Hard to Imagine

40 years ago today, Blandswood suffered a terrifying flash flood that claimed four young lives in a most tragic manner.

The events of 28 January 1975 were a freak occurrence, with a thunderstorm above Little Mount Peel and a slip resulting in the mild mannered Kowhai Stream being dammed by debris, then breaking the banks of the stream here on the flat of Blandswood, washing away houses and taking four children under twelve. I cannot imagine the horror and the shock of that day for those living here.

Long before my arrival in New Zealand, let alone the area here, the events of that day hold no personal significance for me, nor is it my place to comment on the effect it had on those living here and those who mourn their losses. It is their grief, not mine.

Instead, I mark the day by showing a picture of what once was Where the ford now lies, a bridge once stood over a calm mountain stream, washed away that fateful, stormy summer day.

It is indeed hard to imagine. Kia kaha.