Rangimaria's body was expected to be at Maraenui Marae at 4pm today and the family was planning her tangi.
Police are still hunting the driver of the vehicle in the alleged hit-and-run, including following up a member of the public's tip that it looked someone had washed their car down about 4am at a service station just one block from Goring St.
A privately-organised after-ball function was held at an undisclosed location but it is not known whether Rangimaria attended.
The alleged hit-and-run took place on Goring St. Photo / David Kerr
Police could not confirm whether they thought alcohol was involved in the incident.
Inspector Willie Taylor said a full police investigation would go ahead.
"We do know that she was attempting to cross the road; we're unsure what condition she was in while she was doing that because we're still speaking to witnesses."
Goring St resident Lynn Roberts said bottles of alcohol littered the street where the accident occurred on Sunday morning.
Flowers marked the roadside where Rangimaria lost her life.
The ball night was treated like a "party night" for the whole town.
"It's really tragic. It was ball night last night, it's pretty much a town thing, it's a big deal. There were parties everywhere," she said.
Rangimaria was a star student who attended Opotiki College last year before moving to Edgecumbe.
Opotiki College acting principal Bruce Dale said Rangimaria had been outside the school hall earlier in the evening to watch people arrive for the school ball.
There was an after-ball function, monitored by police, but he did not know where in Opotiki it was held or whether Rangimaria attended.
"I don't think so but I don't know. My understanding was she was with family and a few friends."
He said the ball went "without a hitch", wrapping up at 11pm.
Detective Senior Sergeant Greg Standen said police were focusing on identifying witnesses who may have information about the vehicle that struck Rangimaria and its driver.
Police were also talking to a number of people to establish the movements of Rangimaria on Saturday night and early Sunday morning and the circumstances that led to her being on Goring Street.
"We still have a number of enquiries to make and a number of people to speak to," Mr Standen said.
"We encourage everyone's focus to remain on helping us to identify the vehicle and its driver. Any information, no matter how small or irrelevant it may seem, may be valuable to the investigation.
"If anyone suspects someone or being involved, or knows of a vehicle they believe may have been involved, we want that information so that we can include or eliminate them from our enquiries."
Mr Standen said no debris from a vehicle was found at the scene so the vehicle involved may not necessarily have any significant or noticeable damage.
Anyone with suspicion about a vehicle, even if it doesn't have obvious damage, was encouraged to report their suspicions to police.
Edgecumbe College principal Louw Olivier said a trauma team was supporting staff and students through the difficult time.
"Rangimaria was a well like member of our school and she will be sadly missed," he said.
Opotiki mayor John Forbes said he was currently talking to the NZTA about an alternative project around road safety in the area, particularly for pedestrians.
"It's what kind of new thinking can we bring to bear, what other things could we be doing. You can never rest on your laurels, obviously, as this weekend's just proven.
"I would prefer just to wait until people get over the grieving...then have more community conversations about safety and things like that."
A number of tragedies and near-misses after school balls have prompted some schools to ban after-ball parties.
In 2011, 17-year-old David gaynor from King's College died after leaving the school ball.
His death came a year after 16-year-old King's College student James Webster took a bottle of vodka to a birthday party and never woke up.
Just this month, several Northland teens were arrested and five needed medical treatment for heavy intoxication at an after-ball function in Whangarei.
