As we wave goodbye to the 2010s, we take a look at some of the biggest stories of the decade. An eruption, floods, murders, fatal bus crashes and a potentially lethal virus are some of the stories that saw - and continue to gather - multiple headlines in Rotorua and
Decade in Review - Rotorua
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are welcomed on to Te Papaiouru Marae at Ohinemutu. Photo / File
AdvertisementAdvertise with NZME.
The Solicitor-General said the attack was "intentional, unprovoked and gratuitous, and Tai showed no remorse toward the man he had rendered defenceless".
On the Solicitor-General's appeal the sentence was increased to four and a half years.
In 2014, Dr Lance O'Sullivan started a scholarship in his friend's memory.
"He engaged so much of himself, provided so much leadership, mentored youth. He would take a young person who wasn't confident and inject in them that belief that they were someone special.
AdvertisementAdvertise with NZME.
"So I wanted to do something for my bro to ensure that he will never be forgotten."
Steven Adams - Rotorua native signs with the NBA, June 29, 2013
Steven Adams was on a scholarship in America when he became the first New Zealander to be picked in the first round of an NBA draft. He was picked at number 12 by the Oklahoma City Thunder in June 2013.
Adams also became an instant millionaire and top-10 earner in Kiwi sport, with his salary initially set around the US$1.7 million mark (about NZ$2.2 million), as dictated by NBA rookie scale.
The 2.13m (7ft) centre began his journey in Rotorua where he first got involved in basketball. He honed his skills in Wellington with Kiwi NBL legend Kenny McFadden before playing in the United States. Adams' latest contract is for $100m, launching him onto the Forbes' list of highest-earning athletes. Adams, who earned $NZ41.3m in 2018, was number 78 on the list, up from 86th last year.
Adams awarded 10 scholarships to Bay of Plenty children in 2015 to attend a sold-out skills session training camp with the Oklahoma City Thunder player at ASB Baypark Arena. More than 300 children turned out. Adams said the purpose of the training camp was to focus on the development of children "on and off the court".
Ruatoki Bus Crash - September 5, 2011
An empty log truck crashed into the back of a school bus September 5, 2011. Of the 47 school children on the bus, 16 passengers suffered moderate to serious injuries.
Joe Morehu, 42, of Ruatoki pleaded guilty to a charge of careless driving causing injury, on an unrelated drink driving charge and two charges relating to his logbook and the length of time he spent behind the wheel without a break.
A blood sample was found to contain tetrahydrocannabinol - the active ingredient of cannabis.
AdvertisementAdvertise with NZME.
He was sentenced in 2012 to five months' community detention, nine months' supervision and banned from driving for two years.
The court was earlier told no evidence indicated Morehu's truck swerved or braked before colliding with the bus, shunting it 80m through a fence and into a paddock. At the time, Morehu was driving an empty logging truck south on Reid Rd between Taneatua and Ruatoki.
Stop Go Murder - March 19, 2013
George Taiaroa was shot dead as he operated a stop-go sign at roadworks on Tram Rd, Atiamuri, in 2013.
Quinton Winders, 46, was sentenced in 2016 to life imprisonment with a minimum non-parole period of 17 years after a Rotorua High Court jury had previously found him guilty of Taiaroa's murder.
The killing was sparked by an accident involving a road cone which caused less than $1000 worth of damage, the Crown says.
Winders pleaded not guilty after being arrested and charged with murder in November 2015.
Winders' trial lasted five weeks with the jury hearing from more than 150 witnesses, visiting key locations in and around Tram Rd and examining Winders' blue Jeep Cherokee.
The shooting was sparked by a minor traffic incident a week earlier after which Winders allegedly said would not have happened if Mr Taiaroa had been doing his job properly, says Crown prosecutor Amanda Gordon.
Winder's father had driven over a road cone and in reversing had backed into a vehicle behind, causing $980 worth of damage.
It took two-and-a-half years from the murder for police to arrest Winders.
Te Arawa representation on Rotorua's council - May, 2015
On May 26, 2015, following consultation and the hearing of submissions, Rotorua council voted to adopt a new partnership model with Te Arawa.
The council says Te Arawa Partnership is unique in comparison to the other council portfolios because it focuses on establishing an operating model of partnership with iwi/tāngata whenua. The working partnership (including the co-development of any projects) between council and Te Arawa is the ongoing responsibility of both partners.
