NZ Engine

Source: Radio New Zealand

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Here is the full list of everyone receiving a 2026 New Year Honour:

Dame Companions of the New Zealand Order of Merit (DNZM):

DANESH-MEYER, Professor Helen Victoria, CNZM – for services to ophthalmology

SHAW, Coral May – for services to public service, the judiciary and the community

SPOTSWOOD, Dorothy Myrtle – for services to philanthropy

Knight Companions of the New Zealand Order of Merit (KNZM):

DIXON, Scott Ronald Glyndwr, CNZM – for services to motorsport

DRURY, Rodney Kenneth (Rod) – for services to business, the technology industry and philanthropy

LE GROS, Professor Graham Stephen, CNZM – for services to medical science

PARKIN, Christopher Wilton (Chris), CNZM – for services to philanthropy and the arts

Companions of the New Zealand Order of Merit (CNZM):

BARCLAY, Gregor John (Greg) – for services to sports governance

BATEUP, Neil Frank, ONZM – for services to the rural sector

COMER, Leith Pirika, QSO – for services to Māori, governance and education

DE VILLIERS, Professor Charl Johannes – for services to accountancy

HAYWARD, Dr Bruce William, MNZM – for services to geology, particularly micropaleontology

LAWTON, Professor Beverley-Anne (Bev), ONZM – for services to women’s health

MARTIN, Distinguished Professor Gaven John – for services to mathematics and education

MOUGHAN, Distinguished Professor Paul James – for services to science

QUINN, Anthony Zan (Tony) – for services to motorsport and the community

ROA, Professor Thomas Charles (Tom), JP – for services to Māori language and education

TAULELEI, Rachel Emere, MNZM – for services to business, Māori and governance

TROTT, Donald Stanley Mackintosh, ONZM, JP – for services to opera

Officers of the New Zealand Order of Merit (ONZM):

ALLAN, Reverend Dr Patricia Ann – for services to survivors of abuse

CARR, Graham – for services to the deer industry and the community

CORNER, Matthew David (David) – for services to people with intellectual and learning disabilities

COWAN, Christina (Chrissie) – for services to Māori, particularly blind and low vision people

DAVIES, Brian Rex – for services to motorsport

DIXON, Rodney Phillip Mathew (Rod) – for services to athletics

DOWNING, Lloyd Walker – for services to agriculture and governance

EGAN, Anthony Richard (Tony) – for services to the agricultural industry and the community

ESPINER, Deborah Ann – for services to people with disabilities and education

GARDINER, Ian Donald – for services to the communications industry and mountain safety

GERMANN, Stewart Lloyd – for services to franchise law

GREENWOOD, Neville Charles – for services to the sheep industry

HAMILTON, Judith Helen – for services to rowing

HARMAN, Richard Michael Arthur – for services to journalism and broadcasting

HART, Julie Anne – for services to women and victims of family violence

HARTNETT, Frances Margaret (Fran) – for services to people with disabilities

HAZLEHURST, Sandra Glenis – for services to local government

HETARAKA, Te Warihi Kokowai – for services to Māori and art

HODDER, Jack Edward, KC – for services to the law

HOOPER, Shirley Gail – for services to netball and artistic swimming

HOTERENE, Waihoroi Paraone (Waihoroi Shortland) – for services to Māori and Māori language education

LLOYD, Lynley Elizabeth (Lyn) – for services to renal nutrition

MACFARLANE, Andrew Webster (Andy) – for services to the deer industry

MACLEOD, Professor Roderick Duncan (Rod), MNZM – for services to palliative care

MILLER, James Bruce – for services to corporate governance

MOLLER, Lorraine Mary, MBE – for services to athletics

MUELLER, Professor Dr Jens Helmut Friedrich, MNZM – for services to education

PORTER, Suzanne Jane – for services to the arts and event management

POTTER, Iain George – for services to sport and health

POWELL, Tenby George Bolland, ED – for services to business, governance and humanitarian aid

