Hawkes Bay Today
  • Hawke's Bay Today home
  • Latest news
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Video
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Residential property listings
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology

Locations

  • Napier
  • Hastings
  • Havelock North
  • Central Hawke's Bay
  • Tararua

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

Weather

  • Napier
  • Hastings
  • Dannevirke
  • Gisborne

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Hawkes Bay Today

Weather eerily similar at earthquake commemoration 89 years on

Hawkes Bay Today
3 Feb, 2020 03:45 AM2 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Mayors Sandra Hazlehurst (left), of Hastings, and Kirsten Wise, of Napier, lay wreaths on the 89th anniversary of the Hawke's Bay Earthquake. Photo/Warren Buckland

Mayors Sandra Hazlehurst (left), of Hastings, and Kirsten Wise, of Napier, lay wreaths on the 89th anniversary of the Hawke's Bay Earthquake. Photo/Warren Buckland

A commemoration of the Hawke's Bay earthquake which killed almost 260 people has been hold in hot and dry conditions nearly identical to those which prevailed on the tragic morning 89 years ago.

The commemoration took place Monday in the Hastings city centre, starting at 10.40am with the clock tower bells ring just seven minutes later to mark another anniversary of the huge quake which happened at 10.47am on February 3, 1931.

Reports from the time say conditions at the time were favourable for the spread of fire following the quake. It was a hot, fine day following a dry spell of weather, and in Napier fires which started in two shops moments afterwards were fanned towards "the Hill".

Although the toll is now being disputed, the number killed by the quake is recorded at 256, including 161 in Napier, 93 in Hastings and two in Wairoa.

The region's main commemoration has been held annually in Hastings for several years, and follows a survivors afternoon tea which was hosted by the Napier City Council, Hawke's Bay Regional Council, Hawke's Bay Civil Defence Emergency Management Group, Art Deco Trust, New Zealand Red Cross and Napier Boys' High School at the school on Sunday.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

A small number of survivors were present at the tea party and guest speaker was author and historian Michael Fowler.

The Hastings CBD commemoration included the laying of wreaths at the clock tower in memory of the lives lost.

Discover more

Risk of pest plant restricts removal of material from Tukituki River

03 Feb 07:26 PM
New Zealand

Funding top-up boosts Wairoa glass recycling, sustainability

10 Feb 10:42 PM
New Zealand

Large scrub fire flares up overnight in Hawke's Bay

04 Feb 04:38 PM
Save

    Share this article

Latest from Hawkes Bay Today

Hawkes Bay Today

Motorist dies after four crashes in 40 minutes in Hawke's Bay

Hawkes Bay Today

'We have you surrounded': Police stood down after Hawke's Bay stand-off, search continues

Premium
Hawkes Bay Today

Black Ferns: Tui pair on the big bird for matches in South Africa


Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Hawkes Bay Today

Motorist dies after four crashes in 40 minutes in Hawke's Bay
Hawkes Bay Today

Motorist dies after four crashes in 40 minutes in Hawke's Bay

Some roads remained blocked.

17 Jul 06:02 AM
'We have you surrounded': Police stood down after Hawke's Bay stand-off, search continues
Hawkes Bay Today

'We have you surrounded': Police stood down after Hawke's Bay stand-off, search continues

17 Jul 04:06 AM
Premium
Premium
Black Ferns: Tui pair on the big bird for matches in South Africa
Hawkes Bay Today

Black Ferns: Tui pair on the big bird for matches in South Africa

17 Jul 04:00 AM


Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

06 Jul 09:47 PM
NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Hawke's Bay Today e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Hawke's Bay Today
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • NZME Events
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP