Wellington Police investigating the death of a 53-year-old woman are appealing for anybody who may have seen anything the night she was allegedly assaulted.

Specialised firefighting teams are among the 100-strong interstate personnel being sent to Victoria ahead of catastrophic conditions forecast for a region under continued threat.

A Dunedin man has been arrested after he was found snooping around a St Clair property in the early hours of this morning, police say.

An unsecured rifle was allegedly found by police after a Dunedin youth crashed his parents' Toyota Hilux, police say.

Some New Zealand roads are notorious due to the number of fatal and serious crashes there, others because they are steep and narrow with no room for driver error.