Two New Zealanders confirmed dead in Bali bombings

8.45am - by MONIQUE DEVEREUX and ALISON HORWOOD

Two New Zealand men have been confirmed dead as a result of last weekend's bomb attacks on crowded nightclubs on the Indonesian island of Bali.

Officials say they hold "grave fears" for two other New Zealanders as efforts to identify bodies continue at a Bali hospital. The two were known to have been in the area when two explosions rocked the Kuta district of Bali on Saturday night (4am Sunday NZT).

Last night the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade confirmed the death of Mark Morton Parker, 27, of Timaru.

Foreign Affairs officials this morning confirmed the death of a second New Zealand man.

Ministry spokesman Brad Tattersfield told NZPA the ministry would not release the his name until official identification took place later today. The man's family was now in Bali.

A New Zealander, Jamie Wellington, is also believed to have died but that had not been formally confirmed late last night.

Like so many among the 180 people feared killed when the bomb ripped through young partygoers in Bali, Mr Parker and Mr Wellington were young, keen on sports and looking for fun.

Mr Parker, a former Otago cricket representative whose father Murray and uncle John both represented New Zealand at cricket, was on his way home after being in London with his sister, Sarah, a maternity nurse.

On TV3 last night, Daniel Whiston, from Christchurch, told how he went to the aid of Mr Parker after the explosion.

He said Mr Parker lost his legs in the blast and explained how he tried to stop the bleeding.

Mr Parker was conscious and talking, Mr Whiston said.

"He was a real fighter, that guy."

Mr Whiston said he promised the critically injured New Zealander that he would contact his family in the South Island.

Mr Parker was heading home to spend Christmas with his family in Timaru and to play cricket for the Onslow club in Wellington.

Mr Parker was an old boy of Timaru Boys High School.

Mr Wellington, a New Zealander who taught English in Jakarta for seven years, was in Bali for the annual Bali 10s rugby tournament with his team, the ISIC Komodos, to play expatriates from around Asia.

Friends and families, including some from New Zealand, face the grim task of identifying loved ones killed in the blast. Many of the bodies are severely burned.

Late yesterday relatives began arriving in the Bali capital, Denpasar.

They face a Macabre scene at Sanglah hospital morgue, where for hours yesterday afternoon body bags were unloaded from refrigerated trucks and carried to be identified.

New Zealand diplomats from the embassy in Jakarta had the grim job of checking the procession of body bags for numbers or, where numbers had been torn off, opening the bags to check identities.

Envoy Nigel Alladyce, speaking generally about the hospital scene, said: "I think many will have to be identified by forensic means because from what I have seen so far many are charred beyond recognition."

Mr Alladyce said some bodies were not complete and some bags contained body parts.

Australia has sent extra forensic teams and morgue services to Bali, but fears are growing that some bodies may never be recovered.

"There may still be more bodies - and I'm sorry to put it as crudely as this - but who were very close to where the bomb went off and the bodies have disintegrated," Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said yesterday after visiting the bomb site.

Most of the dead are Australian, but it is believed people from around two dozen countries were killed.

The NZ Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade says no injured New Zealanders are left in Bali.

Six were evacuated to Darwin by the Royal Australian Air Force, and others went to Singapore and Taipei.

The ministry is still seeking further information on 340 people believed to be in Bali who have yet to contact friends and relatives.

Some 769 New Zealanders staying on the Indonesian resort island have been confirmed as alive and well.

Mr Parker was born in Timaru, but lived for a time in central Wellington where he worked as a sales representative for energy drink company Frucor Beverages.

After the atrocity, Mr Parker was admitted to Sanglah Hospital. He was listed on the official website of the Bali Crisis Centre at the hospital as one of 35 people who died there.

On a separate list of those missing is another New Zealand man, Patrick John Donovan.

There have been some inaccuracies with updates on patients and missing people on Indonesian websites, and the names have not been confirmed by NZ officials.

Mr Wellington is married to an American woman, Lissie, and is the father of two young children.

He and his wife worked as teachers at the Jakarta International School.

Mr Wellington travelled to Bali for the weekend as a member of the International Sports Club of Indonesia to play rugby. The team are the only rugby squad in Jakarta.

Ten Japanese members of the team stayed behind at a hotel, but another group - including two New Zealanders - took two taxis to the Sari nightclub.

They had just pulled up outside when the blast occurred.

Mr Wellington was in the first taxi with three Australians and a Canadian. All five are believed to have died instantly.

In the taxi behind, another group included a New Zealander known as "Deano". Those team members escaped life-threatening injuries.

ISIC club manager Sam Clayton said the loss of five team members was extremely devastating. It was "just too hard to get our heads around really, that five of the lads won't be coming back. Too hard".

A meeting was to be held last night at the club to organise a memorial service for Saturday.

Mr Clayton knew Mr Wellington very well as their families socialised together. He did not know "Deano's" surname but understood he had suffered perforated eardrums in the blast.

Mr Clayton said Mrs Wellington was "obviously extremely distraught" and could not attend last night's meeting.

"She's heard the worst news you could expect to hear. She's going through a lot right now."

Most of the surviving players returned to Jakarta yesterday.

Mr Clayton said many of the team indicated they would not remain in Indonesia for much longer.

"Some said they will just get organised and get home. It's becoming a dangerous place."

Foreign Minister Phil Goff last night indicated that the Government would consider requests to assist with bringing home the remains of New Zealand victims. Australia is funding the transfer of all its victims and helping people required to travel to Bali to confirm the identity of bodies.


Bali messages and latest information on New Zealanders
New Zealand travellers in Bali, and their families around the world, can exchange news via our Bali Messages page. The page also contains lists of New Zealanders in Bali and their condition.

Foreign Affairs advice to New Zealanders

* Travellers should defer travel to Bali

* NZers in Bali should keep a low profile and remain calm

* Foreign Affairs Hotline: 0800 432 111

Feature: Bali bomb blast

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