuesday for the final part of construction of a footbridge that will span 115m across the river, joining the Lake Tekapo township to the Church of the Good Shepherd.

Drivers are being urged to continue to take extreme care on all roads in the wider Clutha district today after flooding in the area over the past two days.

A Queenstown shearer who drove at an average speed of 149kmh along a treacherous gorge road has been sentenced to 300 hours' community work.

The lack of information about when some Milton residents will get their phone service back has outraged one resident, who says people who depend on their landline phones are being put at risk.

The prospect of further funding reviews over the next 12 months is at least as concerning as the current proposal to slash 5% from its district health board contract, Clutha Health First says.

A part of Oamaru's industrial area was cordoned off and part of the main southern main trunk line, after an explosive substance was found in a bucket at a scrapyard this morning.

Hank Maclean will stand tall at the no doubt chilly West Otago Showgrounds this morning, warm in the knowledge he is on a special mission.

A man from Blenheim has saved the future of the 107-year-old Waikouaiti Bowling Club.

Mahinerangi youngsters Becky (5, left) and Ollie (3) Vaughan play in the snow under mum and dad Hayley and Dave Vaughan's frozen washing on Waipori Station yesterday.

The pace on the Otago Central Rail Trail might pick up a little later this year, as the Department of Conservation reconsiders its policy on electric bikes.

Nasa's super balloon will not be launched tomorrow.

An Air New Zealand flight from Dunedin was cancelled after the plane was struck by lightning on its approach into the city's airport this afternoon.

January was the fifth driest month in Dunedin since records started at Musselburgh in 1918.

A new gift and hospitality policy at the Dunedin City Council has had a mixed reaction among staff.