Rikki Reed standing by the tree he clung to in 2023. Photo: ALEXA COOK / RNZ
It is almost a joyous scene - the sun is shining, people are hugging, smiling and greeting one another outside the pretty little red and white church in Eskdale. The notes of the bagpipes fill the air, and the scent of fresh cut grass lingers.
But look a little closer and you can see the pain and sorrow etched on people's faces, as this tight-knit community takes a moment to remember the traumatic events of this day two years ago when Cyclone Gabrielle changed all their lives forever.
"It'd be nice to move on from it, but I don't think I can... I think it's something that's always going to be with me," said cyclone survivor Rikki Reed.
Reed spent hours clinging to a tree in the dark turbulent floodwaters of Esk Valley, thinking he was going to die without ever seeing his family again.
A shadow passes over his usually smiling face as he recalls the pure terror he felt, the memory of that deadly day still haunts him.
"I'm still struggling. It's been hard, but there've been lots of good things that have happened as well," he said.
It was a storm like no other, claiming 11 lives as many of the region's rivers burst their banks, the torrent tearing across the landscape, swallowing homes and forcing hundreds of people onto their roofs in desperate hope of a rescue.
Marking the anniversary of such a catastrophic event was tough with so many emotions bubbling back up, but Reed said he made a last-minute decision to attend the church event and is glad he did so.
"I wasn't going to do anything but ended back out here again.. I think it's important to come here and pay your respects.
"I'm grateful to be here... I'll never forget that, in the two years when I've gotten grumpy or overwhelmed I stop and remind myself that I'm lucky to be alive," said Reed.
Rikki Reed standing by the tree he clung to in 2023. Photo: ALEXA COOK / RNZ
In the 24 months since the cyclone, the community has rallied to help one another - digging homes out of the silt and trying to piece their lives back together step by step. For those gathered at the Eskdale church, Friday was about acknowledging that journey and those challenges, said minister Nigel Kynoch.
"We are thankful for the sense of community.
"Give thanks for this day and that we can come and do it in this place," he said.
A place that had survived thanks to Reed's extraordinary effort to dig the 105-year-old church out of the deep silt it was buried in.
"A lot of people helped, we dug out the drains and fixed the grass, dug out the 100 yr old rose.
"I always like coming here, it's peaceful," said Reed.
That peace emanated from the church on Friday, leaving those who attended feeling lucky to be alive, but also a deep sense of grief for the 11 lives taken far too soon.
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