People in New Zealand do not need to worry about radiation poisoning should a quake-damaged nuclear power plant in Japan suffer catastrophic meltdowns, an expert says.
Parliament today expressed its condolences to the people of Japan for the losses they have suffered as a result of last Friday's earthquake and tsunami.
The official death toll in Japan's disastrous earthquake and tsunami has passed 2400.
The number of earthquakes around the world is not increasing but it might feel like it is because they have been hitting heavily populated areas, geologist Prof Richard Norris, of the University of Otago, says.
The nuclear crisis in Japan has developed rapidly on many fronts, making it difficult to track the threads. What are the dangers? Will the situation improve? Can the reactors be cooled?
A Japanese woman who works for a community radio station in quake-hit Christchurch says its Japanese community is "finding it tough" following Friday's massive magnitude 9.0 earthquake in their homeland.
A second hydrogen explosion in three days rocked a Japanese nuclear reactor and fuel rods were left dangerously exposed at another unit, as authorities worked to avert any catastrophic release of radiation in the tsunami zone.
A tide of bodies has washed up along Japan's coastline, overwhelming crematoriums, exhausting supplies of body bags and adding to the spiralling humanitarian, economic and nuclear crisis after the massive earthquake and tsunami.
Yuko Jowsey was looking forward to flying to Sendai in June, but now the Dunedin woman is left wondering what remains of her Japanese hometown, and the friends she has been unable to contact.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) has been able to locate all but "a few" New Zealanders registered as living in the northeast Japan, which has been devastated by a massive earthquake.
More than 20 countries are braced for tsunamis following a massive earthquake that struck Japan.
The operator of a quake-stricken nuclear power plant in northeastern Japan says a third reactor has lost its cooling capacity, which could lead to overheating and an explosion similar to those that occurred at its other reactors.
Japan's northeastern coast was a swampy wasteland of broken houses, overturned cars, sludge and dirty water Saturday as the nation awoke to the devastating aftermath of one of its greatest disasters, a powerful tsunami created by one of the strongest earthquakes ever recorded.
Up to 20 New Zealanders are thought to be unaccounted for in quake-stricken areas of Japan, the New Zealand ambassador in Japan says.
Rescue workers used chainsaws and picks today to dig out bodies in Japan's devastated coastal towns, as the country faced a growing humanitarian, nuclear and economic crisis in the aftermath of a massive earthquake and tsunami.
Hiromitsu Shinkawa was pushed out to sea while he clung to the roof of his home after a tsunami swept away his wife. For two days, he drifted off Japan's northeastern coast, trying to get the attention of helicopters and ships that passed by - to no avail.
New Zealanders could face higher car and appliance prices as Japanese manufacturers yesterday stopped production in the wake of the earthquake and tsunami on Friday.
Japan's disaster had dealt another blow to New Zealand's economic recovery, BNZ senior economist Craig Ebert said yesterday.
Disasters in their homeland and adopted country have moved the Dunedin Japanese community into a fundraising effort this weekend.
Uranium producers and insurers were punished in Australia yesterday as investors reacted to Friday's earthquake and tsunami in Japan.
