A brief timeline of the key events during the tragic Loafers Lodge fire in Wellington. Video / NZ Herald
The Mayoral Fund for the victims of the fatal Loafers Lodge fire has bought dentures, flights from the UK for a bereaved family member, and laptops, clothing, and cellphones for those who have lost everything.
City Missioner Murray Edridge told the Herald the fund is currently sitting at $290,000 which includes a $50,000 donation from the Wellington City Council.
“What happened at Loafers Lodge was a tragedy and out of a tragedy comes some beautiful stories of support and hope and encouragement and the community have really stood up to support the people who have been so impacted by what happened last week.”
He said the money has been spent in four phases, the first of which was immediate need – getting people clothing, shoes, food and cellphones.
The second phase was focused on getting people cash for whatever their needs were, and the third phase, which has just been entered, is about replacing some of what people have lost in the blaze.
The scene of the fatal fire at Loafers Lodge in Newtown, Wellington. Photo / George Heard
“We’ve had now two sets of dentures we’ve been able to pay for and I understand about $2000 each and this is because people left with nothing, you know, because of the need to evacuate immediately. If you didn’t have your teeth in at the time, then, you know, these are deeply personal things for the individual.”
He said phase three also focuses on replacing people’s ID cards, bank cards and other documents, as well as laptops.
It also is giving money to the whānau of the victims, three of whom were named by police last night.
They were Michael Wahrlich, 67, Melvin Joseph Parun, 68, and Peter Glenn O’Sullivan, aged 64.
Edridge said the money will go towards funding funerals and tangi, as well as travel for the families from all over New Zealand – and one from as far as England.
“The individual concerned wouldn’t have been able to come if you hadn’t had that support,” said Edridge.
He said the bonus of the Mayoral Fund is that it can be allocated immediately without being hindered by bureaucracy.
Wellington City Missioner Murray Edridge. Photo / Katie Harris
“We’ve made sure that we’ve got good decision making and accountability in place, but we’ll get that money out fast because people need it and they need it now... we’re filling some of the gaps that, that aren’t funded by Government agencies because of their own rules and regulations which are appropriate.”
In time, the fund will also be used to set up people who lived at Loafers Lodge in permanent accommodation.
Edridge said that a week on from the tragedy, the victims of the fire are struggling and the support of the community has been a huge help.
“Having sat with a number of the people who have been evacuated from Loafers Lodge last week over the last seven days, we know they’re struggling, we know they’re going to continue to struggle in the days ahead because of the losses they’ve suffered and the trauma they continue to suffer from.
“And the fact that the community is standing up for them is just a huge encouragement for many of them.”
He said yesterday, the one-week anniversary of the blaze, was “really, really, really hard”.
He confirmed there had been an incident at Newtown City Mission between a guest and police but declined to offer further details.
“It was one of the evacuees that we’ve been working with very closely and he was just doing life really hard yesterday.
“It was just a tough day for him, and I feel for him. [It’s] not just the loss of things but the trauma of the event and the trauma of still not being clear about what happened and how it happened and the trauma of losing mates, you know, losing neighbours.
“All those things come together to create a situation where people are really struggling and sometimes that manifests itself.”
For those wishing to donate to the Mayoral Fund, Edridge said it will remain open for the foreseeable future – and that he hopes he will get to a point where it has all been used up helping people and he has to campaign for more.
“What’s really important is that the headlines will fade but people will continue to need support well into the future. As the rest of us move on with our lives, it’s really important that we continue to remember that there are people who have suffered here, and they still need the support of the community wrapped around them.”
