A remembrance service for the 70th anniversary of the Tangiwai Disaster can now go ahead as planned. Photo / Dean Purcell
A remembrance service for the 70th anniversary of the Tangiwai Disaster can now go ahead as planned. Photo / Dean Purcell
On the 70th anniversary of New Zealand’s worst rail disaster, a new Herald podcast recalls the tragedy and lessons of Tangiwai. In the sixth and final episode, host Hamish Williams reveals an unpleasant surprise for commemoration organisers.
Tangiwai survivors and their families were shocked to hear from KiwiRail earlier this month that their 70th-anniversary remembrance service would have to be delayed due to scheduled repair work on rail lines.
The service had been planned for the afternoon of January 21, because it was too difficult to hold a large service on Christmas Eve, the anniversary of the 1953 disaster.
Organisers wanted a KA locomotive, the same class of train that plunged into the Whangahu river killing 151 people, to bring guests from Wellington to the Tangiwai site on a same-day return trip to attend the event.
The decision surprised Calum Mahy, a lead organiser of the Tangiwai Memorial Committee and the son of John Mahy, who only survived the disaster after being moved seats to the first class carriage 10 minutes before tragedy struck.
“It needs to be commemorated. At the end of the day, Dad’s not going to be around forever. This might be one of the last big events he’ll be making it to.”
KiwiRail offered alternative dates but the committee was unsure if it could make them work and feared the ceremony would have less significance the further away it became from the date of the Tangiwai disaster.
The Herald contacted KiwiRail to find out more about the delay for this episode of the podcast Tangiwai: A Forgotten History.
Within hours, the organisers were contacted again and told that the memorial service could proceed with the train able to make its journey to the site.
KiwiRail said in a statement: “Despite scheduled KiwiRail track maintenance, we are accommodating a special memorial train service that will travel from Paekākāriki to Tangiwai on 21 January. KiwiRail will continue to support future commemorative events for the Tangiwai tragedy.”
The Tangiwai National Memorial, designed by government architect F. Gordon Wilson, was unveiled at Karori Cemetery on March 26, 1957. Photo / Dean Purcell
The Tangiwai Memorial Committee is hopeful that the 70th anniversary will bring more attention to their uphill struggle to build a significant upgrade to the site.
The project was in the running for significant government funding but lost out to an Erebus memorial. Thieves also broke into a public donation box at the memorial site, which had raised thousands of dollars used for its upkeep.
Members of the public are welcome to attend the ceremony at the Tangiwai disaster site at 1pm on Sunday January 21, 2024.
Tangiwai: A Forgotten History is available at iHeartRadio, Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. The series was made with the support of NZ On Air. For video and photos, go to nzherald.co.nz/tangiwai.
