Bah humbug — Invercargill’s Christmas street lights will glimmer for the final time this year as the council looks to cut costs.Invercargill City Council group manager infrastructure Erin Moogan said the decision was made at a recent meeting because the lights were now past their use-by date.“The current decorations are beginning to deteriorate and are reaching the end of their life,” she said.The council provided the community with Christmas trees, shimmer panels in Esk St and a range of festive flags and banners, Moogan noted.Those would continue as normal.Mayor Nobby Clark said the decision was based on keeping rates down as he aimed for increases to stay close to the rate of inflation.“To help keep the next rate increase low, from next year, I intend to encourage retailers and business owners in the CBD to do up their shop fronts with a Christmas theme,” Clark said.“By reducing our expenditure, I believe we can reduce our rates increase in the future.”Those wanting to enjoy Christmas lights in the city won’t be completely out of luck moving forward.A guide for locating houses lit up for the festive season is produced annually, sponsored by local businesses.LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air

Teenage Southland motorcyclist Cormac Buchanan has had to grow up quickly over the last couple of years and even more responsibility will fall on his young shoulders in 2025.The 18-year-old will become the first fulltime New Zealander rider in MotoGP since Simon Crafar in 1999.He has been racing in Europe for the last three years in junior competitions and has now signed with the Spanish Boe Motorsports team for the 2025 Moto3 Championship.Buchanan had either his mum or dad with him in Europe the last couple of years, but in 2025 he'll be on his own for the first time. That forced him to get his drivers licence a month ago."I've finally got my license so I don't need to be chauffeured around," Buchanan told RNZ."I was probably more nervous for the test than I was lining up on the race grid... it was pretty nerve-racking but delighted to be able to drive myself now."Not that he'll probably be on his own too much next year. He will be living with a couple of other riders at his base in Barcelona and will be away for most of the season with the 22 round championship raced in 18 different countries.The young man from Invercargill has been on motorbikes most of his life thanks to his father Stacey, who also raced.Cormac made the shift from dirt bikes to the road at the age of 12. He was too young to compete in New Zealand so headed to Australia to race at Phillip Island. It was there that he got hooked.Southland motorcyclist Cormac Buchanan competing in Europe, 2024. Photo: supplied / Manu TormoFrom 2021 to 2023 he raced in the Red Bull Rookies Cup and in 2023-24 competed in the Junior GP World Championship. This year he finished on the podium three times and finished fifth overall.Those results meant he could go into negotiation with Moto3 teams for a 2025 ride with confidence.However the competition for places on the first tier of world championship racing is intense."Results are the most important thing. Financially it's difficult as you have to pay a contract fee and it's very rarely that the first year you'll get a free ride."Thankfully my results this year were really good and that made it a lot easier."He now has a deal with Boe Motorsports to ride a KTM 250. Spaniard David Munoz finished fifth riding for the team in Moto3 in 2024 with the team sixth in the teams' standings.Moto3 is the smallest class in the motorbike world championship, powered by 250cc single-cylinder engines.It is a breeding ground for the top riders with the likes of Marc Marquez, Maverick Vinales, Joan Mir and Jorge Martin all winning Moto3 world titles on their way to MotoGP stardom."It's the next step in my career and where you have to be to to be a world champion," Buchanan said."This last season proved that we can be up there."I wouldn't say this is a dream come true because the dream is to become a MotoGP world champion and so this is a step closer to that dream."Motorcycle racers are generally small, Buchanan is 173cm tall and his racing weight is 58kg. He compares himself to a jockey."It's all about trying to be as light as possible, being strong and also having good endurance."The cardiovascular fitness is really important on those bikes because of the heat, so it's a fine balance between being light but strong."He had a couple of weeks off after his 2024 season, but is back into weight and cardio training and will allow himself an indulgence on Christmas day."I can't resist Nan's pavlova, but I need to be mindful, so I'll just have to go for a bike ride later in the day."Buchanan will head back to Europe in mid-January with pre-season testing in Portugal and Spain in February, while the season starts in Thailand on 2 March.One of his priorities next season is to make sure everyone knows he's from New Zealand."The Australian flag has been flown for me before so I now make sure to check that when I podium that the New Zealand flag is flown.... it peeves me off that people think I'm Australian."Buchanan never forgets about the people that have helped to get to where he is now."I think that the people it mattered most to had patience in me."My first year in Europe was really bad, finishing last in almost every race, but in this last season we were challenging for race wins."They gave me the environment to improve and my parents have sacrificed so much but we've always had a goal and they've been just as driven as me to try and get there."Published with permission