Under the proposal, up to two appointed Te Arawa representatives sit on the Strategy, Policy and Finance and Operations & Monitoring committees - with voting rights; delegations for the Strategy, Policy & Finance and Operations and Monitoring committees have power to make recommendations to full council only, rather than make decisions on behalf of the full council.
The Te Arawa Partnership Portfolio developed as a result of council's Rotorua 2030 commitment to develop a new partnership model with Te Arawa.
Tauranga Eastern Link (TEL) Opening - July 30, 2015
One of New Zealand's fastest legal stretches of open road opened in July 2015. The Tauranga Eastern Link is four lanes wide and stretches from Te Maunga junction in Tauranga to Paengaroa.
It replaced a section of State Highway 2, improving access to Tauranga from the east (Te Puke, Whakatāne, Ōpotiki, Gisborne) and south (Rotorua and Taupo).
It became the main route for trucks heading to the Port of Tauranga from Rotorua and the eastern Bay of Plenty, and connected the Central Plateau forestry industry with the port to facilitate lumber export.
Construction of the Tauranga Eastern Link officially started in November 2010 and was due for completion in 2016. But roadworks ran six months ahead of schedule and the project was officially opened in late July 2015.
Cost to build the road was $455 million. The speed limit for the eastern end of the TEL - Domain Rd to Paengaroa - increased to 110km/h in 2017.
The 15km section of State Highway 2 is also one of the country's three tolled highways, carrying trip fees of $2 to $5.
Rotorua Museum Closure - November 2016
What's been called New Zealand's most photographed building, the Rotorua Museum, is scheduled to reopen in 2021.
It closed November 18, 2016 as a precautionary measure following the appearance of cracks in some parts of the building after the Kaikoura earthquake earlier that week.
Detailed Seismic Assessment of the building showing it fell well below earthquake safety standards.
The result of the detailed seismic assessment - which included invasive testing - assessed most of the building at 15 per cent of the National Building Standard.
Buildings that are at 33 per cent or below are considered earthquake-prone.
This means the building will need substantial work before it can open to the public again.
Assessment by engineers show repairs are needed to the roof and there are substantial timber and joint deterioration.
Exhibitions and events have been moved to alternate locations. Museum guides continue taking tours around the grounds of Government Gardens.
Edgecumbe Floods - April 6, 2017
Children at Edgecumbe Primary School are still affected by the flood that hit their town two years ago.
"We still have the post-trauma," principal Kahu Walker says.
"We'll get times where children dive under a table if it's going to rain really hard. There is the occasional time when a student might come to me and say 'Are we okay today'?"
After days of relentless heavy rain, Walker decided to close the school before the flood hit on April 6, 2017, about 8.30am.
The Rangitāiki River – the Bay of Plenty's largest – burst through a stopbank and flooded the township.
Flood waters were 6.19 metres high before the breach.
Edgecumbe's only supermarket, SuperValue, reopened in October.
The Whakatāne District Council says 98 per cent of flood-damaged homes have been repaired and reoccupied.
The repairs carried out in the College Rd area had a budget of $5 million, which included purchasing and removing buildings from the 12 properties opposite the breach site.
The cost of the stopbank construction, which included installation of services and road reconstruction, came in under its $3.3m budget.
Fleet Deaths - August 2017
Brutal killings of two Rotorua men rocked the community in 2017.
Raymond Fleet and his nephew James Fleet were found dead in Mamaku Forest, Bay of Plenty, in August 2017 after being reported missing.
The Crown alleged they were killed after a botched methamphetamine 'cook' which Raymond arranged with patched gang members who later suspected he had been stealing.
James, who had not been involved with the drug manufacture, was killed after witnessing his uncle's murder.
Zen Pulemoana, 27, was put behind bars for life with a minimum non-parole period of 14 years after earlier being found guilty of murdering James Fleet and the manslaughter of his uncle Raymond Fleet.
Pulemoana was sentenced to five years and 11 months imprisonment for Raymond Fleet's manslaughter, to be served concurrently with his life sentence.
Mikaere James Hura, 21, was jailed for six years for the manslaughter of both men, to be served concurrently, after the jury found him not guilty of murdering them.
During the trial, Crown witnesses recounted how the two Fleets had been taken to the end of Mamaku's remote Cecil Rd which leads into the dense bush and savagely beaten.
Raymond Fleet was then run over by a four-wheel drive driven by Martin Hone who had already pleaded guilty and been jailed for their murders.
His brother, Richard Te Kani, pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of the pair and was subsequently jailed.
