A dawn service at the Porirua RSA on McKillop Street began at 6am, following early morning preparations and a parade assembly at Mungavin car park. Attendees stood in silence as the service marked the start of a day of remembrance.

In Titahi Bay, a dawn service at the Titahi Bay RSA began at 6.30am, drawing members, families and the wider public. A citizens parade is set to follow later this morning from Whitehouse Road.

The city’s main civic commemoration is taking place at Te Rauparaha Park, where the Porirua City Civic Service began at 9am at the Peace Memorial. Residents gathered earlier for seating and a march from Hagley Street ahead of the formal service.

Services are continuing throughout the late morning across Porirua’s communities.

In Pāuatahanui, a memorial service at St Alban’s Church began at 10.15am, followed by wreath-laying at the local war memorial. At Takapūwahia Marae, a service is under way from 10.30am, reflecting the significance of Anzac Day across iwi and community spaces.

Further north, Pukerua Bay residents began their commemorations earlier with an 8am flag raising and recitation at the RSA. A community service at St Mark’s Church is scheduled for 11am, followed by a midday wreath-laying ceremony and Last Post at Whenua Tapu Cemetery.

Across Porirua, the spread of services highlights the strong local participation in Anzac Day, with events ranging from formal civic ceremonies to smaller community and marae-based gatherings.

Anzac Day commemorates New Zealand and Australian service personnel who have served in wars, conflicts and peacekeeping missions. For many in Porirua, the day is marked not only through organised services, but also through personal acts of remembrance with whānau and community.

Services and gatherings are expected to continue into the afternoon, as residents reflect on the shared history and ongoing impact of conflict.

Lest we forget.

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MetService issued the alert at 11:52am, covering Porirua City, Hutt City, Upper Hutt City, Wellington City and South Wairarapa.

Weather radar detected severe thunderstorms near Wellington, Lower Hutt and Porirua about 11:45am. The system is moving east-southeast and is expected to track across Wellington and Wainuiomata by 12:15pm, reaching Lower Hutt, Upper Hutt and the southern Remutaka Range by 12:45pm.

Forecasters say the storms are likely to bring very heavy rain, raising the risk of surface and flash flooding in streams, gullies and urban areas. Driving conditions may become extremely hazardous.

An update is due at 12:45pm.

Looking ahead, a heavy rain watch has been issued for parts of the wider Wellington region not covered by the thunderstorm warning, including Kāpiti Coast and Horowhenua. The watch runs for 31 hours from 11am Monday to 6pm Tuesday.

MetService says periods of heavy rain and possible thunderstorms could approach warning levels, with a moderate chance the watch will be upgraded.

A strong wind watch is also in place for Wellington, including Porirua, from 4pm Monday to 9am Tuesday. Southerly winds may approach severe gale in exposed areas, with a moderate chance of escalation to a warning.

Residents are advised to stay alert, clear drains where safe, and avoid flooded areas. Motorists are urged to drive to the conditions and allow extra travel time.

The arrest follows an investigation into alleged illicit drug dealing in the local community.

Kāpiti-Mana Area Response Manager Senior Sergeant Jen Blackwood said Police acted on information about a property believed to be involved in drug distribution.

On Thursday 9 April, officers from the Kāpiti-Mana Tactical Crime Unit executed a search warrant at the address, supported by the Police Safety Team, Offender Prevention Team, a dog handler and the Kāpiti-Mana Beat Team.

During the search, Police located $14,490 in cash along with 121 grams of methamphetamine, 27 grams of ecstasy and 60 grams of cannabis. Ammunition was also found at the property.

Blackwood said sheds on the property were also searched, where officers discovered several vehicles believed to be stolen. These included two motorbikes, three electric bikes and two electric scooters.

Four people were present at the address and were taken into custody without incident.

The man faces charges including possession of methamphetamine for supply, possession of ecstasy for supply, possession of a cannabis plant, possession of cocaine and unlawful possession of ammunition. He has been remanded in custody and is due to reappear in Porirua District Court on 12 May.

Police are continuing inquiries and are working to return the recovered vehicles to their rightful owners.

Anzac Day remains one of New Zealand’s most significant days of remembrance. It is a time to reflect on the courage, service and loss connected to war, and to honour returned and current New Zealand Defence Force personnel.

Porirua RSA

A dawn service will be held at the RSA, McKillop Street, starting at 6am. Porirua RSA invites all to attend a dawn service at their clubrooms.

5am RSA premises open

5.45am Assembling Mungavin car park

5.50am On parade

6am Dawn service.

Porirua RSA, 5–7 McKillop Street, Porirua phone 04 237 7695.

Titahi Bay RSA

Members, their families, and all other members of the public are invited to observe Anzac Day with the Titahi Bay RSA.

A dawn service will be held at the RSA from 6.30am.

The citizens parade will begin at Whitehouse Road from 10.30am.

Titahi Bay RSA, 74 Main Road, Titahi Bay, Porirua phone 04 236 7955.

Porirua City Civic Service

The civic service will be held at the Peace Memorial at Te Rauparaha Park, starting at 9am.

8.30am Seating available on Te Rauparaha Park

8.45am Gather for march at Hagley St

9am Service begins.

Pāuatahanui

A memorial service will be held in St Alban’s Church, Pāuatahanui, starting at 10.15am, followed by the laying of the wreaths at the Pāuatahanui War Memorial.

Takapūwahia Marae

A service will be held at Takapūwahia Marae starting at 10.30am.

Pukerua Bay RSA

A service is being held at St. Mark’s Church at 11am, followed by a wreath-laying ceremony at Whenua Tapu Cemetery at 12 noon. Pukerua Bay RSA cordially invites all citizens to attend the following Anzac Day services.
8am Stand to attention. Flag raising and recitations of Binyon’s Lines at Pukerua Bay RSA.

11am Community Service at St. Mark’s Church, 98 Rawhiti Rd.

12pm Whenua Tapu Cemetery Wall of Remembrance for Last Post and wreath-laying.

Pukerua Bay RSA – 5-7 Wairaka Road, Pukerua Bay, Porirua.

By David Christensen, Porirua resident

There is, at the heart of the current debate about Spicer Landfill, a question so obvious it has achieved the rare political feat of becoming almost completely invisible.

It is this: where will Porirua’s waste go?

This question has been treated with great seriousness. Entire documents have been written about it. Options have been carefully constructed, labelled, consulted on, and arranged into tidy sets for public consumption.

Some involve continuing to use Spicer.
Some involve sending waste somewhere else.

All of them involve, in one way or another, moving large quantities of unwanted material from one place to another and feeling quietly pleased that a decision has been made.

Which is, on the face of it, entirely reasonable.

Except for one small detail.

They all begin with the same assumption: the waste exists. The only question is where to put it.

And that assumption, polite, practical, and widely accepted, may also be the problem.

Because there is another question. A slightly less convenient one. The kind of question that does not often get invited into structured consultations because it has a habit of rearranging the furniture.

How do we reduce the amount of waste that needs to go anywhere at all?

Not as a distant aspiration. Not as something we nod to in strategy documents before returning to the important business of deciding where to send the trucks.

But as a real, practical, slightly uncomfortable plan.

To be fair, Porirua City Council is not unaware of this idea.

If you read its Long Term Plan, you will find repeated references to waste minimisation, environmental outcomes, long-term thinking, and working with others to achieve better results.

In other words, the idea is already there.

What is less obvious is how that idea translates into the decision currently in front of council.

Because when you look at the options being considered, something curious happens.

The ambition quietly disappears.

Instead, the focus narrows to extending the landfill, closing the landfill, or sending waste elsewhere.

All are valid. All may be necessary.

But all operate within the same underlying system.

It is, in effect, a thoughtful discussion about how best to continue doing what we are already doing.

There are hints of something more.

One option creates breathing space. Another begins to build capability in reducing waste.

These are sensible ideas. The kind that make you feel progress is being made.

But they remain improvements within the system. They do not yet answer the larger question.

Which brings us to something not currently on the table in any meaningful way.

Let’s call it Option G.

Not because it is necessarily better, but because it is largely missing from the list of options in the council’s consultation document.

Option G starts from a different premise.

It suggests Spicer Landfill is not just a problem to be solved, or a liability to be managed, but an asset that could be used temporarily and carefully to enable a transition.

A transition toward a system where more materials are sorted and recovered, more waste is diverted before it reaches landfill, useful resources are extracted rather than buried, and the volume of waste requiring disposal declines over time.

It also suggests Porirua does not exist in a vacuum.

Waste flows, infrastructure, funding, and markets operate at a regional and often national level. Making a long-term decision in isolation may not be the best outcome.

Option G is not a demand to abandon existing options.

It is not a fully costed plan.

And it is not a magic solution where all waste disappears.

What it is, is a pathway.

A way of connecting the useful elements already on the table into something that leads somewhere.

Because without that connection, those elements risk becoming what local government occasionally excels at: well-intentioned improvements that leave the underlying system largely unchanged, and a large bill for ratepayers.

So the question becomes simple, not in the sense of easy, but unavoidable.

Before making a long-term decision about where the waste will go, should we test whether there is a credible pathway to needing less of that decision in the first place?

This is where things become uncomfortable.

If you return to the Long Term Plan, Option G does not look like a radical departure.

It looks like a logical extension.

Which raises a fair question.

If this direction is already embedded in council strategy, why is it not reflected in the options being considered?

This is not an accusation.

Simply a matter of curiosity.

Because once a decision is made, whether to extend, close, or export, it shapes everything that follows.

Funding flows in that direction. Infrastructure develops around it. Alternatives become harder, then unlikely, then forgotten.

And years later, someone inevitably asks: did we ever properly look at whether there was another way?

This is not a call for delay.

It is a call for completeness.

Before locking in a long-term answer to where the waste will go, we should take a serious look at how to reduce the need for it to go anywhere at all.

Because if that question is worth asking, and council’s own strategy suggests that it is, then it is worth answering before the trucks start moving.

Endnote
David Christensen is a Porirua resident with a background in systems thinking and long-term infrastructure analysis. He has made a submission on the future of Spicer Landfill.

A survey commissioned by Specsavers found one in five New Zealanders over 55 have never had a hearing test, while half of those overdue believe they do not need one.

Local audiologist Melissa Mina said hearing damage can begin much earlier than people realise.

“We have all experienced that slight ringing in our ears after a loud concert or blasting music through our earphones,” Mina said.

“Once you reach the age of 20, that ringing can actually be a sign that there has been irreparable damage.”

The survey found 44 percent of respondents frequently listened to loud or live music when they were younger. Despite this, only 30 percent had their hearing tested in the past year.

Across New Zealand, about one in six people live with hearing loss, yet many wait years before seeking help. Research suggests it can take seven to 10 years for someone to act after first noticing a problem.

Mina said untreated hearing loss can affect more than just hearing.

“It impacts social connection, confidence and overall wellbeing. People may withdraw from conversations or avoid noisy places, which can lead to isolation,” she said.

Nationally, two-thirds of people who struggle to hear in conversations say they withdraw, while others admit to pretending to follow along or avoiding social settings altogether.

Mina said early checks are simple and effective.

“Addressing concerns early can help people stay connected to the moments that matter most. Hearing loss is nothing to be ashamed of, but once the damage is done, it can’t be undone,” she said.

Specsavers is encouraging people over 50 to prioritise regular hearing checks through qualified audiologists, including services available locally in Porirua.

There’s no getting around it — the fuel situation is biting, and I know a lot of households across Porirua are feeling it right now.

When prices spike like this, it’s not an abstract issue. It shows up straight away at the pump, in the grocery bill, and in the weekly juggle of getting to work, getting the kids where they need to be, and keeping everything ticking over. That pressure is real, and it’s being felt right across our city.

From the Council’s side, our job is to stay practical, keep essential services running, and do what we can to reduce our own fuel use so we’re not adding to the problem.

We’re keeping a close, day-to-day watch on the situation locally. One of the first things we’ve done is identify the infrastructure that absolutely has to keep going no matter what — things like wastewater pump stations that rely on diesel. Those are non-negotiable, and we’re planning around them accordingly.

At the same time, we’re asking our own staff to make sensible adjustments where they can. That means using public transport if it’s an option, or carpooling if it’s not. We already have flexible working arrangements in place, including up to two days working from home with manager approval, and many teams have set “anchor days” in the office to make sure services continue to run smoothly.

One thing that is helping is work we’d already started before this current spike. We’ve been steadily reducing our reliance on fuel where we can, and that’s now paying off.

At Pātaka, we’ve already moved from gas boilers to electric heat pumps. At Te Rauparaha Arena, we’re in the process of doing the same, with both gas boilers being replaced by mid-year. That’s a long-term shift, but it also means less exposure to fuel price shocks like this one.

Across our fleet, we now have 11 fully electric passenger vehicles and three electric mobile plant vehicles. The utility vehicles we brought in last year are hybrid utes, which use significantly less fuel than the older models. We’ve also reduced the size of our fleet, removing two internal combustion vehicles altogether.

There are smaller changes that add up as well. Our cemetery and nursery operations have now transitioned to fully electric small equipment — things like mowers, chainsaws and blowers. In total, 53 pieces of small plant have been converted to electric where it makes sense to do so.

Even in areas where we still rely on fuel, we’re working to use less of it. The introduction of a compactor truck, for example, has reduced the number of trips needed to the landfill.

And importantly, before prices really took off, our workshop team made sure all of our emergency management equipment was serviced and fully fuelled. That means if we do face another event on top of this — weather or something else — we’re ready to respond.

None of this solves the immediate pressure households are under. I know that. But it does mean your Council is doing its part to stay resilient, keep costs under control where we can, and protect the services people rely on every day.

We’ll keep monitoring the situation closely and adjusting as needed. In the meantime, I’d encourage everyone to look out for each other, share lifts where you can, and make the small changes that help take a bit of pressure off.

We’ve been through tough periods before as a city, and we’ve always come through them by sticking together and focusing on what we can control. That approach matters just as much now.

The Commission says many of those eligible may have lived locally when they took out loans with El Cheapo Cars Ltd, which operated in Porirua and Levin under the name Ezybid Finance.

Last year, the company was fined $115,000 and ordered to repay more than $341,000 to borrowers after breaching the Credit Contracts and Consumer Finance Act. While more than 200 people have already been refunded, dozens remain uncontacted.

The Commission estimates at least 70 of those still owed money previously lived in the wider Porirua area.

Repayments range from $200 to more than $3,700, with an average of about $770.

Borrowers have until the end of May 2026 to come forward.

Anyone who took out a loan with El Cheapo Cars between 2009 and 2021 and topped up that loan at any time may be eligible. This applies whether the loan has been repaid or is still being paid off.

Because some loans date back many years, borrowers do not need to have documentation. Instead, the Commission will verify claims using details such as past addresses, contact information and an approximate timeframe for when the loan was taken out.

Sarah Bartlett, director of credit at the Commerce Commission, said the breaches related to failures to properly inform customers about changes to their loan terms.

“In 2024, the Commission filed seven charges under the Credit Contracts and Consumer Finance Act against El Cheapo Cars Ltd, which traded as Ezybid Finance,” Bartlett said.

“The charges were for variation disclosure breaches. Essentially, the company varied the terms of borrowers’ contracts without telling the borrowers in writing the effect of the changes.”

Bartlett said the Commission is now focused on reaching those still owed money.

“We have successfully refunded over 200 borrowers but are still trying to locate and contact about 120 more. We understand some borrowers may be elderly, face language barriers, or technology challenges.”

She urged friends and family members to help spread the message.

“It is crucial we hear from borrowers, or people who may know borrowers, who had El Cheapo loans within the dates provided.”

Borrowers can contact the Commerce Commission by emailing ElCheapoIssue@comcom.govt.nz or calling 0800 943 600. Those calling are asked to identify themselves as an El Cheapo Cars borrower and leave their contact details.

The Commission is encouraging community organisations and residents to share the information to help ensure those affected receive any money owed.

The hospital will operate as a day-surgery service for patients who face long public wait times and cannot afford private care. Referrals are expected to come mainly through GPs.

Trust chair Dr Graham Sharpe told RNZ finding a suitable building had taken about five years, with earlier options falling through due to site constraints and ownership changes. He said the chosen property meets key requirements, including ceiling height and electrical capacity for clinical equipment.

The ground-floor space will be developed into two operating theatres, a recovery area for up to six patients, consultation rooms, and staff facilities. The hospital will focus on same-day procedures and will not admit patients overnight or treat those under 18.

Chief executive Vito Lo Iacono told RNZ the fit-out is expected to cost between $10 million and $13 million, with annual operating costs of about $1.5 million. Funding will come from donations, alongside in-kind support from professionals contributing discounted or free services.

The project is backed by philanthropists Dame Dorothy Spotswood and Sir Mark Dunajtschik, whose support is funding the build.

Sharpe told RNZ more than 40 surgeons and anaesthetists have already expressed interest in volunteering their time, working around their commitments in the public and private sectors.

Initial services are expected to include procedures such as endoscopies and colonoscopies, with plans to expand into cataract and minor general surgeries like hernia repairs and varicose vein treatment.

Board member Dr James Tietjens told RNZ the service aims to address growing unmet need in the health system.

He said some patients meet criteria for hospital care but are not seen in a timely way, while others struggle to access primary care or referrals.

“This is about improving access for people who are currently missing out,” he told RNZ.

The building is undergoing earthquake strengthening, expected to be completed mid-year. Organisers say the design allows for potential expansion within the building in future.

Wellington Mayor Andrew Little told RNZ the development is a significant step forward for local healthcare and reflects strong community support.

The hospital is aiming to begin operations in February, initially running one operating theatre while systems are established before expanding services.