An ambitious project by the Fiordland Business Association (FBA) to establish much needed staff accommodation in Te Anau has stalled due to a lack of investor interest.The initiative, in conjunction with South Canterbury's Genius Homes, could have seen up to 30 - one to three bedroom - prefabricated homes erected on an Alpine Drive site in Te Anau as early as November 2024.However the proposal hinged on investors purchasing the finished and installed homes, valued at between $159,000 and $187,000, and paying their share of rental on the land for up to 20 years before being required to relocate them.The proposed FBA development would have seen 30 homes erected for staff accommodation.FBA chair Nathan Benfell said that while the response to the project had been encouraging, its viability had hinged on all 30 houses being purchased.In October Benfell said there had been investor interest from as far afield as Auckland and a show home on site had attracted "amazing numbers".However when the FBA made the call to postpone the project in December, Benfell could not say how many, if any, investors had actually signed up."We had some pretty tight timelines.""Maybe it was our timeline, or maybe the problem has corrected itself. I doubt it," Benfell said.“While it’s disappointing to pause the Fiordland Housing Project, we remain optimistic that this initiative could be reactivated in the future, either by the FBA, local authorities, or private enterprise."In April 2024 spokesperson Nathan Benfell explains a Fiordland Business Association proposal to help solve Fiordland's immediate worker accommodation crisis. Photo: The Southland AppBenfell said the project had however stimulated people to start thinking outside the square, with some businesses now opting to build their own staff housing while staff or transportable options where also now being offered by some local builders.The FBA is currently in the process of resurveying members to see whether there was still an accommodation problem and what it was about the original project that had not appealed, he said.

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Milford Road OPENNO Avalanche HazardWeather forecast for the Homer Tunnel area:Today: Cloud increasingTomorrow: ShowersSunday: ShowersMonday: Showers clearingTuesday: Cloud increasing

UPDATE: SH6 reopened at 6am, 20 Dec.One person is dead and two others critically injured after a crash involving two cars and a tour bus on SH6, north of Kingston this afternoon (19 Dec).Police have confirmed a person in one of the cars has died while two others have critical injuries.At least two people from the bus are reported to have serious injuries and a number of other people have moderate injuries.Emergency services responded to the serious crash on State Highway 6 (Kingston Road), near the intersection with Glen Nevis Station Road at 4.05pm.State Highway 6 north of Kingston is expected to remain closed for several hours, possibly until early morning (20 Dec).There is currently no way to travel north to Queenstown using SH6.If you must travel to Queenstown, you will need to divert via Gore/Raes Junction/Cromwell and across to Queenstown.Southland traffic heading north on SH6 are being stopped at Five Rivers to allow people to turn around if this is necessary.Motorists are urged to delay travel where possible.

Invercargill City Councillor Alex Crackett has announced today (18 Dec) that she will stand for Mayor of Invercargill in the 2025 Local Government Elections.The third term Councillor said she believed it was time for a change and she was excited and proud to put herself forward for the city's top job.Invercargill wanted a leader who reflects its people, Crackett said."Our community deserves a leader who represents the best of what Invercargill is and can be,” she said.“It’s time for a Mayor with energy, enthusiasm and experience. A Mayor who strengthens relationships with the entire community to make Invercargill the best place to live, do business, and raise a family,” she said.“After almost 10 years serving my community and advocating for our city and our people, I know that I can lead our elected councillors and tackle Invercargill’s biggest challenges.”Crackett currently co-chairs the Local Government New Zealand’s Young Elected Members Network, and also serves on its National Council.New Zealand's 2025 local boy elections will be held on Saturday 11th October 2025.