RITCHIE, Karen (Karen née Campbell) – for services to people with HIV/AIDS and Rainbow communities

ROBINSON, Cecilia Charlotte Louise – for services to business and women

SAEID, Dr Mohammad Arif (Arif) – for services to refugees and youth

SMITH, Valerie Christine (Val) – for services to outdoor bowls

WRIGHT, Paul Bertram – for services to the real estate industry and philanthropy

Members of the New Zealand Order of Merit (MNZM:

BURGESS, Kevin John – for services to governance, the community and sport

CHISHOLM, Donna Elise – for services to journalism

CLARKE, Eroni – for services to the Pacific community and rugby

CULLEN, Peter John – for services to law, governance and youth

DIXON, Rosemary Helen – for services to schools debating

DRUMMOND, Roger Bruce Douglas – for services to rugby and Māori

DYNES, Dr Robyn Ann – for services to agricultural science

EADE, Dr Lorraine Shirley (Lorr) – for services to Māori, governance and the community

EDGAR, Judene Louise, JP – for services to governance, local government and the community

EYNON-RICHARDS, Jane Frances, JP – for services to the community

FARRAR, Jade Carlo – for services to people with disabilities and the Pacific community

FORRESTER, Beverley Riverina – for services to the wool and fashion industries

FRASER, Deborah Kaye (Deb Fraser-Komene) – for services to mental health and youth

GEDDES, Donald George (Don) – for services to Fire and Emergency New Zealand, Land Search and Rescue and the community

GILLIES, Malcolm John – for services to business

GUPTILL, Martin James – for services to cricket

HADLEE, Martin John – for services to the community

HARRINGTON, Janine Michelle – for services to education

HARRISON, David John – for services to the insurance industry and the community

HOBBS, John Gordon (Jack) – for services to horticulture

HOBBS, Susan (Sue) – for services to people with disabilities

HOPE, Gerald Anthony – for services to local government, business and the community

JOHANSEN, Kāren Eirene, JP – for services to education and human rights

KENNETT, Richard William, JP – for services to conservation and Search and Rescue

KERR, Jillian Anne (Jill) – for services to choral music and music education

KING, Dr Murray Alexander – for services to transport, logistics and railway heritage

LIMACHER, Mark Henri – for services as a restaurateur and to the hospitality industry

MAFILE’O, Professor Tracie Ailong – for services to Pacific and tertiary education

MASKELL, Terence Ronald – for services to choral music

MCARTHUR, Nichola Rosemary (Nicky) – for services to conservation and the community

MCKEE, Malcolm Ian – for services to sport

MCMILLAN, Dawn Mary – for services to children’s literature

MILFORD, Katharine Eleanor (Kate) – for services to people with aphasia

NAHU, Jennifer Louise (Jenny) – for services to rugby league

NAPIER, Vivien Lewanna (Viv), JP – for services to local government and the community

NEVILLE, Dr Stephen John – for services to gerontology research and seniors

NIELSEN, Kevin – for services to the community and people with disabilities

OLIVER, Dr Caroline Ann – for services to cancer research and the community

PARATA, Hori Te Moanaroa – for services to conservation and Māori

PASLEY, Alexandra Anne (Sandy) – for services to education

PLUCK, David Stephen – for services to education

POKAIA, Andrew Ruawhitu (Pāpā Ruawhitu) – for services to Māori and education

POOLE, Gaye Annette – for services to the performing arts and education

POULTER, Ian Douglas – for services to education

POWAR, Ravinder Singh, JP – for services to ethnic communities

ROBINSON, John Dempster – for services to orienteering

ROBINSON, Valerie Jean – for services to orienteering

ROUGHAN, John Francis – for services to journalism and the community

SAEID, Dr Fahima – for services to refugees

SHALDERS, Bruce Douglas – for services to railway heritage

SMITH, Leighton Irwin – for services to broadcasting

SMITH, Mokafetu (Matafetu) – for services to Pacific art

STIRLING, Arihia Amiria, QSM, JP – for services to education and Māori

STOCKLEY, Professor Andrew Peter – for services to schools debating

TAN, Dr Audrey Melanie – for services to mathematics education

THOMPSON, Gail Henrietta Maria – for services to Māori and conservation

TUTEAO, Helena Audrey – for services to people with disabilities and Māori

WATTS, Senior Constable Grant William – for services to the New Zealand Police and youth

