More than 100 homes in Napier were hit by an early-morning power cut after a slug short-circuited a street-side transformer.

Unison Network reported the outage as happening just after midnight on Monday morning and investigations showed a miscreant slug had caused the problem in a transformer in James Foley Ave, Pirimai.

It said 127 customers in James Foley Ave, McGregor Ave, Ireland Pl, Davidson Ave, Harold Holt Ave, and Len Davis Tce were affected, with a small number having had supply cut for about three hours.

SH2 between Kotemaori and Putorino re-opens

State Highway 2 between Napier and Wairoa opened at 6.30am on Tuesday after an early morning safety assessment.

The road is down to one lane and the slip that forced the road closure has been barricaded. There will be speed restrictions and traffic lights in place.

The stretch of state highway near the site opened for three hours until 8pm on Monday but remained closed overnight.

An onsite geotechnical assessment on Tuesday has been carried out, and confirmed no fresh material has come down.

Waka Kotahi Hawke’s Bay and Tairāwhiti System Manager Martin Colditz said he is expecting a lot of traffic through on Tuesday

”Please expect delays and drive to the conditions through the slip site,” he said.

Hastings music and comedy show satirises smokefree policy change

A music and comedy show in Hastings this week will satirise National’s plan to repeal the smokefree laws introduced by Labour.

New Zealand made headlines around the world after plans to reverse the “world-leading” policy were revealed near the end of last month.

Napier residents Neill Gordon and Ani Tylee and Hastings theatre director Ken Keys have organised ‘Make Cancer Great Again’ at 7pm in The Common Room and say it will be “painfully, profoundly funny”.

“A lot of people, many of them medical professionals, were shocked when they heard Chris Luxon announce last week that the new government was backtracking on world-leading legislation that would have created a smokefree generation of young New Zealanders,” Gordon said.

“Public health and kids smoking is everyone’s concern – you can be a National supporter, a New Zealand First member or whatever and still not support this policy.”

People are encouraged to bring smokefree signs to the show, with prizes offered for the funniest, the rudest, the best te reo sign and more.

Tickets for the show are available on Eventfinda for $10, and Gordon said all proceeds will go to cancer charities.

Blaze at property in Raupunga ‘unexplained’

A truck and other equipment were badly damaged in a fire at a property in Raupunga, a small township in northern Hawke’s Bay, on Friday night.

Firefighters extinguished the blaze at the property off State Highway 2 about 9.40pm.

A police spokesperson said they were investigating the fire to determine the cause “which is unexplained at this stage”.

The spokesperson said a scene guard was in place on Friday night until a fire investigator could attend on Saturday.

Police looking for man after Flaxmere crash

A man believed to have fled from the site of a crash in Flaxmere on Friday is still being actively sought by police.

A black car crashed on a property in Flaxmere Ave about 12.44pm on Friday and police dogs were used around the property.

Police said on Monday that the man had not been located and police were continuing to make inquiries to locate him. “The man should not be approached,” a police spokesperson said at the time.

Small fire in McDonald’s toilet

Firefighters were called to a small fire in the toilets at McDonald’s Hastings on Saturday night.

The fire at the fast-food restaurant on Heretaunga St West was already out when Fire and Emergency NZ arrived shortly after 8pm.

Police said they had not been notified.

Vegetation fire in Waipukurau

A vegetation fire had to be extinguished along a shelter belt in Waipukurau on Saturday afternoon, which is a row of trees planted to protect crops or animals from harsh weather.

Firefighters extinguished the blaze in the shelter belt about 4pm on Saturday on Pukeora Scenic Rd.

Crews were at the scene for about an hour.