Two paddocks of decaying cars near an Invercargill river have been described as an “eyesore” by the city’s mayor.But the council is limited in what it can do about the site, admitting rules it introduced cannot be applied in retrospect.On Invercargill’s Bay Rd, just a stone's throw from the Waihōpai River, long grass surrounds hundreds of cars.Wrecks piled up near the banks of Invercargill's Waihōpai River. Photo: Southland AppMany have smashed or missing glass, while some have plants growing inside them.Invercargill mayor Nobby Clark said people had come to him with concerns about leaks, corrosives and oils coming from the old vehicles.“I don’t particularly like it, I think it’s an absolute eyesore. We’ve got to have a better way of disposing of old cars,” he said.Clark believed part of the reason the cars were still sitting there was because the price of scrap metal wasn’t high enough to justify removing them.“That’s not the only one we’ve got around town, we’ve got two or three others as well.”Local Democracy Reporting understands there are as many as 80 sites around Southland where cars are being hoarded.In response to questions, Invercargill City Council said the Bay Rd property was legitimately set-up for vehicle storage and had existing use rights.Changes to the district plan in 2019 allowed for greater control over such sites, but the rules could not be applied retrospectively, council group manager consenting and environment Jonathan Shaw said.“Because of the existing use rights, council has limited ability to ask that the cars be removed so long as they are on private property,” Shaw said.A decrepit van surrounded by long grass is just one of many vehicles sitting neglected in a field near the Waihōpai River. Photo: Matthew Rosenberg/LDRAny proposal to carry out an activity similar to that at Bay Rd would now require resource consent, and standards for having cars set back from the boundary would also come into play.The property had been visited by the council’s environmental compliance team “on several occasions”, he said.The team also kept an eye on the area for overgrowth and vermin control.Environment Southland resource management manager Donna Ferguson said while the regional council was not currently doing routine monitoring on car storage sites, it had regular contact with the city council about the Bay Rd site.The privately-owned land was on its Hazardous Activities and Industries List register, which includes sites that have possible contamination.Potential environmental risks included fluid from vehicles ending up in groundwater or in stormwater drains, Ferguson said.Local Democracy Reporting spoke to the owner, who only gave his name as Bernie.The man runs a car wrecking business in Invercargill, but said he did not know how long the cars had been stored there.Asked if he had environmental concerns, he believed those started with the road and “people driving down it daily”.There was no regular contact with the council about the area, and rats had been in the river for the last few hundred years, he said.The site was last monitored by Invercargill City Council in 2021 alongside Fire and Emergency New Zealand and Environment Southland.LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air

Southlander Robin McNeill MNZM has been awarded the inaugural Prime Minister’s Space Prize for Professional Excellence at a ceremony held in Parliament House today (17 Dec).The award, which includes $100,000, is one of two recently established by the Government to recognise people working in New Zealand's space and advanced aviation sectors and those inspiring young peopleInvercargill MP Penny Simmonds congratulated McNeill on his award and said it was not only a big moment for the SpaceOps New Zealand founder and chief executive but also huge for both Southland and the space industry in the province."It highlights how passion, innovation, and a future vision can achieve great things anywhere in New Zealand," Simmonds said.“I congratulate Robin on this wonderful accolade.""His passion and enthusiasm, and his commitment over many years, has undoubtedly had a huge impact on the space sector in this province and around the country."SpaceOps New Zealand founder and chief executive Robin McNeill MNZM, of Invercargill, and Invercargill MP Penny Simmonds, at the presentation of the inaugural Prime Minister’s Space Prize for Professional Excellence, at Parliament on Tuesday night. Photo: Supplied“Robin has quietly gone about achieving some amazing developments for New Zealand’s space industry, at the same time sharing his knowledge and skills with students and those interested in space across the South, and across the country."“He has played a critical role in deepening New Zealand’s space relationship with the European Space Agency.""This relationship has also included scholarships and other benefits to Southland students, one of which was the Kepler Space Camp for 70 local students."SpaceOps New Zealand 's collaboration with Great South’s “Youth Futures” programme has seen a doubling of Invercargill Year 13 physics students.McNeill has also designed and built ground stations in Antarctica, Tokelau and Southland.“With Sir Peter Beck, of Rocket Lab, originally from Southland and now Robyn McNeill blazing a 'space trail' for Southland, it’s easy to understand McNeill’s [acceptance speech] comments, where he said that within overseas space circles Invercargill is better known than Wellington,” Simmonds said.The Prime Minister’s Space Prize for Student Endeavour were also announced today and jointly shared by Cairo Akehurst, a Year 12 student at Christchurch’s Cashmere High School and Tianyi Mathur, a Year 13 at Wellington’s Scots College.Akehurst's research project involved improving the accuracy of satellite data to track methane emissions through a unique innovative approach, while Mathur’s project focused on how cells communicate with each other to create organised patterns.