WELCH, William Ian (Ian) – for services to rail heritage

WHITING, Elizabeth Robyn – for services to costume design

WHITTLE, Gary Selwyn – for services to rugby league

WICKENS, Sarah Jane – for services to business

ZINTL, Shirley Jane (Jane) – for services to youth

Companions of the King’s Service Order (KSO):

HARAWIRA, Mark Joseph (Joe) – for services to Māori education, arts and conservation

NICKELS, Kerry Ann – for services to the Red Cross

The King’s Service Medal (KSM)

ANGLAND, Carol – for services to the community and theatre

BIGHAM, Bonita Joanne – for services to local government and Māori

BRENSSELL, Douglas James – for services to the community

BRUCE, Robyn Ann – for services to youth and sport

BURGESS, John Randall (JR) – for services to the community

BURGESS, Marin – for services to heritage preservation and education

CALDWELL, Emily Myra (Myra) – for services to the community and music

CARR, Marjorie Eleanor – for services to netball and the community

CLAUSEN, Lloyd Bertram, MStJ – for services to Fire and Emergency New Zealand and the community

COOKE, Edwin Frederick Ruthven (Ed) – for services to music

COOKE, Juliet Anne – for services to music

COOPER, Helen Rose – for services to the community

CRAIG, Richard John – for services to the Coastguard

DINNINGTON, Anneke Jacoba – for services to seniors and the community

DRAKE, David Alyn – for services to the community

EADEN, John Matthew – for services to the arts

ELLIOT, Graeme Leslie – for services to the community and outdoor recreation

ELLIS, Marion Kennedy – for services to hockey

FLETCHER, Elizabeth Mary (Libby) – for services to the community, particularly wastewater advocacy

FULLER, William Robert, JP – for services to the community

GAMBITSIS, Leonidas Angelos (Leo) – for services to the Greek community

GOUDIE, Trevor James – for services to theatre and the community

GRANTHAM, Jocelyn Mary – for services to education and the community

GUNDRY, Sheridan Isobel Patrice – for services to historical research and heritage preservation

HARRIS, Paul David, JP – for services to Fire and Emergency New Zealand and the community

HENRY, Elizabeth Janet (Liz) – for services to the community and sport

JURLINA, David John – for services to rugby and the community

JURLINA, Nada Linda – for services to rugby and the community

KAUR, Gurpreet – for services to the Indian community

KNOWLES, Barbara Joy, JP – for services to the community and to Members of Parliament

MAUNDER, Peter Alan – for services to athletics

MAUNDER, Sylvia Mary Joyce – for services to athletics

MILLS, Laurie Owen – for services to theatre

MISTRY, Mohan Durlabh – for services to the Indian community

MYER, Gordon Leonard, JP – for services to the community

NICHOLAS, Aere Anne, JP – for services to the community

O’ROURKE, Patrick Gerard – for services to Fire and Emergency New Zealand and the community

PINFOLD, Dr Tania Anne – for services to youth health

POLIMA, Enatuleni Ikitoa (Ena) – for services to the Niuean community

ROBERTSON, Jacqueline (Jackie) – for services to science education

SCOTT, Stanley Donald (Don) – for services to Fire and Emergency New Zealand and civil defence

SHARP, Christopher (Chris) – for services to Search and Rescue and outdoor recreation

