Wild weather hits North Island, New Zealand
Storm alert for Auckland, 200 mm of rain expected, heavy rain in other areas
“Severe weather forecast for most of the North Island was expected to hit the Waikato later today, worsening throughout the night and tomorrow,” the Civil Defence duty officer Greg Ryan said.
Campers across upper North Island are tonight preparing to cope with torrential rain and strong winds and as emergency workers and councils warn of flooding.
Farmers in the Bay of Plenty are also being warned to move stock to higher ground, NZPA reported.
“Civil defence is particularly concerned about campers, trampers and boaties in Coromandel and Taupo where very heavy rain and high winds are expected,” Ryan said.
“People along the Coromandel coastline are at risk of flooding as an exceptionally high tide coincides with the wild weather.”
Torrential downpour if forecast over a long period, becoming heavy from midnight tonight and continuing through to Monday, a MetService severe weather warning report said.
Burned woman’s death homicide, the police farce finally concedes
It normally takes more than just a young woman being raped, strangled and her corpse set alight with an accelerant for our police farce to start a homicide investigation, but they have made an exception in this case.
The young woman’s body was found burning on the side of a remote country lane in Waikato [Hangapipi or Rotowaro Roads] on Thursday, police has revealed.
“We believe an accelerant was used to start the fire and we are awaiting the results of forensic samples taken from the scene to determine what that was.” Defective Senior Sergeant Nigel Keall of the Waikato CIB said.
“We ask that anyone who noticed anything untoward in the area — be that any discarded items of clothing or other items — not to dismiss the item as rubbish but to make contact with the Huntly Police.
“That item may prove to be a key piece of the puzzle.”
The policeman refused to say whether the victim was a foreigner.
UPDATE: added on 24 January 2011
Police has finally named the female victim as Ranjeeta Sharma, 28, a Fiji national.
Mrs Sharma was [at least] the 2,012th foreigner killed in New Zealand since January 2000.
On average, 2 foreigners are killed in New Zealand every 3 days.
At least 2,012 foreign students, tourists and new immigrants have been Killed in NZ between January 2000 and 23 January 2011 [About 10,000 others seriously injured.]
Measles on Emirates flight from Brisbane to Auckland
Air passengers on an Emirates flight from Brisbane to Auckland may have been exposed to the measles, the Auckland Regional Public Health Service (ARPHS) said.
“Three cases of the illness have already been reported among passengers of Emirates Flight EK434, which arrived in Auckland at 5.30pm on January 11. It is the second report of measles being brought into the country on an Emirates flight in a month,” according to a report.
“Measles is a serious illness and one in ten people with measles need hospital treatment,” Medical Officer of Health Dr Cathy Pikholz said.
“The three passengers with measles would have been infectious at the time of their travel on this flight. They were travelling as part of a group who travelled to the Philippines and Singapore. Passengers who were on the flight may now be experiencing symptoms, if they have been infected.”
3 dead, 2 critical after ‘war zone’ crash near Waihi, northwest of Tauranga
“Two teenagers and a 44-year-old father of three died at the scene and two other teenagers are in a critical condition after the crash on State Highway 2 just south of Waihi, 40km northwest of Tauranga, about 11.45pm yesterday.” NZPA said.
“It was like a war zone upon arrival. One of the worst (deadly crashes) I’ve ever seen,” a policeman told NZPA.
Child-sex offender caught in bed with 14-year-old
Shane Frederick Stoneham, 26, a high-risk convicted sex offender, who was supposed to be under 24-hour watch was allegedly found in bed with a missing 14-year-old girl at a Porirua address.
Mass Disorder in Upper Hutt
Plane poo source of spatterings of human faeces that lands on Aucklanders faces?
Drury resident Andrew Burns thinks so! He believes the substance that splashed him, his wife, children, car and home on September 5, was human faeces, which came from a plane toilet, according to a report.
Zombie Democracy - Apartheid Fort NZ 