Hello fellow pie lovers, Tommy’s Tummy here!I finally found time to check out Fat Bastard’s pie by popular request, and it’s time to share what Tommy’s Tummy thinks of your recommendation.To start, I did try the pie of the month, but to keep things standard across the board, let’s begin with a good old mince and cheese classic—a staple for any summer roadie.Puff pastry is one of my favourite things in the world: its walnut colour, buttery, melt-in-your-mouth feel, and how well it holds together with every bite.So, how did it hold up?Not bad at all, to be fair.The colour was great, the flavour was satisfying, but it didn’t quite hold together like I’d hoped.This isn’t really a pie for eating while driving.The top layer had a great puff—maybe the second layer too—but that left a giant gap to be filled.And yes, it was filled with air, which then descended into a layer of wet and doughy pastry.But is that really a bad thing?Visually, no! It looks like a pie chock-full of meaty goodness.But in today’s case, it was an illusion.The bottom pastry, however, looked and tasted great. It held its shape beautifully and didn’t fold like wet paper once the structure was compromised.That said, it was a little thick and raw in places, especially around the edges where the pastry had been pressed into the tin before filling.Now, I’m not gonna lie—once you look past the illusion of a large pie and understand the puff pastry trick (how it hides the pie’s centre like a beautifully wrapped Christmas present from an aunt you’ve never met), the reality begins to show.Beneath that flaky lid, you realize it’s mostly bubble wrap.That being said, the mince filling itself is quite delightful.A touch heavy on the caramel colouring for my liking, but it’s still tasty.The best part? They didn’t skimp on the cheese—there’s some in almost every bite.I can see why this is a popular pie. It’s visually appealing, which is always a bonus, and all the elements are there to bring it together.But how does it stack up on the Tommy’s Tummy scale?It’s a solid 6/10. For me, this was an average pie.It didn’t excite me the way others have. I feel like the name and brand might outweigh the pies themselves.While I tried the pie of the month, I’d say the mince and cheese classic is the better choice overall.

Invercargill City Council has dismissed the views of both mana whenua and a community board in making a decision on Bluff’s wastewater.On Tuesday, councillors voted to proceed with an application for a short-term consent which would allow the small town’s wastewater to continue under current conditions for a further two years.In doing so, it opted against passing waste through a naturalistic wetland en-route to the ocean — a change which was recommended by a working group, and backed by Awarua Rūnaka, Te Ao Mārama and the Bluff Community Board.Councillors discussed the issue for almost two hours in a workshop on Tuesday morning before moving to full council where the decision was made.It follows months of meetings to explore different options, and more than a year’s worth of work by a technical working group.A major factor in the decision was the government’s indication it hoped to reduce costs for councils through new RMA framework.That meant making a change to the current set-up could prove a more expensive option.Waihōpai Rūnaka representative Evelyn Cook noted Awarua Rūnaka had already compromised by supporting the option to discharge waste to the ocean via a wetland.The rūnaka’s preference was for full land-based discharge, but it had conceded based on cost.“Waihopai supports the aspirations of Awarua Rūnaka and the Bluff Community Board for the wastewater discharge, recognising that they have compromised what their ideal outcome will have been,” Cook said.Bluff Community Board chair Ray Fife reiterated his group’s preference for the wetland option, saying it provided more certainty.“The longer you drag stuff out these days, the more expensive it gets day by day,” he said.Councillor Darren Ludlow said good decision making was based on what was known, while Ian Pottinger spoke to financials, saying the wetland approach fit within long term plan budgets.But the decision to continue with the current arrangement for a further two years was ultimately sealed, eight votes to four.Councillor Alex Crackett believed the government would make good on pushing the legislation through, while Grant Dermody said he was confident the bill would arrive at a clear regulatory environment which would improve environmental outcomes.The pair were joined in voting for the status quo by mayor Nobby Clark, deputy mayor Tom Campbell, Allan Arnold, Barry Stewart, Steve Broad and Trish Boyle.Those who preferred the wetland option were Ian Pottinger, Darren Ludlow, Lesley Soper and Ria Bond.Invercargill City Council’s mana whenua representatives were not able to vote because the decision was made at full council level, not committee.The Bluff Wastewater Treatment Plant — built in 2000 — will continue to be used regardless of Tuesday’s decision, as will the discharge pipe into Foveaux Strait.New discharge standards are set to become legislation in August 2025, but two new pieces of RMA legislation won’t take effect until 2026, a council report noted.Bluff's existing wastewater consent is set to expire in December 2025.LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air

UPDATED: SH1 reopens (6.57pm, 17 Dec)A fire has closed State Highway 1 near Edendale.The highway is closed at the top of the Edendale Hill, between St Ronans Road and Scenic Reserve Road.Motorists are asked to delay their journey or consider an alternate route.

