April 28, 2023
Safety fears force Erebus Memorial site move
Manatū Taonga Ministry for Culture and Heritage has scrapped plans for a national Erebus memorial in Parnell because of storm damage to the site.
Chief executive Laulu Mac Leauanae says she met this morning with families of those who died in the airplane crash and members of the Operation Overdue recovery team, to inform them of his decision to seek a new site for the memorial.
He says Taurarua / Dove-Myer Robinson Park in Parnell was selected in 2018 as a site to commemorate the 257 people who lost their lives on the slopes of the mountain in Antarctica on 28 November 1979.
But updated geotechnical engineering advice after extreme weather and slips on Auckland Anniversary Weekend was that the site is no longer safe or suitable.
The Parnell site was supported by Ngāti Whātua Ōrakei, but it drew protests from some neighbours and an occupation led by Ngāti Whātua kuia Dame Naida Glavish which prevented the start of construction.