SHAW, Ruth Philliss – for services to conservation

SINCLAIR, Dr Leonie Kaye – for services to health

SINGH, Harjinder (Harjinder Singh Basiala), JP – for services to the Punjabi community

SMITH, Brian Douglas – for services to rowing

TALAMAIVAO, Cheryl (Sailauama Cheryl), JP – for services to the Pacific community and education

TOLEAFOA, The Reverend Wayne Saunoa Moegagogo, JP – for services to Pacific communities

TOMS, Paul Gregory (Tomsie) – for services to Fire and Emergency New Zealand and football

TROW, Russel Walter – for services to wildlife conservation

TROW, Teresa Anne (Tee) – for services to wildlife conservation

USHER, Jonathan – for services to the community and entertainment

VAN DE RHEEDE, Norma-Jean, JP – for services to the community

WATTS, Ian Arthur – for services to Land Search and Rescue

WHEELER, Henry Joseph – for services to Fire and Emergency New Zealand and the community

WHYTE, Delano Shane De Graffe (Del) – for services to sport and the community

WILSON, Isabella (Ella) – for services to the community and theatre

The New Zealand Distinguished Service Decoration (DSD)

BROWN, Commodore Andrew Gilchrist – for services to the New Zealand Defence Force

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Much of the country is in for another rainy day on Wednesday, after severe wind and rain battered the North Island and upper South Island.

Tuesday’s wild weather downed trees and powerlines, causing road closures and widespread power cuts.

MetService meteorologist Alec Holden said a calmer day was in store, but showers were still forecast for both islands.

“It does look like they could be quite heavy in localised areas all the way up from Northland in a seatbelt down through the spine of the North Island all the way to the bottom of the North Island.”

A heavy rain warning is in place for the ranges of Tasman District west of Motueka from 6am Wednesday, heading into Thursday. Thunderstorms are also possible.

MetService predicted 100-130 mm of rain for the region, with peak rates of 10-25 mm/h on Wednesday morning, and again from Wednesday night.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Te Arawa Lakes Trust and local councils are banding together in the battle against invasive gold clams.

The trust is worried about the lakes in its area and the boaties coming to use them.

A hui at Lake Ōkāreka has resolved to stand up volunteers at boat ramps at several lakes to guide and greet visitors and help make sure boaties are playing their part.

The volunteers will not, the trust says, be restricting access.

“We’re not saying saying to anybody, look, you can’t come onto the lakes,” Te Arawa Lakes Trust chairperson said.

He said volunteers would help ask if boats were clean and if they had been on the Waikato River.

That’s where there is now a large stretch of the clams, after they were first found in May 2023 at Lake Karāpiro.

They have since been found elsewhere – in November at Lake Rotomanu in New Plymouth, which was then drained.

The find prompted a warning for boaties on the Whanganui River.

Adam Hartland has written for The Conversation about why the clams pose such a danger.

It’s all hugely concerning for Te Arawa Lakes Trust which oversees 14 lakes in the Rotorua area.

“Given the significant number of boats that come into our area we have decided to be proactive to prevent any carriage of this invasive species into our lakes, because the impact is quite significant,” Haumaha said.

Lake Ōkāreka, where the hui was held, has a number of boats taking to it for wakeboarding, water-skiing and other recreation activities, he said.

The meeting was between the Trust, Bay of Plenty Regional Council, Rotorua Lakes Council with government minister Todd McClay also in attendance.

The councils will be pitching in, Haumaha said.

“So we decided that, you know, this is about a community action… this is about the future of our lakes and protection of our waterways.”

On the lake having to be drained in New Plymouth, “God forbid we ever have to do that here in Rotorua,” he said.

Volunteers will be put at boat ramps to tell people of the importance of checking their boats and cleaning and drying them before coming onto the water.

Boaties will also be asked if they have been on Waikato River.

“We’re not saying to anybody, look you can’t come onto the lakes,” he said.