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Milford Road OPENNO Avalanche HazardWeather forecast for the Homer Tunnel area:Today: FineTomorrow: FineThursday: CloudyFriday: Occasional rainSaturday: Occasional rain

Small locusts hop among the dry leaves at the bottom of the zoo enclosure. They're a snack for one of New Zealand's special reptiles.Or they're supposed to be. The unimpressed snacker, a tuatara, ignores the locusts."He's used to much bigger ones" says Chye-Mei Huang, Auckland Zoo ectotherm keeper.Chye-Mei is responsible for looking after the cold-blooded animals, more technically known as ectotherms. These are animals whose regulation of body temperature depends on external sources, such as sunlight or a heated rock surface. And that includes the oddball New Zealand native, the tuatara.Life in the slow lane"A lot of people often ask us if they're real because they do spend a lot of time sort of sitting around and resting. If they don't need to do anything they won't, which I think is quite sensible of them," says Chye-Mei.Eating and keeping their body temperature just right are a tuatara's two main occupations."Most of the time when you see them moving around, they'll be heading towards a basking spot." When they get too warm, they'll retreat into their burrows.Tuatara are adapted to cooler climates. They are active at body temperatures from around 5°C to 30°C.They are also long lived. In captivity, they can live to more than 100 years in age. Henry, one of the Southland Museum's resident tuatara in Invercargill, is estimated to be over 100 years old, possibly as old as 130 years.Tuatara are the only remaining species of an ancient order of reptiles. The others died out 65 million years ago, in the extinction event that also wiped out the dinosaurs. And it seems that tuatara have changed little since that time, which means they often get given the nickname 'living fossils'.Henry the tuatara at Southland Museum in 2018. Photo: Ellen RykersWhen humans arrived in Aotearoa, tuatara came under intense pressure - in particular from predation by rats. They became extinct on mainland Aotearoa, while some survived on a few offshore islands.Where are the tuatara now?Tuatara persisted on 32 offshore islands. Since 1995, as part of a conservation plan to have back-up populations, they've have been translocated to some other islands and five mainland fenced sanctuaries, bringing the number of populations to 47.A tuatara at Auckland Zoo. Photo: Claire Concannon / RNZThe vast majority of wild tuatara are found on Takapourewa Stephens Island, at the tip of the Marlborough Sounds. It was from here that 70 tuatara were translocated in 2005, gifted by their kaitiaki Ngāti Koata to Zealandia ecosanctuary in Wellington.Despite concerns about the presence of mice, the translocation worked. The tuatara thrived and began breeding. Today, tuatara are found on the mainland in fenced ecosanctuaries that span the country - Zealandia in Wellington, Orokonui in Dunedin, Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari in the Waikato, Cape Sanctuary in Hawke's Bay and Te Kurī a Paoa Young Nick's Head just south of Gisborne.It's these ecosanctuaries that University of Auckland PhD candidate Cam Hoffbeck has been travelling to for her research field work.The tuatara gut microbiomeWhile tuatara are interesting creatures by themselves, it's the interaction between these prehistoric-looking reptiles and the community of bacteria that live inside them that fascinates Cam.Just like our gut microbiome, microbes living in a tuatara's tum help them digest their food and keep them healthy and well. Cam was curious: had the tuatara microbiome changed significantly between the those in the wild on Takapourewa and those in ecosanctuaries and zoos?Surprisingly, the types of microbes weren't different between island and mainland tuatara. There was, however, a statistically significant difference in the relative abundance of different bacteria, albeit a small effect.This is the first time the tuatara microbiome had been investigated. In the absence of any other information, Cam says, "it's reassuring that our current conservation practices aren't interfering with the tuatara gut too much."A change in diet didn't seem to disrupt this stable bacterial community either. When Cam put several captive tuatara on a four-week diet of crickets alone, she didn't see much of a shift. Maybe their gut bacteria also choose to live in the slow lane.While a tuatara 'stool' sample would be the best material for her to work on, turns out tuatara don't poo all that often. Instead, Cam uses cloacal swabs. (The cloaca is the shared reproductive and excretory opening in reptiles and birds.) She uses DNA sequencing techniques to look for different bacteria and their quantities in these swabs.Cam Hoffbeck, PhD candidate, at the Auckland Zoo tuatara display. Photo: Claire Concannon / RNZWhat she finds is very different to human or other mammals' gut bacteria - which you'd expect for a reptile. But the tuatara microbiome also looks quite different compared to other reptiles too."Their closest living relatives would be the squamates - so that's things like skinks and geckos and snakes - but it didn't even look remotely similar to those. There's basically a completely different set of dominant bacteria occurring in the tuatara gut," she says.Working with the Zealandia population of tuatara, Cam has investigated seasonal changes in tuatara gut bugs. Generally slow in nature, tuatara take things to the next level in winter, going into a state of torpor - effectively a temporary hibernation.As tuatara move into summer, the microbiome shifts, suggesting that seasonal changes in temperature might have a role to play.Future investigations will look deeper into this microbiome summer seasonal change and focus in on the functions of some of the bacteria.

