Tokoroa principals remember students lost in crash which killed 8 north of Taupō

Monday, 6 May 2019

Tokoroa school principals dealing with the aftermath of a crash that killed five children from the same family have opened up about the students they lost.

Margaret Luke, 35, and David Poutawa, 42, along with five of their seven children, including Tokoroa High School's Trinity, 13, Tokoroa Intermediate School's Chanley, 11, and Tokoroa North School's Jahnero, 10, Akacia, 8, and Khyus, 7, were all killed in a crash in Atiamuri, south of Tokoroa, on April 28.

Tokoroa High School deputy principal Steve English said the deaths had caused widespread shock.

Five of the seven children of David Poutawa and Margaret Luke were killed in an Atiamuri crash.

'As you walk around the school it is quite a calm and peaceful place,' he said.

**READ MORE:

Hearses carrying the bodies of Tokoroa students, killed in an Atiamuri car crash that claimed eight lives, passed through Tokoroa High School last week.

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Tokoroa North School students release helium balloons as the bodies of three of their own, killed in a car crash, pass through Tokoroa High School.

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David Poutawa's mother Sherilyn Poutawa, speaking after the crash in 2019, said grieving the loss would be a long journey (Video first published in April 2019).

'There has been a fairly flat feeling, whereas normally we have kids charging around.

'The staff room has been very quiet these last few days too and the guidance counsellor tells me she has had quite a lot of visits.'

Last Wednesday, hundreds of people gathered outside the school as multiple hearses carrying the family's bodies passed through the town as they journeyed to Timikara Marae, Moteo, in the Hawke's Bay ahead of a mass tangi on Saturday.

The students, along with their parents, died in this crash on SH1, Atiamuri, on April 28.

Kapa haka students performed, waiata were sung, karakia were prayed, and students holding candles released helium balloons into the night sky. Many were brought to tears.

English said Trinity, the eldest of the children killed, was a well liked student who had a bright future ahead of him.

Tokoroa North School lost three students in the crash The lone survivor also attended their school.

'Trinity [was] a humble young man who always wore a smile. He did not have any trouble making friends.

'Trinity would have gone on to achieve success academically, culturally and in leadership. He will be sadly missed and never forgotten.'

Tokoroa North School Principal Judith McLean, who attended the tangi, said Tokoroa was united in grief.

'We were stunned with the devastating news that we had lost three of our students in the accident. The reported nine-year-old [David Poutawa, the sole survivor of the crash] who was hospitalised was also from our school.

'It was overwhelming to see the huge number of people who met at Tokoroa High School on Wednesday night as the whanau passed through,' she said.

McLean said the school would always remember its students for their 'beautiful smiles and sparkling eyes'.

Khyus' teacher Shirley Barber described him as a popular member of her class who loved 'Pokemon, playing outside with friends and his favourite food was hamburgers and chips'.

'Khyus was a happy, kind, thoughtful person. His family were a big part of his world,' she said.

Akacia's teacher Jess Gerlach said she made her smile.

'Akacia was a lovely child. [She was] a quiet achiever who was a friend to all,' she said.

Jahnero was described as a positive role model who 'tried his best in everything he did'.

Scouts New Zealand manager and Lower Hutt woman Jenny Rodgers, who was the sole occupant of the SUV, also died in the crash. Her funeral was held on Monday.