Evidence was given Pulemoana and Hura were later ordered to return to where the Fleets lay and take their bodies deeper into the bush.
All the convicted men were described as gang members or affiliates.
Royal Visit - October, 2018
Locals and those who came from further away had an unforgettable day in Rotorua October 31, 2018.
The young royals travelled the Pacific for three weeks. The last stop on their four-day New Zealand tour started with an 11am arrival at Rotorua Airport. At the historic St Faith's Church, local leaders met the couple, gifting them each a korowai cloak.
More than 1000 people gathered at Te Papaiouru Marae in Ohinemutu to watch the welcome by Te Arawa iwi Ngāti Whakaue.
International media would later rave about the welcome, claiming Rotorua iwi had "stolen the show" with a performance that trumped even that delivered a few days earlier at Government House.
Prince Harry impressed in turn, opening his address to Ngāti Whakaue in clear te reo Māori, before leading a waiata.
After lunch, the couple headed to Rainbow Springs, where a kiwi chick hatched just minutes before their arrival. The royals also walked through Redwoods forest.
Crowds swelled to thousands later in the day, four or five people deep along every centimetre of the route.
Measles Outbreak - 2019
The number of confirmed cases of measles across the Bay of Plenty region has seen a significant drop in recent weeks.
Only one confirmed case of measles had been identified in the region this month. Toi Te Ora medical officer of health Dr Neil de Wet said the last confirmed case was in the Eastern Bay of Plenty on December 5.
Figures to date show there were 41 confirmed cases of measles in the Western Bay, three in the Eastern Bay, 19 in Rotorua and 11 in Taupō.
De Wet said an apparent decrease in cases was likely to do with an increased uptake of vaccinations due to public awareness.
In 2019, there was a 70 per cent increase in people getting their measles vaccine compared to last year. September saw the highest number of people getting their vaccinations, he said.
However, de Wet said there were still a number of cases across the country and in the Pacific Islands.
Samoa has suffered a measles outbreak and Kiribati reported its first case of measles earlier this week. Samoa's government says 76 people have died as a result of measles since the outbreak began. There are 126 people with measles in hospital, including 17 children in intensive care.
US health officials confirmed three children recently hospitalised with measles in Colorado travelled from New Zealand to Los Angeles International Airport before arriving in Denver. Officials said the children had not been vaccinated, officials said.
Fatal Tourist Bus Crash - September 4, 2019:
Four adults and a young child died after a tourist bus crashed near Rotorua on September 4, 2019. The bus rolled after failing to take what police described as a "moderate to easy bend" on State Highway 5 in Ngatira.
A Chinese national was charged in the crash with careless use of a motor vehicle causing death.
The bus was carrying 27 people when it rolled on State Highway 5 at Ngatira, 20km northwest of the city, on a stretch of bush-edged road between Waiohotu and Galaxy roads.
Survivors who emerged from the crash site were wrapped in blankets and comforted by police officers.
The wounded were treated for injuries at the scene and others flown to hospitals around the North Island.
All Chinese tourists injured in the bus crash north of Rotorua early in September have now returned to China.
Whakaari/White Island - December 9, 2019
At 2.11pm December 9, 2019, Whakaari/White Island erupted, firing a plume of ash 3.6km above its vent. Forty-seven people were on or around the island off the shore of the Bay of Plenty. As of December 20, 16 people have died as a result of the eruption and two bodies are still missing, thought to be washed to sea.
A volcanologist has described the quick-fire type of eruption at White Island today as "basically instantaneous".
Ahead of the eruption, authorities raised its Volcanic Alert Level to Level 2, as scientists observed increasing amounts of sulphur dioxide gas - a key indicator of rising magma deep in its bowels.
Many of those on the island during the eruption were from the Royal Caribbean Cruise ship Ovation of the Seas.
Fourteen people are being treated at hospitals in New Zealand and 13 others have been repatriated to Australia. Many have life-threatening burns and internal chemical burns from breathing toxic gases
First responders, including helicopter pilots, medics and tourists described victims with "horrific burns".
More than 1.2 million square centimetres of donor skin was being sent from the US to treat patients because there were not enough skin donors in Australasia to cover the crisis.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has stopped short of committing to a Government probe into the Whakaari / White Island eruption and says no decision will be made before next year.
There are currently two probes already running into the eruption: one by workplace watchdog WorkSafe, and a second by the coroner with the assistance of police.
Specialist teams, plus navy and police divers have searched surrounding waters for the missing bodies.