This includes work from 14th December until 11th January.ROAD CLOSURES:SH99 Riverton Christmas Parade:SH99 Palmerston St Riverton, Christmas Eve 24th December, road closure between 6pm and 9pmSH1 East Road resurfacingSH1 East Road between Mill Road North and Ascot roundabout, 6th and 7th January, road closure between 7am and 6pm Traffic will be detoured via Mill Road North, Findlay Road, Racecourse Road – open to light and heavy vehicles.SH1 Tay St & SH6 Dee St resurfacingUpcoming closure from 12th January (night-time only) for asphalt resurfacingHighways South work with temporary traffic lights or stop/go and temporary speed limits next week and the week of 6th January:SH1 Clyde St near Nith St for watercuttingSH1 Bluff highway near Avon Road for watercuttingSH1 Bluff highway near Motu Rimu Road for watercuttingSH1 Bluff highway near Elles Road roundabout for watercuttingSH1 Bluff highway near Greenpoint for watercuttingSH1 Bluff highway near Awarua for watercuttingSH1 East Road Invercargill, road closure for surfacing (as above)SH6 Great North Road Winton near Dejoux Road for watercuttingSH6 Winton-Lorneville highway near Wilson's Crossing Road for watercuttingSH6 Winton-Lorneville highway near Breeze Road for watercuttingSH6 Winton-Lorneville highway near Pomona Road for watercuttingSH6 Winton-Lorneville highway near Wilson's Crossing Road for pavement repairSH6 Lumsden, stop/go for resurfacingSH6 Lumsden-Dipton highway north of Caroline for watercuttingSH6 near the Jollies hill for pavement renewalSH6 Five Rivers-Lumsden highway north of Lumsden for watercuttingSH6 Five Rivers-Lumsden highway north of Lumsden for pavement repairSH93 Old Coach Road at Waikana Road for resurfacingSH94 Waimea highway between Otamita and Croydon Bush for resurfacingSH97 Mossburn-Five Rivers Road near Acton Downs Road for pavement repair SH97 Mossburn-Five Rivers Road near Diack Road for pavement repairSH94 Waimea highway near Mandeville for pavement repairSH94 Waimea highway between Hatfield and Otamita Roads for resurfacingSH99 High St Riverton for watercuttingSH99 Tuatapere-Orepuki highway near Te Tua Road for watercuttingSH99 Tuatapere-Orepuki highway near McInerney Road for watercuttingSH99 Tuatapere-Orepuki highway south of Tuatapere for watercuttingSH99 Tuatapere-Orepuki highway at Te Waewae for watercuttingSH99 Tuatapere-Orepuki highway near Block Road for watercuttingSH99 Tuatapere-Orepuki highway near McInerney Road for watercuttingThird party work and events with traffic management in place next week and the week of 6th January:SH1 Tay St, turning restrictions for watermain renewalSH1 Clyde St/Tweed St Invercargill, lane drop and roundabout access restrictions for watermain renewalSH1 Edendale-Woodlands highway at the Dacre Morton Mains intersection, stop/go for resurfacingSH94 Waimea highway, stop/go for culvert replacementSH94 Mossburn, stop/stop for tree fellingSH95 Manapouri-Te Anau highway at Manapouri, stop/go for trenchingSH99 Wallacetown Lorneville highway, stop/go for crane operationsSH99 Palmerston St Riverton, road closure for parade (as above)Upcoming work/eventsFrom January 12th – March Night-time (6pm – 6am) road closures of SH1 Tay St and SH6 Dee St for inner city Invercargill asphalt renewalJanuary – SH94 between Riversdale and Mandeville, resurfacingFebruary – SH96 Glencoe, pavement renewalFebruary – SH1 Bluff highway, pavement renewalUseful links:NZTA Journeys website - https://www.journeys.nzta.govt.nz/journey-plannerFreight Impact Register - https://www.nzta.govt.nz/commercial-driving/trucks-and-tow-trucks/potential-restrictions-affecting-freight/ - download and filter the region for ‘Southland’. This will indicate any upcoming work in the next fortnight which have closures, detours or width restrictions for freight.Drive safely.

