Toa Samoa celebrations are ‘awesome’ but we need a night off - Porirua residents

Increasingly raucous public celebrations by fans of Toa Samoa has left some Porirua residents pleading for a break from the noisy celebrations.

Posts on social media say the celebrations, which peaked after Toa Samoa’s stunning victory over England in the Rugby League World Cup semifinal, are keeping their children awake and the crowded roads are making navigating the streets challenging.

“Please, please give us a night off!!” one person pleaded on social media.

“We think it’s absolutely awesome that Toa Samoa is in the final, but little ones can’t take another night of this. They cried for three hours straight last night because it was so loud and the tooting, yelling, and engine revving is scary and loud.”

Others mentioned the difficulty they had in studying for exams, and lack of sleep exacerbating their health issues.

“5.30am fam? Really?” asked another.

“It was cool at first and felt some pride, now it’s just embarrassing and rude. Please take others into consideration. It just looks bad now. Waitangirua doesn’t need to be woken up at 5.30am Sunday morning by screaming, fireworks and beeping.”

However, other people are loving the excitement, saying their children are thrilled to see it.

“Thank you to those parading in the city,” said a supporter.

“We been missing out on the fun these ways, even my kid is enjoying it instead of going to sleep like he should, he loves people and music but also loves anything fun and never wants to miss out!

Please do it out in the centre more so we can join in too!”

The Porirua City Council told the Herald it was aware of complaints on social media and had received six official complaints about noise – but has not been able to find those responsible.

“We have received complaints from residents about noise from vehicles being parked up at various locations throughout the city. Officers have been unable to action these requests due to the vehicles moving from one place to another.”

These had been referred to the police.

A spokesperson for the police told the Herald they are “aware of the ongoing celebrations and are continuing to speak to participants”.

The final game against Australia is set for 5am on Sunday November 20.

The Herald has contacted a Porirua-based supporters group for further comment.