Haumaha said the area’s lakes were pristine and needed to be safeguarded for future generations.

He also urged arriving boaties to be kind to volunteers.

“People have just come out of the woodwork ready to step up, to make sure that they can stand alongside everyone for the protection of our lakes over the Summer period.”

A roster will be drawn up for volunteers.

He said 11 lakes that are used by boaties have been identified, with about 29 boat ramps.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Te Arawa Lakes Trust and local councils are banding together in the battle against invasive gold clams.

The trust is worried about the lakes in its area and the boaties coming to use them.

A hui at Lake Ōkāreka has resolved to stand up volunteers at boat ramps at several lakes to guide and greet visitors and help make sure boaties are playing their part.

The volunteers will not, the trust says, be restricting access.

“We’re not saying saying to anybody, look, you can’t come onto the lakes,” Te Arawa Lakes Trust chairperson said.

He said volunteers would help ask if boats were clean and if they had been on the Waikato River.

That’s where there is now a large stretch of the clams, after they were first found in May 2023 at Lake Karāpiro.

They have since been found elsewhere – in November at Lake Rotomanu in New Plymouth, which was then drained.

The find prompted a warning for boaties on the Whanganui River.

Adam Hartland has written for The Conversation about why the clams pose such a danger.

It’s all hugely concerning for Te Arawa Lakes Trust which oversees 14 lakes in the Rotorua area.

“Given the significant number of boats that come into our area we have decided to be proactive to prevent any carriage of this invasive species into our lakes, because the impact is quite significant,” Haumaha said.

Lake Ōkāreka, where the hui was held, has a number of boats taking to it for wakeboarding, water-skiing and other recreation activities, he said.

The meeting was between the Trust, Bay of Plenty Regional Council, Rotorua Lakes Council with government minister Todd McClay also in attendance.

The councils will be pitching in, Haumaha said.

“So we decided that, you know, this is about a community action… this is about the future of our lakes and protection of our waterways.”

On the lake having to be drained in New Plymouth, “God forbid we ever have to do that here in Rotorua,” he said.

Volunteers will be put at boat ramps to tell people of the importance of checking their boats and cleaning and drying them before coming onto the water.

Boaties will also be asked if they have been on Waikato River.

“We’re not saying to anybody, look you can’t come onto the lakes,” he said.

Haumaha said the area’s lakes were pristine and needed to be safeguarded for future generations.

He also urged arriving boaties to be kind to volunteers.

“People have just come out of the woodwork ready to step up, to make sure that they can stand alongside everyone for the protection of our lakes over the Summer period.”

A roster will be drawn up for volunteers.

He said 11 lakes that are used by boaties have been identified, with about 29 boat ramps.

Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

One person has died after a single vehicle crash on State Highway 2 near Tangoio.

The single vehicle crash was reported just after 11:40am today.

The sole occupant of the vehicle died at the scene.

It is the first death on New Zealand roads in this holiday period, although a man died in hospital yesterday after being struck by a car in Napier on Friday.

State Highway 2 was closed for several hours, but has now re-opened.

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Off the back of two devastating wildfires in Tongariro National Park, the country is facing another summer of increased fire risk. And while our wildfire history pales in comparison to our neighbours in Australia, New Zealand has had its share of raging hillside infurnos. Our reporter Kate Green takes a look back at some of the big ones, and a look forward at future risk.

It’s early February, 1946, and a long drought has left Taupō hot, and dry.

On one unassuming roadside, a dropped cigarette butt is about to light a fire that burns for days, fanned by a strong northerly wind, through more than 100,000 hectares of land, including 12,000 of pine forest.

“Where it is strongest, little can be done,” proclaimed one Newsreel special, which came out on 10 February. “Only rain can end it.”

The blaze was extinguished in due course – although little information is available online about how this was done.

After destruction comes new life. Come autumn, an unexpected surge of life was observed when radiata pine sprung up in dense patches over burnt plantations; the fire had opened cones which were normally closed and liberated the seeds.