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A Fiordland College team are the winners of the National Get2Go championships held in the Tongariro National Park last week.The 5-day competition was attended by 12 New Zealand schools, 8 from the North Island and 4 from the South Island. To qualify for the finals, the teams had to win the regional champs in their area. Fiordland College team defeated 23 other schools from Otago and Southland to become the winner of this year’s Regionals held in Dunedin in September.Team Fiordland on Day 1, filling a barrel with water from a distance - without touching it. Photo: SuppliedLast week Jemima Hoskin, Libby Fox, Riley Carter, Keaton Smith, Jazz Braaksma, Ianthe Macmillan-Armstrong, Quinn Moffat and Jack Williams donned the team Fiordland’s bright red T-shirts to represent their school and their region against the very best adventure teams from around the country.Coach, Fiordland College Deputy Principal, Shaun Cantwell is very proud of his team.“We won the Regionals 8 times over the last 10-15 years, but this is the first time we won the Nationals,” he said.Get2Go is an adventure outdoor education challenge for Year 9 and Year 10 school students. Organised by the Hillary Outdoors, the Get2Go challenges combine activities such as orienteering, kayaking, stand-up paddling, mountain biking, climbing and problem solving, into an action-packed week.The first two days of this year’s Nationals included a set of challenges on high ropes and climbing wall, some problem-solving challenges and at the end of the day each team had to prepare a skit and a chant. Day 3 involved mountain biking and kayaking, followed on day 4 by a Rogaine (an orienteering event) and on day 5 by mountain biking and kayaking.Asked about preparing for the event, Cantwell said that the team trained for 8 weeks, 3 times per week.“The main challenge for me was to find time to train without affecting members’ other activities. All team members are involved in different extracurricular activities, such as sports and various clubs. I had to make sure that training did not detract from their other commitments,” the coach said.As the trainer of the New Zealand Orienteering team and a long-time athletics and mountain running coach at the national level, Cantwell was well prepared for this challenge.Five of the team were at the 2023 Get2Go Nationals, where they finished in the 9th place.Team Fiordland competing in a high ropes challenge. Photo: SuppliedYear 10 student, Quinn Moffat puts his team’s winning performance this year down to team strength and tolerance. He found the Rogaine quite challenging, but said that it helped to have New Zealand’s best orienteer, Jemima Hoskin, on the team.He enjoyed every aspect of the event, particularly problem solving and teamwork, and for him “winning was a surreal feeling”.At 15, Jemima Hoskin, is already an international orienteering star, having represented New Zealand at orienteering championships in Australia last year. She believes that having done the Get2Go last year gave her and other team members an advantage.“We had another year to train and knew what to expect. At the end of day 3 the New Plymouth team was winning, and we were second, but after the Rogaine we were way ahead of other teams,” she said.“Our team was very strong on biking. We had some really good mountain bikers. One of the challenges was to ride across a very long plank and we did well in this.”It’s of no surprise that Jemima enjoyed the orienteering.Team Fiordland. Photo: Supplied“I really liked the Rogaine, reading the map, leading the team, navigating between check points,” she said.The Fiordland eight were very happy to have won the event. Tears of happiness were flowing when they were announced champions.“We were so proud, that we wore our medals for 8 hours! It showed that a team from a small school like ours could win such a big event,” Jemima said.The team is very grateful to the local community for sponsoring their trip, with generous contribution from the Rotary Club of Fiordland, Fiordland Community Board, The Grace Place, Syd Slee Charitable Trust, Kepler Challenge and Luxmore Grunt Mountain Run, Fiordland Endurance & Adventure Racing Society, and FreshChoice Te Anau.

Milford Road OPENNO Avalanche HazardNo delays expected over the next several days.Weather forecast for the Homer Tunnel area:Today: Showers turning to rain.Tomorrow: Overnight heavy rain easing.Sunday: Showers.Monday: Mainly fine.Tuesday: Fine