Flood debris at Fernhill bridge and Ngaruroro Road in Hawkes Bay. Photo: Jonathan Bixley
The families of the 12 people who died in Hawke's Bay during Cyclone Gabrielle want the Coronial Inquiry to include the issues around weather forecasting accuracy, the emergency response, and the search and rescue efforts.
A two-day scope hearing is being held at Hastings District Court on Monday and Tuesday to decide which issues will be considered by the coroner looking into the 12 deaths linked to Cyclone Gabrielle in the region, which included three suspected self-inflicted deaths.
It will examine the circumstances and causes of the deaths for: Ivy Collins, Susane Caccioppoli, Helen Street, John Coates, Shona Wilson, Marie Greene, Ian McLauchlan, George Luke and Brendan Miller.
Last month, Auckland District Court held a similar hearing to determine the scope of the inquiry into the four deaths from the Auckland Anniversary Floods, and two deaths in the region during Cyclone Gabrielle.
The full Coronial Inquiry for all 18 deaths is expected in the second half of 2025.
Coroner Erin Woolley opened the hearing by offering her condolences to all the families involved, many of whom were present in the Hastings District Court public gallery and online.
"Many of you have personal lived experience ... and are still dealing with the consequences of these events... physically or emotionally dealing not only with the loss of a loved one, but you yourself going through the effects on your own properties.
"It is my hope this process will ultimately identify the way the loss of lives in similar circumstances can be prevented," she said.
The court heard how those who died in Hawke's Bay had no warning from authorities about the flood risk and were swept to their death in floodwaters.
Jane Glover, who was representing the families, said they were concerned that a raft of reports and inquiries into Cyclone Gabrielle had not been acted on.
"There is currently some scepticism among families as to various reports and reviews conducted to date... and whether they resulted in meaningful change," she said.
Some of the questions the coroner would seek to answer in her inquiry included what was known about the flooding risks before Cyclone Gabrielle, what warnings were issued, whether emergency services were prepared, what flooding mitigation practices were in place, and what mental health support was available.
Flood damage at Omaranui Road in Hawkes Bay Photo: Jonathan Bixley
However, the family also wanted these issues included:
- Weather forecasting accuracy and communications.
- Adequacy of flood mitigation measures, and what has changed since the cyclone.
- The emergency response, including what happened when people called 111, as some were told no one was coming to help.
- The Search and Rescue coordination, and communications with families when they were alerted to missing person reports.
"Was the weather forecasting about this event updated in a timely manner? And was it the best information reasonably available?" Glover asked.
The failure to evacuate most residents was also in question.
Jack and Ella Collins, whose two-year-old daughter Ivy died in the floodwaters in Eskdale, were questioning why they were not evacuated when others in the same flood hazard zone as them were alerted.
"The Collins consider that should have been a priority and want to know why it didn't happen... The failure to evacuate contributed directly to Ivy's death," Glover said.
The family, along with many others, wanted to know what flood and evacuation plans had been prepared and implemented by local authorities in the 20 months since the cyclone, as they feared nothing had changed.
One of the more challenging aspects of the coronial inquiry will be that every one of the 12 deaths occurred in very different situations.
Street was dependent on oxygen supply and ran out, Wilson was asleep in her bed when a landslide buried her bedroom, and Luke was caught in a landslide while driving from Taihape to Napier.
A slip blocked the road and he spent three days trying to get help, before finally being taken by helicopter to hospital where he died from exhaustion and hypothermia.
His partner's lawyer, Eloise Pointon, told the coroner that one of their key issues for the inquiry concerned the public messaging from authorities and NZTA about the safety of roads, "including how information around road closures is reported, and by who, and how it's actioned".
A number of organisations were represented at the hearing including Hawke's Bay Regional Council, Fire and Emergency NZ, Police, Te Whatu Ora, the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) and the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA).
Detective Inspector Martin James asked that some issues were settled outside of the inquiry, such as complaints from families about not being able to view their loved one's bodies and the seemingly unhelpful responses from 111.
"Issues raised by families are sensitive ... and I don't think it's appropriate to go to a full hearing," he said.
The Hawke's Bay Regional Council questioned how wide the scope was on the issue of building homes in flood prone area. Coroner Woolley said this would be addressed.
"We do need to strike a balance between being too wide and not too narrow... it seems to me this is a matter of concern for community - how residential development in known flood areas has happened," she said.
One of the deaths, that of 64-year-old Coates who died in floodwaters in Te Karaka near Gisborne, is unlikely to be included in the inquiry.
Glover told the coroner that Gisborne District Court had submitted that an inquiry was not required for Coates's death.
Coates's family accepted this as he had returned to collect something from his home after being evacuated, and his death was a tragic accident because he had lost his footing, she said.
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