A Fijian performer at Levin Adventure Park last year at Pasifika Day.
A Fijian performer at Levin Adventure Park last year at Pasifika Day.
The latest Covid-19 restrictions have forced organisers of major community events in Horowhenua to pull the pin.
Organisers have been forced to either cancel or postpone their events after Auckland was placed at level 3 and the rest of New Zealand at level 2, with level 2 restrictions limiting gatherings to less than 100 people.
The hugely popular Children's Day, which attracted thousands of families and was to be held this weekend at Levin Adventure Park, has been cancelled.
It promised a host of activities that had been months in the planning. Organiser Therase Apatu made the call public early Tuesday morning.
Levin Aquatic Centre hydrolslide has been closed for the best part of two years for an upgrade. It was due to reopen any day.
The reopening of the hydroslide at Levin Aquatic Centre was to have coincided with Children's Day and had now been postponed.
Levin Aquatics manager Patrick Blackman said partnering with Children's Day would have been a perfect chance to showcase the fact the hydroslide was open and operational again after an upgrade.
The slide had been closed for repair for the best part of two years and now had a new shute and staircase. They would now look to have "soft" reopening of the slide soon.
The Kaino sisters performed a dance at Levin Adventure Park for Pasifika Celebration Day last year.
Fairfield School gala - easily the biggest of its kind - was to be held at the school on March 10 and was now officially cancelled.
Last year the gala raised more than $21,000, with all proceeds going towards educational tools and devices to help students in their learning.
Gala organiser Kirsten Chamberlain said the committee relied on a huge amount of sponsorship, donations and volunteers to make it a success. It had been organising the event and collating items since October last year.
Chamberlain said they had no choice but to make the call to cancel at a committee meeting last night, however the committee would now look at the possibility of other fundraising avenues in the coming months.
It could be that a "mini gala" was held later this year, depending on the Covid-19 alert levels, or a series of smaller fundraising events were planned.
Dance groups performed on stage at Levin Adventure for the annual Pasifika Day celebration last year
Levin Vintage Car Club had a large event planned for Sunday at Levin Showgrounds, with organisers forced to have to pull the pin at the last minute.
There was to have been live demonstrations with blacksmiths, wheelwrights, and timber and flour mills, with food stalls having been busy setting up the night before with a bouncy castle and merry-go-round.
Foxton horse trials held on Tuesday, where 100 horses were entered, were closed to the public with only barrier staff, jockeys and close connections of horses permitted.
Manakau School was to have held a Cafe Day where students were to prepare food grown at the school garden for sale, although it was now tentatively postponed until March 17.
The Kāpiti Zephyr Zodiac Consul Club had cancelled its Ōtaki Car Show, which was to have been held at the Ōtaki-Māori Racecourse on Sunday, with proceeds going to the Cancer Society.
Meanwhile, organisers of the popular Pasifika Day at Levin Adventure Park have decided to wait until the Government's Covid-19 announcement this Friday before making a call on their annual event, to be held on March 13.
A Fijian peformer at Levin Adventure Park for Pasifika Day last year.
Pasifika Day chief organiser Sue Hori Te Pa said it would be premature to make a decision this week given the possibility of an easing of alert levels restrictions.
Should the alert levels be relaxed the event would go ahead as planned next Saturday, while organisers also had contingency dates on March 20 and March 27.
"If we drop to level 1 on Friday then we can still go ahead as planned," she said.
The event draws a large crowd and showcases acts from a variety of bands and also performances from family, cultural and church groups, most of which had spent months rehearsing.
