Lynda van Kempen

A new multisport event involving kayaking was added to the Otago-Southland secondary schools triathlon this year.

Even though the water consents have been granted for a $36 million Tarras irrigation scheme, the community is unlikely to be able to finance the project itself.

Police dive squad members are helping in the search for a 70-year-old local man who disappeared after falling into Lake Dunstan today.

The body of an Alexandra rower was located and retrieved from Lake Dunstan yesterday afternoon.

A blessing service was held at Lake Dunstan last night a few hours after the body of a missing rower was recovered from the lake.

Thousands of people turned out for "Vignerons' Race Day" at Cromwell yesterday keen to taste some local wines and cheer on dozens of fast horses.

A small group of women who devote more than 50 days a year to attending races throughout Otago and Southland say they know far more about punters than about horseflesh.

A meeting between Central Otago leaders and the Minister of Agriculture yesterday about support for irrigation development was "encouraging" Central Otago Mayor Malcolm Macpherson says.

The Alexandra Blossom Festival is insolvent and the future of the event hangs in the balance.

Martin McPherson is realistic about the challenges ahead if he picks up the reins again as Alexandra Blossom Festival co-ordinator.

The Alexandra Blossom Festival is far from dead, Central Otago Mayor Malcolm Macpherson says.

New irrigation schemes in Central Otago and upgrades of existing schemes will create 500 jobs and add $40 million to the district's gross domestic product, district leaders will tell the Minister of Agriculture today.

The Arrowtown Primary School relay team, Ben Hull (10), Rose Wood (12), Bailey Saville (12), and Charlotte Hall (12), competed in the Central Otago Primary Schools Swimming Sports yesterday at Cromwell.

Alexandra police spent about three hours on Saturday night dealing with an out-of-control party in the town which attracted up to 80 teenagers, "full of booze and bravado", who turned a quiet street into a "bomb site," Senior Constable Mike Colligan said.