Victoria University ecologist Nicola Day said fire could often have unexpected or unseen effects, particularly for the soil below the fireground.

Her work has involved analysing firegrounds in Canada, and more recently, the sites of wildfires at Lake Pukaki and Lake Ōhau in 2020.

Historically, Aotearoa had experienced a low fire-risk and its plants hadn’t evolved to survive them – but Day said they’d found a number of natives were hardier than they looked.

“If you go into a site like that it looks like everything’s dead,” she said. “But actually, the top of the plants have burnt off and died, but the inside of them, the part that controls the growth of them, has survived.”

Woody species were the slowest to recover, she said, but even they could regenerate and look alive again within a year or two.

But in the meantime, it left a gap for exotic species – which tended to grow much faster than native species – to take over, making it even harder for natives to repopulate.

It happened at Lake Ōhau in 2020. The fire was lit by an electrical short circuit on a power pole, and it raged for nine days, destroying 48 homes and buildings and damaging 5043 hectares of land, making it one of New Zealand’s most significant wildfires in recent history.

Day said it took the landscape a couple of months to look green again, and for a while, the main species were exotic. But given another couple of years, nearly all the same species had returned, albeit in different quantities.

Let’s step back again in time: 25 November, 1955.

Over the next three days, a fire fanned by gale-force winds destroyed a third of the Balmoral State Forest in North Canterbury – 2400 hectares of timber.

News reports from the time described it as a “disastrous experience” for its owner, the Canterbury Forest Conservancy.

According to a booklet published by the New Zealand Forest Service in 2005 (The Balmoral Forest Fire of November 1955), the first signs of trouble came when residents heard “pistol-like cracks” and, “on investigation found the old mill burning fiercely” at about 10pm.

The only telephone nearby was in that very building, and very much on fire. So, one Mr Bailey drove six kilometres to the Forest Service headquarters to raise the alarm.

The booklet’s author John Ward, who worked as a forest ranger and a rural fire mediator, mused on this question in its final pages: “Would we have done better in 2005? I think yes, and no.”

“No amount of helicopters could have stopped that fire [in its early stages] but perhaps we could have made some real progress in aerial suppression when the wind dropped [on day three]. But would we have had enough men to patrol the Balmoral road and keep the main forest block safe?”

FENZ wildfire manager Tim Mitchell said while firefighting techniques had changed since those days, it still came down to “putting water on the red stuff”.

Water was still the most effective way of dousing fire, but now there were additives available that could made it more effective at cooling or stopping its spread.

Aircraft had also become more powerful, he said, meaning they could carry more water more safely.

And a good thing, too – Mitchell said going by the data on large wildfires (that is, anything larger than 1000 hectares) the risk was increasing.

In the five decades from 1964 to 2015, there had been 19 such fires. In the past decade from 2015 to present day, there had already been 13.

“Still quite a reasonable number, but over a much smaller timeframe,” Mitchell said. “On that basis, yes, you could say that certainly the trend is suggesting that the number of large wildfires is increasing.”

It was likely caused by a number of factors, he said: warmer, dryer, windier conditions at times due to climate change, but also, “where we’re living, and how we’re living”.

New developments meant towns were spreading outwards into rural areas with lots of vegetation and slopes which increased fire risk, and increased recreation ability meant people were accessing off-grid areas more often.

Farm and forestry equipment, too, was more powerful and ran hotter, making it more likely to cause a spark or ignite dry grass.

In fact, Mitchell said the data showed humans caused 98 percent of New Zealand’s wildfires.

Hugh Wallace, team lead for fire and atmospheric sciences at the Bioeconomy Science Institute, said that fact was actually a bright spot for him – something we had the ability to change.

“Unlike North America, unlike Australia, we don’t really get those lightning-caused fires. So basically, where you get more people, you get more fires.”

