NZ Engine

Source: Radio New Zealand

Three Waikato mayors have written to the chief executive of Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ) urgently requesting the immediate reinstatement of watercraft used in river rescues.

However, FENZ has told RNZ it isn’t going to happen.

In May, FENZ banned the use of all powered watercraft used by local fire stations to rescue people during water emergencies. The decision means Ngāruawāhia and Huntly volunteer fire stations are no longer able to use their jet skis and boat during emergencies on Waikato river.

The three mayors said this decision, in their view, was putting lives at risk.

Waikato District Council mayor Aksel Bech, Waipa District Council mayor Mike Pettit and Hamilton City Council mayor Tim Macindoe said they have had no substantive response on the issue from FENZ leadership since the end of July. They have told FENZ’s chief executive Kerry Gregory that has not been good enough.

“While we appreciate the efforts made to date, we remain concerned that the pace of progress and clarity around next steps has not matched the urgency of the risk – and now what appears to be a firm decision made in isolation of any collaborative approach,” the mayors wrote.

Though advocating for their districts, they pointed out that the issue went beyond their borders.

“The Waikato River is a lifeline for many communities – culturally, recreationally, and economically. The ability to respond to emergencies on the river is not a luxury; it is a necessity,” they wrote.

Most appropriate agency needs to respond – FENZ

FENZ deputy national commander Megan Stiffler said Gregory had received the letter and FENZ was working through it.

“However, we will not be implementing an interim agreement or permanent framework because Fire and Emergency does not have the capability to operate powered watercraft safely or in a manner compliant with the Maritime Transport Act 1994 or Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 (H&S). We also don’t have the capacity to stand up this capability.”

The mayors said this was a FENZ problem, not a community one.

“That lack of ability to comply with H&S and Maritime requirements is at the FENZ level, NOT the local Brigades who have obtained all appropriate certifications and we understand have appropriate H&S training and procedures in place,” they wrote.

“Put bluntly, the two local Brigades have taken all appropriate steps and appear to be fully compliant – and have successfully completed many potentially lifesaving rescues. It is FENZ that has taken the decision that it itself is not compliant and have instructed the Brigades not to respond, leaving no alternatives in place.”

Stiffler said FENZ wanted everyone to be safe on the Waikato River, but such incidents needed to be responded to by the most appropriate agency.

“Police, Surf Lifesaving NZ, and Maritime NZ are the lead agencies and organisations for operation and oversight of this activity,” she said.

But the mayors said the local volunteer stations were the only agencies locally who could respond.

“The FENZ claim that others will respond to a swift water rescue is not consistent with our local knowledge; Police are equipped for recovery, not rescue operations in the timeframes required. Coastguard and Surf Lifesaving do not have jurisdiction or any ability to respond. The Harbour Master is not equipped to respond nor is LandSar.”

Stiffler said finding a safe and effective solution for the community involved working with a range of key stakeholders, including councils, which would take time.

Yet with warmer temperatures and more people in the river, the mayors said an interim arrangement was needed that enabled the local stations to respond.

“Our communities expect that together we will find a way to protect lives on the Waikato River and we welcome the opportunity to do so,” they told FENZ.

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

By Noam Mānuka Lazarus, Massey University journalism graduate

A charity providing community dive lessons and marine education says its programmes are under threat after $90,000 worth of equipment was stolen.

Volunteer dive instructors of Mountains to Sea Wellington showed up with a group of students on Monday morning to find that someone had broken into their marine base at Moa Point.

The group said thieves drove off with one of the charity’s two brand-new, white Toyota Hilux trucks, and a trailer containing half of their dive snorkels, masks, wetsuits, and other equipment between Saturday evening and Sunday afternoon.

Co-director and co-founder Zoe Studd said she was “really gutted”.

The charity was without enough equipment to run its free school and community snorkel programme in the new year. “Half is not enough,” she said.

While the truck and trailer had been found, much of the gear was still missing.

The charity worked with thousands of students each year on marine education, experiences and restoration efforts.

“We’re only just managing to keep our school groups going till the end of their term, but it’s a scramble,” Marine lead Jorge Jimenez said.

The vehicle and trailer were insured but the contents were not.

“The costs of replacing our wetsuits and safety gear is well in excess of $25,000, but it also takes time to get the custom-made wetsuits for younger students that are right for our conditions,” said Jimenez.

“It’s just a real kick in the guts,” Jimenez said. “All this comes at a time when many charities are struggling to find funding to keep their work going.”

Studd said they’d reached out to supporters and local community members in the hope of retrieving the equipment and reported the theft to police.

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

The white supremacist terrorist who murdered 51 people in the Christchurch terror attack is expected to give evidence in an attempt to overturn his conviction and life sentence.

Brenton Harrison Tarrant massacred 51 worshippers at Al Noor Mosque and Linwood Islamic Centre during Friday prayers on 15 March, 2019.

He initially denied all charges and planned to stand trial but the Australian-born terrorist entered surprise guilty pleas to 51 counts of murder, 40 of attempted murder and one of terrorism on 26 March, 2020.

He was jailed for life with no possibility of parole – the first time such a sentence was imposed – in August 2020 but he is now seeking to vacate his guilty plea and appeal his conviction and sentence.

The terrorist must first convince the Court of Appeal to hear his appeal.

The court will hear evidence on an extension of time for the terrorist to appeal his conviction and sentence in February next year.

It is likely the terrorist will give evidence during the hearing.

He is also expected to give evidence to the Coroners Court after the High Court cleared the way for him to be called as a witness despite objections from survivors and victims’ families.

The terrorist was previously interviewed by a Royal Commission of Inquiry into the terror attack.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

MetService is forecasting downpours across the North Island on Wednesday, with RELATED] https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/513904/weather-watches-and-warnings-what-they-mean-and-when-they-re-triggered possible thunderstorms] in some places, and a number of watches and warnings in place.

A heavy rain warning is in place from 11am until 11pm on Wednesday for Bay of Plenty and Gisborne/Tai Rāwhiti north of Ruatoria and the inland ranges, thunderstorms and downpours are also possible in these areas.

Meteorologist Mmathapelo Makgabutlane said the most notable warning was for Bay of Plenty, with 80 to 120 millimetres of rain set to fall before the end of the day.

“With thunderstorms in the mix we could see shorter periods of more intense rain bringing those possibilities such as flooding as well as slips and difficult driving conditions.”

At 10.15am, MetService’s weather radar detected severe thunderstorms near Matamata, Waharoa and the Kaimai Ranges.

These severe thunderstorms are moving towards the southeast, and are expected to lie near Matamata, Tirau, the Southern Kaimai Ranges, Te Poi, Okoroire and Hinuera at 10.45am and near Putaruru, the Mamaku Plateau, the Southern Kaimai Ranges, Te Poi and Okoroire at 11.15 am. These thunderstorms are expected to be accompanied by very heavy rain.

Thunderstorms may also occur in Taranaki and Whanganui, she said.

A severe thunderstorm watch is in place for a large part of the North Island including Coromandel Peninsula, Waikato, Bay of Plenty and Taupo from 1pm-6pm on Wednesday.

Some of these thunderstorms may become severe on Wednesday afternoon with localised downpours of up to 40mm/h, large hail and strong wind gusts of up to 90km/h.

MetService said there was even a slight chance of a tornado, but that thunderstorm activity was expected to ease by Wednesday evening.

Northerly winds are forecast to turn southwesterly with gusts of up to 90km/h forecast.

Heavy rain watches are in place for a number of places throughout the day including Northland, Auckland, Great Barrier Island and Coromandel Peninsula, Taranaki, Wairarapa, the eastern hills and ranges in Wellington, and central North Island areas including Waikato and inland Whanganui.

There are also strong wind watches in place later on Wednesday for Northland, Auckland, Taranaki, Horowhenua to Wellington, parts of the Tararua and Hawke’s Bay districts and Wairarapa.

In the South Island heavy rain watches are in place for the Kaikōura Coast and the Chatham Islands, where a strong wind watch is also in place.

There may also be thunderstorms in Central Otago on Wednesday afternoon or evening.

Wind watches are also in place for Marlborough and parts of the Nelson region from 5pm Wednesday until 3am Thursday.

Makgabutlane said things were set to improve from Thursday onwards.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

By Mike Wesley-Smith

Solving the murder of Darcy Te Hira inside Mt Eden Prison was never going to be easy.

The reason was as apparent to me decades later, doing the Nark podcast, as it was to the team of detectives who arrived at Mt Eden Prison on 6 January 1985. There was no forensic evidence pointing to the killer, meaning police had to extract the truth of what happened from a bunch of criminals. Many had dishonesty convictions, and most were muzzled by an inmate code of silence.

It is a context that must be remembered by anyone who assesses what then happened during the police investigation and murder prosecution of Ross Appelgren. Police and prosecutors bear a considerable legal and social burden to ensure murderers are held to account. Evidence sometimes comes easily, but even when it doesn’t, society still seeks quick justice – particularly when a killing occurs inside a supposedly secure prison.

In the end, the conviction of Ross Appelgren relied entirely on the eye-witness testimony of a fellow inmate – a “nark” to use prison vernacular. His name is suppressed, so in the podcast, he’s called “Ernie”.

Even in 1985, there were rules that detectives and prosecutors had to follow, because building and maintaining a conviction is like building and maintaining a house; it must have a solid foundation and an immovable watertight frame that can stand the tests of time and resist the winds of scrutiny. Because, as in Appelgren’s case, even when the convicted die, their quest for justice doesn’t always die with them.

And don’t be fooled into thinking the case’s age somehow diminishes its relevance – its lessons are just as valuable today as they were then.

My Nark podcast, which has been released over the past six weeks and is now fully available online, has revealed many instances of police and prosecutors failing to follow their own rules. The full list would take me beyond this article’s word limit, but here are just some of the most serious examples Appelgren’s lawyers have discovered in police and court documents:

• Police failed to record all their interactions with Ernie – including the meeting where they told him he was either a witness or a suspect (something they never told the juries or Appelgren’s lawyers). This was significant, as prosecutors maintained Ernie had no reason to implicate Appelgren other than his desire to see justice done.
• Prior to taking a formal statement from Ernie, police discussed compensation with him in exchange for his evidence. At the time Ernie was a penniless inmate with over 200 previous convictions for fraud, who’d given conflicting accounts before formally documenting what he had to say.
• Police assured him of early prison release before he testified.
• At the first trial, the prosecution failed to disclose Ernie’s initial police statements, including his anonymous note that “I never saw it done”. This resulted in Appelgren’s first conviction being quashed.
• At the 1992 retrial, the prosecution failed to disclose inmate “Danny’s” confession that he had ordered the hit on Te Hira and that Appelgren was not involved. This led the Governor-General to refer Appelgren’s case back to the Court of Appeal in 1994, because it might have resulted in a miscarriage of justice.

That appeal was never heard before Appelgren died.

Now his widow, Julie, hopes to resurrect it, not just because she believes her husband is innocent, but also because of the police and prosecution failures outlined.

In setting this all out, I am not asserting that the Crown case was without merit. Two juries and two appeal courts found Ernie convincing enough to convict Appelgren.

When I tracked him down and spoke to him for hours, he remained steadfast in his account. It also cannot be presumed that a Court, apprised of all the new evidence that has emerged since the 1992 retrial, would rule Appelgren’s conviction is unsafe. So listen to the podcast and decide for yourself.

Going into my investigation, I knew that I would have a lot of contact with Julie Appelgren and learn a lot about her questions regarding the prosecution case.

What I didn’t know was that I would also come to know Te Hira’s widow, Suzanne Young, just as well. She believes Appelgren is guilty, but I discovered she nonetheless has many long-standing doubts about what happened to her husband. There was so much she only found out for the first time from me.

Suzanne’s perspective, unheard before, was one of the most significant revelations for me in this project. Through her, I finally learned who Te Hira really was. A much-loved husband who is still sorely missed.

Both Julie and Suzanne hoped for different outcomes in this case, but both expected that two trials would deliver the truth, however difficult or painful to hear.

After my years-long experience with this case, I don’t think they or the rest of us yet have that truth. For that reason, I believe Suzanne deserves the answers to her questions and that Appelgren’s appeal deserves its day in Court.

None of this will be easy, but then nothing about this case ever was.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand