RISSINGTON STATUE TO MARK ITS FIRST ANZAC DAY AFTER SURVIVING GABRIELLE

Hawke’s Bay’s landmark ANZAC sculpture at Rissington has survived trial by flooding and made its Anzac Day debut in April.

The small community, about 20km northwest of Napier, hosted NZ Army troops just weeks after they were called in to help with the response to Cyclone Gabrielle.

With one half of the community cut off by the swollen Mangaone River, soldiers from 2nd Royal NZ Engineer Regiment established a pulley system capable of carrying 80kg loads across to those in need.

The flooding also threatened to undermine the six-metretall redwood statue which was completed last year by carvers Hugh Tareha (who died during the project) and Chris Elliott.

The New Zealand soldier faces towards Napier and the Australian towards Sydney.

One of the drivers behind the statue project, Bronwyn Farquharson, said that during the cyclone it wasn’t clear if it would survive.

“There were a few tears shed when people saw it was still there,” she said.

“I had heard it was gone but then someone said ‘I think it’s still there’. It was day three before I could venture down and have a look. I was delighted to see it still standing. It’s very strong.”

Some of the bollards surrounding the statue had been lifted out of the ground but were quickly fixed and a working bee cleaned away a lot of the silt.

Bronwyn, whose son Lance Corporal Bennet Farquharson is an electrician with the 2 ER, said Rissington started holding Anzac Day services about five years ago and they had become increasingly popular.

The services are held at the Rissington War Memorial, a memorial rock and plaque on the corner of Soldiers Settlement and Puketitiri Roads, opposite the statue.

This year’s service was conducted by Royal New Zealand Air Force Chaplain Class 2 Di Woods, who also conducted the Commemoration Day held on Armistic Day in conjunction with the unveiling and blessing of the chainsaw carved Anzac Sculpture.