Remains, including things like a jawbone and a finger, were uplifted by water powerful enough to rip down the urupā’s concrete fence, and they were then strewn across the community.
The decision was made not to DNA test them and instead reinter them together in a special memorial at the entrance of the urupā in July 2023.
In January 2025 an unmarked urn thought to have been swept into a Hawke’s Bay orchard by Cyclone Gabrielle was found almost two years on by a nearby orchardist.
The urn was given to Reverend Zhane Tiopira Tāhau, who was trying to find the whānau, though he was not certain it was from the urupā.
