An orca catches a wave at Mount Maunganui beach. Photo / Erin Armstrong
An orca catches a wave at Mount Maunganui beach. Photo / Erin Armstrong
The Bay of Plenty Times is looking back at the stories of 2021. Here's what made headlines in September.
September 1
Backed-up drive-throughs, busy cafes and an influx of online orders brought businesses "huge relief" as level 3 began, but despite the boost level 2 couldn't come fast enough.
Aftertwo weeks of strict level 4 restrictions, many businesses were able to partially re-open for contactless pick-up, delivery or drive-through.
Priority One's chief executive Nigel Tutt said level 3 was expected to bring in around 10 to 15 per cent more activity compared to level 4, with big sectors like construction and manufacturing now able to work.
Mount Maunganui's Brent Holmes headed to the water at 8am to get in a hydrofoil surf on the first day at Covid-19 alert level 3. Photo / George Novak
September 8
Relief from a drought of building materials that "crippled" the Bay construction sector's post-lockdown recovery was in sight after a Government rule change.
But builders said they would still be playing "catch-up" and delays could continue as some supply chains remained backlogged with manufacturing hub Auckland in lockdown as the rest of New Zealand moved to Covid-19 alert level 2.
Bay of Plenty builders spoken to by NZME said some building sites were at a standstill and homebuyers could bear the brunt of delays and material costs.
One builder said a lack of materials left the Bay of Plenty with a "profitless boom" that could be fatal for some businesses.
GIB, steel framing, roofing, timber, wall linings and fixings are in short supply and some products were expected to run out completely.
Tauranga City Council told the Government it could not cope with its skyrocketing population and demand on infrastructure, warning of a critical housing shortfall.
Council commissioners wrote to Environment Minister David Parker to notify him the council could not meet its expectations under the National Policy Statement – Urban Development Capacity Requirements.
The letter said Tauranga was heading for a shortfall of 1119 homes in the next three years, even with 3188 new homes expected to be built in that time.
The shortfall was expected to increase to 1637 within 30 years, despite ongoing efforts to cater for growth.
Tauranga's Ross Killoh, aka Mr Whippy, overcame a rare autoimmune disease that was destroying his kidneys - and now he doesn't need a transplant.
Doctors say only "one in a million" people are diagnosed with anti-GBM [glomerular basement membrane] and the chances of recovery are mostly influenced by time.
They say Killoh is one of the lucky ones.
It all started in February 2018 when the 62-year-old ice-cream truck owner noticed blood in his urine and went to Tauranga Hospital.
Ann and Ross Killoh, aka Mr and Mrs Whippy. Photo / George Novak
September 11
Lockdown Warriors are the essential workers who kept the Bay of Plenty going during alert level 4 and 3. They stocked our supermarket shelves, policed the restrictions, cared for our elderly and looked after us when we needed help. When the Bay of Plenty was plunged into lockdown on August 17 a small army of unsung heroes geared up and got to work.
St Johns paramedic Cain Selby. Photo / George Novak
September 18
NZME launched its 90% Project in an effort to get that percentage of the population vaccinated by Christmas.
We spoke to Mount Maunganui's Lucy Brewerton who got the Covid-19 vaccination not only for herself but also for her younger brother, Hamish Mountfort, who has cystic fibrosis.
The 90% Project, was rolled out across the country to encourage New Zealanders to get the jab, along with information on how to get vaccinated and ways to encourage others to join.
The 24-year-old, a student and nanny, said her mother had "really been encouraging" her to get vaccinated because Brewerton may also carry the cystic fibrosis gene.
Lucy Brewerton got the Covid vaccine. Photo / George Novak
September 24
"Totally grey and washed out."
That is how former principal Linda Woon's husband used to describe her after a hard day at work.
Woon retired as principal of Otonga Rd Primary School in 2020 after working in education for 50 years - 30 of those as a principal across two Rotorua schools.
She said she loved her time as a principal, but it could be lonely.
Woon was among 1709 teachers and principals who left the profession in the Bay of Plenty Waiariki area in the past five years, and not returned as of mid-July.
That's according to Ministry of Education payroll records for state and state-integrated schools.
The number of leavers each year rose steadily from 276 in 2016 to 417 last year (2020). So far this year, to July 23, 133 had left and not taken up another position.
