Rāhui in Hawke’s Bay after concerns of human remains washed to sea

A ban on taking seafood from parts of Hawke’s Bay is being put in place due to beliefs human remains have been washed to the sea.

Parris​ Greening, the general manager for Hawke’s Bay hapu Mana Ahuriri Trust, on Monday said the rāhui on parts of Hawke’s Bay, would officially be in place after a ceremony.

It was a result of people struggling to eat and heading to the sea to get kaimoana (seafood) in water where human remains were understood to have been washed in floodwaters.

“We have no power. People’s gas bottles are running out,” he said. “People are desperate for kai.”

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He urged people to instead go to community centres for food and help.

The rāhui, a ban on fishing and kaimoana gathering, will remain in place for at least 10 days.

The rāhui comes after Cyclone Gabrielle left a path of destruction though Northland, Auckland, and down to Gisborne and Hawke’s Bay last week.

Thousands of people – many in Hawke’s Bay – remain uncontactable and the death toll of 11 seems likely to rise.

Anyone who has not yet reported themselves as safe should do so as soon as possible via this NZ Police online form.

A Facebook post from Mana Ahuriri Trust said the rāhui would remain in place for parts of Hawke’s Bay for at least the next 10 days.

It was due to concerns kōiwi (human remains) may have been washed to the sea in the floodwaters of Cyclone Gabrielle.

“Due to the recent Cyclone Gabrielle and the disturbance to our whenua, tangata whenua are still recovering tūpāpaku (bodies) from the ‘still missing list’ from Tangaroa,” the trust posted on Facebook.

“We also believe kōiwi from flooded urupā have been carried through the floods to sea.”

The rāhui has been supported by the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council.