A year in review: January 2014

2014 was an eventful year for many Bay residents. Photos / File

Pool tragedy
Paramedics managed to resuscitate 41-year-old Catherine Michell Hintz from Palmerston North after being discovered lying on the bottom of a Greerton motel swimming pool at 4.30pm on New Year's Eve. The owners of Cameron Thermal Motel said they dragged the motel guest's body from the pool and began CPR as they waited for paramedics to arrive. Unfortunately she died overnight on New Year's Day.

Drunken teens
Drunk underage teens blighted otherwise quiet celebrations in the Bay on New Year's Eve and accounted for more than 20 per cent of arrests, sparking a call from police for parents to supervise their children as they were vulnerable. Western Bay of Plenty police Area Commander Inspector Clifford Paxton said the number of juveniles aged under 17 years old that were offenders had increased on previous years and a number of them had been drinking.

Beauty's shock
It was a one upmanship for Miss Mount 2013 winner Ceri McVinnie from Matamata who only entered the event because she wanted a sash to match her boyfriend's. Christiaan de Beer, 22, won second place in the Mr Mount competition held earlier on New Year's Eve. "My boyfriend got second so I thought we would look cute in matching sashes. I'm completely shocked," Ms McVinnie said.

First baby
While party-goers were welcoming in the New Year, Fiona and Marty Violich were welcoming their first child. At 2.43am on January 1 Mrs Violich gave birth to Tauranga Hospital's first baby of 2014, a healthy baby girl weighing 3.49kg (7lbs 11oz).

Top class
Mount Maunganui's $2 million Bay Oval cricket pavilion was opened by Mayor Stuart Crosby just minutes before the start of the first match played at the venue on January 2. Mr Crosby said the development of the cricket arena and the top-class facilities of the pavilion were important to the development of sport in the city.

Appeal success
The cupboards at the Tauranga Community Foodbank were "bulging at the seams" thanks to the 2013 Bay of Plenty Times Christmas Appeal, which raised more than $86,000 for the charity the final tally showed on January 10. The previous year's appeal raised $67,000 for the foodbank.

Sporty highlight
Excavation work began on January 13 to transform ASB Baypark Stadium into a jet boating wonderland creating a world-first in the process. The ENZED V8 Jetsprints @ ASB Baypark were staged on January 25. Bay Leisure and Events CEO Gary Dawson said the second round of the NZ Jetsprint Championship Series would be the first time the sport was held in an enclosed seated sporting stadium. Nearly 50 teams from New Zealand and Australia entered the event which drew a crowd estimated between 14,000 and 15,000.

Keeping busy
Linda Hopkins was one of the oldest people in New Zealand - she could have been the oldest woman in Tauranga - and celebrated her 106th birthday on January 19. Mrs Hopkins was a resident at Bob Owens Retirement Village in Bethlehem where she said there was always plenty to do. "You've got to keep occupied otherwise you get miserable," she said. She loves knitting and reading and is knitting things for children in Russia with her "Knitters and Natters" group.

Council bungle
A Tauranga City Council stuff-up over changes to its Operation of Mobile Shops Policy left a group of business owners thousands of dollars out of pocket and forced one to sell up. A city manager admitted the council failed to update its website or brochures following changes in September 2013 that meant food vendors were now only allowed to park in a residential area for 15 minutes instead of an hour. Papamoa couple Ricky Lee, 30, and Anna Lawrence, 29, said they had suffered a "huge loss" because of the council's lack of communication and were considering legal action after the pair bought a caravan from which they sold organic drinks, Dutch frites, Kransky sausages and icecreams.

Leaky schools
About $44 million will be spent repairing 53 leaky buildings in Western Bay schools. A Bay of Plenty Times Official Information Act request to the Ministry of Education revealed on January 25, 53 buildings in 16 schools throughout the Western Bay of Plenty were affected by leaky buildings and were in varying stages of repair.

Fire drama
A 63-year-old Papamoa man felt lucky to be alive after a petrol can exploded in the back of his ute, setting him on fire. Don Bayliss was in Tauranga Hospital on January 27 with moderate burns to his arms, face and neck after the explosion on January 25, which sounded "like a bomb going off". His wife Cushla said "Don's hair caught fire and everywhere not covered by clothing was burnt".