Don Wrigley holds two large rocks that were thrown at his shop doors in a recent break-in. Photo/Rose Stirling
Don Wrigley holds two large rocks that were thrown at his shop doors in a recent break-in. Photo/Rose Stirling
A lack of police patrols in Dargaville has been blamed for a recent break in at a Thai restaurant in the Kaipara town.
Dargaville business owners Don and Rose Wrigley say there are not enough police officers operating in the area and this is to blame for recent criminal activity.
"From about 10.30pm onwards we don't see cop cars in town."
Kaipara Rural Response Senior Sergeant John Fagan said Dargaville has never been a 24 hour station and there's a number of stations in Northland like this.
"The reason for that is that demand for services is not as great. To justify having one to two officers on duty for the occasional job probably does not warrant it. Hence why we have an on-call system.
"But if it's a job that is no risk to life or property then we may look to see if it is best to attend during the day instead."
However, the Wrigleys say they regularly work until 3am and have done so for many years. Not once have they seen a police car after this time.
"The lack of police presence in the area is seriously worrying.
"We regularly see kids/teenagers on pushbikes without helmets on until 3am in the morning and no one seems to care."
The Wrigleys' restaurant Raan Ahaan Thai Aroi Dee was broken into last week and they say the alleged offenders were caught on surveillance camera throwing large rocks through their front doors in order to break in.
"They stole an empty till, a laptop and a pile of icecreams along with a bag of banana chips from the counter and a calculator.
"I was very very angry … I feel the lack of police controls needs to be addressed."
Mr Wrigley said if his store gets broken into again he won't be relying on the police to deal with it.
"For me I'm going to take care of myself from here on in and I won't take prisoners."
That same night Mr Wrigley said an attempted break in was made at the neighbouring Bake House bakery and at the Victoria St Dairy.
Mayor to chip in with tree planting Otamatea HarbourCare has recently received a grant of $12,000 from Foundation North for local landowners to plant trees and Kaipara mayor Jason Smith has put his hand up to help out.
Locals and volunteers helping on the Lupton Farm in Maungaturoto at last year's planting day.
HarbourCare Society secretary Mark Vincent said he was really pleased to receive the grant as it means much needed work to prevent erosion in the region can now go ahead.
"We are also really pleased to announce that our new mayor Jason Smith has agreed to be our celebrity planter this year.
"We will be starting our planting programme from the end of May, and it is likely to continue through to the end of August.
"We are still working out dates and locations, but hopefully we will have a website to be able to advise dates and places, or people could refer to our Facebook page for updates in the meantime."
"There are two main reasons why it is good to do plantings alongside waterways and on erosion-prone land: firstly it helps with intercepting sediment and nutrients and reducing stream bank erosion, and secondly it adds to biodiversity by providing habitat for a variety of beneficial bugs on the land and in the water. Of course this means more food for birds and fish."
Locals and or volunteers who want to help can contact Mark Vincent on 021 0829 8037.
Pasifika youth voices to be heard Do you have Pacific Island heritage? Then Fale Pasifika wants to hear from you.
Fale Pasifika manager May Seagar during a Pacific Island Day in Whangarei in 2016.
Next Tuesday a gathering will be held at the Dargaville High School for Pacific youth to meet and discuss their heritage, inspirations and aspirations, learn more about their culture and participate in fun games and workshops hosted by Fale Pasifika.
Fale Pasifika aims to promote healthy Pacific families through awareness, support and active living and bridge the gap between Island roots and NZ born.
Fale Pasifika manager May Seagar said they are asking for support from the Pacific islands community to do something positive for Pasifika youth in Northland.
"We want to hear their voices and find out how they feel about being a Pacific Island young person growing up in Northland.
"Many youth are aware of their Pacific heritage, but don't know what that actually means, or know how to connect with their sense of identity," said Ms Seagar.
There will be two Pasifika Youth Voices Fono events, one in Dargaville and one in Whangarei, targeted at 14 to 24-year-olds as well as parents who may wish to attend.
Ms Seagar will be travelling from Maungaturoto, through Paparoa and Ruawai, and can collect participants along the way, then drop them home again afterwards.
