Long-haul truck drivers are being caught driving after taking P, posing a huge danger on the roads. This week a Rotorua trucking firm sacked a driver who had twice tested positive for methamphetamine use. Other Rotorua companies have strict policies on drug taking, with regular random tests on drivers. Chief Coroner Judge Neil MacLean has revealed Taupo truck driver Christopher Henare Hammond was high on methamphetamine and cannabis when the truck he was driving plunged 40m off a cliff into Lake Taupo. [continues 320 words]
Rotorua children as young as 7 are getting help for cannabis addictions - and social workers say the drug is still a major problem in the city. But new figures from a National Household Survey on Drug Use released by Massey University shows fewer people in New Zealand have tried cannabis and cigarettes or used P in the past year compared with five years ago. The survey shows more people are trying alcohol. The findings were presented at the Cutting Edge Addiction Conference in Auckland this week. [continues 520 words]
Francis paul doesn't look like she is stoned - but a test she failed says otherwise. The 76-year-old Rotorua woman doesn't smoke cannabis or take any illegal substances - but she does suffer from arthritis, which caused her to fail a mock drug test conducted by the Daily Post yesterday. The test, based on one police propose to use from next year on drivers they suspect have used drugs, included walking a straight line, balancing with eyes shut and a time test. [continues 612 words]
A Forestry Expert Fears Laid Off Workers Will Turn To Drug Growing And Dealing. National Distribution Union wood sector secretary Jim Jones said he had heard of former mill and forestry workers who had lost their jobs going into the illegal drug trade. He feared many more could do so. "It must be tempting for forestry workers to start growing marijuana given the unreliable nature of employment in the industry at the moment," he said. About 115 workers were laid off at the Rainbow Mountain sawmill last year and last month 112 staff at Rotorua wood products plant PanaHome also lost their jobs. [continues 335 words]
