Southern tour

It has been almost a decade since a governorgeneral has visited Invercargill.

Yesterday, Dame Patsy Reddy started her fourday tour of Southland, accompanied by her husband Sir David Gascoigne, viewing the work being done on the Southland Charity Hospital in the city.

Dame Patsy (left) visited Melissa Vining at the Invercargill building to learn what was being done to convert it into the hospital.

‘‘It’s one part of New Zealand we hadn’t been to yet and I was really keen to come down.’’

Regarding the hospital, she said she was fascinated by Ms Vining’s journey ‘‘converting what was a tragic situation into something really strong and positive for the community’’.

Dame Patsy will visit Gore today and return to Invercargill in the afternoon.

Thursday involved a trip to Riverton and Friday, a tour of Ulva and Stewart Island.