Afternoon Edition: 21 October 2025

The Afternoon Edition of News Fix for 21 October 2025, straight from the Newstalk ZB newsroom - bringing you everything you need to know in news, politics, business, entertainment and sport.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:04):
Good afternoon. I'm Rayleen Ramsay. This is your afternoon news
fix for Tuesday, the twenty first of October. Destructive winds
are tracking north after cutting power to thousands and toppling
high sided vehicles. A person died this morning after being
hit by a branch on Wellington's Mount Victoria. An orange
strong wind warning remains for Wellington, Canterbury, hawks Bay, Winded

(00:28):
Upper and Tatadua. More than nine thousand properties are without
power in the lower to central North Island. A campavan
has rolled, closing State Highway one and Kaikoder winds have
knocked over a third truck, this time blocking State Highway
fifty near hawks Bay's Wye Power River Bridge. Met Service

(00:48):
meteorologist Michael Pawley says the system keeps moving certainly for
parts of christ Church in the Canterbury Plains, with seeing
those warnings lift later tonight, windsor fanning six vegetation fires
in Canterbury north of Caycuta, with people being evacuated about twelve.
Five fighting trucks are attending. Multiple structures are on fire

(01:11):
crews are protecting other houses, fire and emergencies as four
fires are immediately north of Caykuda and two near Clarence,
and fires also broken out in Hills North. Further north
in puongu Ho in central Hawks Bay, a large cloud
of smoke is reportedly visible from several kilometers away. And

(01:31):
in Northland, investigations are underway into a fire that is
reportedly destroyed at least a dozen cars in Fanga Day
Hospital's car park this afternoon. Hospital workers told The Northern
Advocate the blaze was started by an electric car's battery fire,
and emergency is yet to confirm. The Courts Minister's pleased

(01:52):
backlogs in some criminal court cases have dropped. Government statue
O the District Court backlog is down twenty percent into
April twenty twenty three. That's about seventeen hundred cases. Minister
Nicole McKee says it's great the tide's tuning after five
years growth. Emily Ansell reports.

Speaker 2 (02:10):
McKee says the improvements are down to a number of
initiatives under the District Court Timely Justice Program. She says
the initiatives aims include priority based rostering and scheduling and
resource in courts with the largest backlogs. She says it
also reduces unnecessary adjournments and helps provide meaningful first appearance outcomes.

Speaker 1 (02:31):
The Public Service Commissioner, who is working on teachers bargaining agreements,
will not be in the country during Thursday's mega strike.
About one hundred thousand union members are voted to down tools.
Your senior political reporter Azaria Howell.

Speaker 3 (02:45):
Commissioner Sir Brian Roach is on leave planned well in advance.
The Commission says unions did not consult him on their
chosen day to strike, and the Public Service Commission says
his physical location is irrelevant as he's still working and
leading bargaining.

Speaker 1 (03:02):
In sport, the Netball New Zealand versus Dame Nolentdois saga
is beginning to gain traction inside the halls of Parliament.
Labra and p Willie Jackson is urging Sports Minister Mark
Mitchell to freeze the national body's government funding until it
clears up the mystery suspension of the Silver Ferns coach.
Canterbury will have to do without the All Blacks duo

(03:23):
of hooker George Bell and locke Sam Dowry in Saturday's
NBC Rugby Final against Otago and the Toronto Blue Jays
have advanced to major League Baseball's World Series. That's your
latest news fix. We'll be back with the next update
tomorrow morning from the News Talk's Zby newsroom.