Hastings to remember 1931 earthquake

PROMINENT ROLE: Kevin Watkins will lead the quake's 84th anniversary service.

The events of the day that changed Hawke's Bay forever will be remembered in the Hastings CBD next Tuesday.

The commemoration service for the 84th anniversary of the Hawke's Bay earthquake will begin in the Central Mall in Heretaunga St, Hastings, at 10.30am. The bell in the clock tower will ring out at 10.46am, to mark the exact time that the quake struck.

The massive earthquake on February 3, 1931, is the greatest natural disaster in the region's recorded history. Ninety-three lives were lost in Hastings, buildings collapsed, fires broke out and roads were destroyed.

Mayor Lawrence Yule said it was "vitally important" that the city continued to remember those who died in the earthquake and the people who helped rebuild the city over the following years.

"Our citizens united at that time with a determination to rebuild and that determination to succeed lives on today."

Councillor Kevin Watkins will lead the service.

"From the devastation of 1931 came a determination to succeed. Much of the CBD that we see today is testament to the tenacity of the survivors and the vision of the city's fathers," Mr Watkins said.

"It is fitting that we will again gather to remember those who lost their lives and those whose lives were changed forever as a result of the Hawke's Bay earthquake." Pipers from the Hastings City Pipe Band will walk from each end of the CBD to arrive at the centre of the CBD at 10.30am which will mark the beginning of the service.

The dignitaries will be welcomed to the stage by performers from the Kahurangi Maori Dance Theatre, while the service will include an address by Hawke's Bay-based historian Michael Fowler and the laying of a wreath by Mayor Lawrence Yule.

A special invitation to attend the earthquake commemoration service is extended to survivors and their families. The service will begin promptly at 10.30am next Tuesday in the Central Mall near the clock tower. Seating will be available for survivors and their families.