The Wireless

NZDF investigating personnel

09:03 am on 16 July 2014

Military police are investigating a group of New Zealand Defence Force personnel after Niue's only hotel was damaged following a late-night uproar, Stuff.co.nz reports.

The military say they will pay the repair bill.

The hotel, the Matavai Resort, was reopened two years ago after Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully directed $10 million in aid to get it up to international standard.

Photo: Unknown

It's regarded as vital to the efforts of both Niue and New Zealand to save the small island through tourism.

In a statement the NZDF said they had a "small number" of people in Niue at the end of last month to prepare for what they say will be a significant exercise later in the year.

"The NZDF can confirm that in the early hours of Wednesday July 2 it appears that fire extinguishers at the hotel where they were staying may have been let off by a member or members of the NZDF," the military said.