Wallace said climate change was complicated, but some areas would definitely be in for more hot, dry, windy days, “which is the kind of conditions you do get fires on”.

“My gut instinct is that we probably would get more big fires.”

The Port Hills have seen two major events in the past decade – the first, in February 2017, was when two separate blazes burned through more than 1600 hectares, claimed the life of a helicopter pilot, nine homes and damaged five others, and took 66 days to extinguish.

The cause of one of the fires was deemed to be an electrical fault, and the other remains unknown.

Seven years later almost to the day, the first calls came in just after 2pm on Valentines Day in 2024.

At its peak, more than 130 firefighters, 15 helicopters and two aircraft fought the blaze, as it burnt about 470 hectares across the Port Hills in three weeks.

One home – a tiny house built out of a shipping container – was destroyed.

Stats NZ expects the risk of fire to increase in many parts of the country due to higher temperatures, stronger winds, and less rainfall associated with climate change.

Using data from the last census in 2023, Stats NZ said there were 4683 wildfires per year on average in the five years to 30 June 2022.

Fire and Emergency NZ said the 2019/2020 and 1998/1999 years remained the worst on record for number and area burnt, respectively.

Mitchell said better awareness was needed of how individuals could prevent fires – even things as simple as choosing not to mow the lawns or burn rubbish on a hot day, and pouring water on ashes after a bonfire.

“It’s such an easy way to avoid a lot of the wildfires that we’re having,” he said.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

After a soggy start, festivalgoers at Rhythm and Vines can expect to spend the next two days drying up in a gentle breeze.

The three-day music festival in Gisborne started yesterday as thousands turned up in gumboots and ponchos, with the city’s airport MetService station recording its wettest December day since 1937.

Lucy Parkinson – who is at the festival for the second time – was disappointed by the rain.

“I was originally put off going again but I thought that surely it wouldn’t happen for a second year in a row.”

She said she was worried about slipping risks after the heavy rainfall.

“The mud particularly around the toilets, water fountains and high traffic areas is really bad. With the weather last night, the staff were really good at making sure people were okay and preventing attendees from going up the hill during the massive downpour, but I think the grounds are in dire need of some wood chips! The grounds are a slip hazard and I’m worried that people will get injured.”

After a muddy experience at the 2024 festival, Parkinson equipped herself this year with a gazebo, gumboots and a decent tent, but it still felt insufficient against the heavy rain.

And after two consecutive soggy festivals, Parkinson said organisers could have communicated better.

“I also think the organisers could’ve prepared festival goers better with more warnings about the weather, as there’s lots of young people who came unprepared.”

Festival director Kieran Spillane said they had alerted festivalgoers on the possible weather condition and asked people to dress to the conditions.

He said more wood chips were out on Tuesday morning, which will help reduce slipping risks.

But with the weather set to clear, Spillane was confident the grounds will dry up in hours.

“The forecast for today is a very nice pleasant 25, 26 degrees with no rain for the remainder for the festival. We knew the rain was coming so we were prepared for it. The sites are actually holding up very, very well. It’s in as good condition as you would expect.”

The rain was good for business at The Warehouse.

Store manager Brett Mitchell said the festival season was their busiest time of the year.

“Yesterday was torrential rain, a lot of wet people coming in looking for ponchos, tents and towels. So it’s been really full on.”

Mitchell said due to the often wet weather and big crowds, they hired a local cleaning company during the festival for extra support.

“Just to help us keep the store tidy and public toilets clean.”

The store begin preparing stock for the festival nine months ahead and based orders on what was popular the previous year, but rain gear had been a staple.

“We always factor in there’s gonna be rain, because it seems that every year there is at the moment.”

But with the weather clearing up, he was still optimistic.

“We definitely got lots of bodyboards and beach stuff so if the weather does come right, people can certain come in to get all all the stuff for going to the beach, sunblocks. We’ve got plenty of that ready to go as well.”

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand