18 ARMYPEOPLE
Sonny Te Rure
RUAPEHU TRAGEDY REMEMBERED A memorial dedicated to six young servicemen who died on Mt Ruapehu during an Army Adventurous Training Course 30 years ago, and those who survived, was unveiled during a ceremony in Waiouru last month.
The five soldiers and one sailor were on the mountaineering phase of a winter course when they died in extreme weather conditions. Five soldiers and two instructors with the group survived. The memorial and ceremony was organised by the Army Liaison Officer for Families of the Fallen. “The words, “Really! 30 years, it still feels like yesterday”, were a common reply when I spoke about what I was currently working on,” said SSGT Tina Grant. “For some of us time stands still but for others it’s a blur, especially when you lose a loved one. It is a fine balance of learning to ‘get on with life’ and keep remembering the ones we love and have lost. That is how the Families of the Fallen from the Mt Ruapehu tragedy explained how they have coped with the loss of their sons on that tragic day 30 years ago.”
The unveiling was preceded by a formal dinner the night before attended by the Sergeant Major of the Army, BRIG (Rtd) Phil Gibbons the Honorary Colonel for 1 RNZIR, and COL (Rtd) Ray Seymour, the Colonel of the Regiment. SSGT Grant said the highlight of the evening was when BRIG Gibbons addressed the diners and presented the families and survivors with a small memento recognising 30 years of remembrance. SSGT Grant said feedback received from the families and survivors was positive. “They were grateful to meet, greet, and share stories of their loved ones considering the national situation of Covid-19 Level 2. They were appreciative of the Army especially TRADOC allowing them to come together and remember.”
A survivor remembers By Sharon Lundy
Thirty years have passed since Sonny Te Rure survived the NZDF tragedy on Mt Ruapehu but he can remember it like it was yesterday. Mr Te Rure was one of 13 young men – 12 from the Army and one from the Navy – who set out on an ill-fated alpine training course on August 12, 1990. Privates Brett Barker, Stuart McAlpine, Mark Madigan, Jason Menhennet and David Stewart and Naval Rating Jeffrey Boult died on the mountain. Mr Te Rure attended the unveiling of the memorial. He was there to remember and to pay his respects – to those who died and to those who survived. “I was one of the survivors. I was their friend,” he said. “I think everyone benefitted from coming together and acknowledging those men, because at the end of the day they wore the uniform like we all once did. “We all signed on the dotted line to be part of a big whānau, and it’s only fair that we recognise and acknowledge that.” Mr Te Rure was one of three soldiers awarded a New Zealand Bravery Medal for their actions in trying to save their comrades; he shared his sleeping bag with two others in an ultimately futile attempt to save their lives. The others to be recognised were Privates Brendon Burchell and David Stewart, the latter posthumously. “The reason why I thought it was my duty to look after these young guys is because I knew they had just joined Victor
Company. We were already part of that Company, that team, that whānau, so I felt it was our duty to look after them,” he said. “Never mind about ourselves, look after them. Not once did I think about myself. I thought about my other comrades who were there, because I knew that they weren’t in a good space, mentally or physically.” Mr Te Rure suffered frostbite during the ordeal and, as a result of that and other injuries suffered while serving, is in the NZDF 2020 Invictus Games team – along with old friends from Basic Training Robert “Tiny” Graham and George Nepata. His NZDF connections don’t end there; son Sapper Dwayne Whaitiri was among family members who accompanied him to the memorial. Mr Te Rure enjoyed catching up with his fellow survivors and with the families of those who died, in the shadow of the mountain that caused so much devastation. He puts his survival to “the man upstairs”. “You might think you don’t believe in God but I tell you what, when something like this happens you get down on your knees and you pray. I can just remember it like it was yesterday.”
