Morning Report for Thursday 18 February 2021

7:05 AM.Rafael Nadal's tilt at a record 21st grand slam will have to wait after Stefanos Tsitsipas delivered one of tennis' more extraordinary comebacks to beat the great Spaniard in a five-set Australian… Read more Audio

7:08 AM.Auckland's whirlwind Covid-19 lockdown has ended just three days after it was imposed.

Alert levels dropped overnight , and the city is now at Alert Level 2, while the rest of the country is enjoying… Read more Audio

7:12 AM.Auckland's third lockdown is over three days after it began, but Jacinda Ardern still wants residents of the city to be cautious.

The Prime Minister is warning Aucklanders to expect more cases to… Read more Audio

7:14 AM.Doctors leading the Covid-19 testing effort in South Auckland are still on high alert, despite the Government's move to take the city out of Alert Level 3.

South Seas Healthcare has been testing… Read more Audio

7:18 AM.Auckland has exited its three day lockdown, based on the advice of Director-General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield.

Associate Minister of Health Ayesha Verrall says she has confidence contact tracing… Read more Audio

7:23 AM.Unsafe lead levels have been detected in children's blood tests in east Otago.

This following a contamination scare which has resulted in a do not drink notice and emergency water tankers.

Dunedin… Read more Audio

7:27 AM.Dirty bedding and rooms, bad food, a lack of fresh air and piping hot taps within reach of toddlers.

These are just some of the official findings about the Pitter Patter childcare centre in Feilding… Read more Audio

7:38 AM.Some families of the men who died in the Pike River Mine disaster are urging the government to step aside, so they can complete the recovery job.

On Tuesday, the re-entry crew at Pike River went as… Read more Audio

7:39 AM.The biggest health sector union is facing a massive shake-up after an external review of the board's performance - and the resignation of its second president in less than a year.

The Nurses… Read more Audio

7:43 AM.Strict lockdown measures in the UK and changing behaviours in the US are seeing the number of new Covid-19 cases stabilise.

This week in the UK, new daily cases have dropped below 10,000 for the… Read more Audio

7:49 AM.Aucklanders a breathing a sigh of relief with the city is back down at Alert Level 2.

Reporter Katie Doyle has been speaking to commuters. Read more Audio

7:51 AM.Despite the change in alert levels masks are still mandatory on public transport across the country.

Reporter Harry Lock is at Wellington train station. Read more Audio

7:52 AM.As the 10 year anniversary of the Christchurch February earthquake approaches, the impact of that day continues to be felt differently depending on which part of the city people live in.

In the first… Read more Audio

8:06 AM.Stefanos Tsitsipas credited his comeback win against Rafael Nadal in the Australian Open quarter-finals to his peace of mind, saying he had attained a state of "nirvana" during the match despite… Read more Audio

8:09 AM.The Employers and Manufacturers Association says the quick shift out of Alert Level 3 and the availability of a support payment will be helpful for hard-hit Auckland businesses.

On Wednesday the… Read more Audio

8:13 AM.The Government still unsure where the Auckland family caught the the highly-contagious UK variant of Covid-19.

So has enough testing been done for the country to move on?

Covid-19 data modelling… Read more Audio

8:18 AM.New Zealand will end one of its longest overseas deployments, following the announcement that the last six New Zealand soldiers in Aghanistan will leave by May.

That still leaves thousands of… Read more Audio

8:26 AM.In May, the remaining six Defence Force personnel will leave Afghanistan, ending one of the longest running deployments in our history.

More than 3,500 personnel have served in Afghanistan and ten… Read more Audio

8:30 AM.A brief update of movements in the financial sector. Read more Audio

8:39 AM.A surfer with serious injuries has been saved in a remarkable rescue.

The man who was surfing alone was swept onto rocks at Mercer Bay on Auckland's west coast.

He managed to write "HELP" on the… Read more Audio

8:39 AM.Search and rescue teams are urgently seeking any information that could help them locate a missing yacht off the east coast of Coromandel.

A garbled mayday about a sinking yacht came through around… Read more Audio

8:42 AM.A Kiwibuild development in New Plymouth has defied the naysayers and sold out the first tranche of 33 properties in double-quick time.

The Discovery Development in Marfell only went on the market in… Read more Audio

8:49 AM.Christchurch residents who use lots of water may have to pay for the extra they use.

The city council wants to charge households using more than 700 litres of water a day, well above the daily… Read more Audio

8:53 AM.To the Mackenzie country now, where hundreds of rowers are excited to get back out on the water today, and get racing.

They're in Twizel, for the National Championships regatta at Lake Ruataniwha.

… Read more Audio

8:56 AM.Sixteen-year-old swimming sensation Caitlin O'Reilly has swum the Foveaux Strait, making her the youngest person to achieve the New Zealand Triple Crown.

That includes swimming Cook Strait and Lake… Read more Audio